How to Oil Paint Landscape Scenes

The first thing in painting a landscape painting is your subject. Choose a scene that you like such as a lake view or a field of flowers or even a cottage set in the woods. Once your subject is chosen then it is time to decide your canvas size.

If you are sure of your ability to paint your landscape scene, then choose the size of canvas that you feel will do the scene justice. I find that most any size will do, but it often depends on the 'mood' I want to create. However, for scenes that have a subject that I want to experiment with, I will choose a smaller canvas such as an 8x10 primed cotton. Choosing a smaller size enables me to quickly do a study and if it looks good enough, there is the option of doing the scene over again and with more detail on a larger canvas allowing me to enhance what I wasn't able to achieve in the smaller canvas.

The next step is to set out your palate. The colors that you choose are often dictated by the season of the painting as well as the light. Is the scene bathed in sunlight? Is it a foggy morning, a winter scene with snow on the ground and barren trees? As you can see the colors will be dictated by the scene that you choose to paint.

Once you establish your palate, then it is time to sketch the scene on your canvas. I will sometimes use one of the colors on my palate or a charcoal pencil. The main point is to sketch in the major shapes, don't worry about the details at this point.

After you have sketched in the general shapes of your landscape you will want to block in the lights and the dark areas of the scene with an under paint of color. Generally speaking I will use a wash of burnt umber and fill in the major shapes. More color of the wash is used for the darker areas and less color of the wash is used for the lighter areas. This is sometimes referred to as a 'value wash'. Once this is done, step back and compare the lights and the dark areas on your canvas with the scene. If you need to define some darker or lighter values, this is the time.

The next step is to mix the color for your sky. The choice of the color of course is dependent on your landscape scene. For instance, in a typical blue sky I often choose cobalt blue, cadmium yellow light and little cadmium red light. To these colors I will add titanium white to get the different hues of the colors. Working from the top of the sky down to the horizon lay in your sky. Then take your greens and mix color for your foliage. Along the horizon line lay in the foliage to blend with your sky.

So far you have put your sky and your horizon line in. The next step would be to paint in your background trees and work your way forward in the painting from the horizon line to the foreground. As you work the foreground you will need to pay more attention to the detail of the landscape and bring out those factors that excited you about the scene. Once this is done, step back and take a look. This is the point to refine any areas of the painting that you feel are lacking. Once that is done...well you are done!

Morris, J is an award winning self taught artist and invites you to get our free e-book on 'Element of Drawing' by John Ruskin just for joining us at: http://oilpaintingtutorial.net/

To get your own personal oil painting lessons online join me at:
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What Is A Listed Artist?

You often hear that an artist is listed, so what does this really mean? Basically, it means that an artist has attained a certain level of recognition in the art world.

Just like everyone else, an artist starts their career at the bottom level. They start to show their work by attending local or school shows, having their art in galleries that specialize in emerging artists, listing their art on sites like eBay and Etsy. As their art matures and they develop a signature style, the artist will start winning awards in major shows, have representation in more established galleries, articles written about them and possible museum attention.

This gets the artists noticed by the publishers, curators, art critics or sites that reference these artist. These entities report biographies, dealers and secondary market information. The importance of this is that it validates that the artist is a professional, creates quality art, deserves recognition and has a stronger potential for maintaining or increasing in value.

It's the same type of progression as a musician that starts playing at the local pub and graduates to large concerts and the cover of the "Rolling Stone".

During pre-internet days, the major reference books, kind of the "Rolling Stone" for art, that an artist could be listed in were Benezit, Mayers and Who's Who in American Art. Being referenced in these books qualified the artist as being "listed". Publications in which an artist paid to be referenced in do not qualify the artists for this distinction.

Today there are major art reference web sites (most are subscription based for all or part of the information). If an artist is referenced on these sites, they are considered as "listed". The major sites are AskArt, ArtPrice, ArtFact and ArtNet. It is very easy to verify if an artist is "listed" by checking these sites. These sites are constantly being updated with new information.

Picasso, Rembrandt and Van Gogh are examples of "listed" artists. Very few listed artists achieve their level of recognition, but this does illustrate that not all listed artists are created equal. Some are much more famous than others.

Just because an artist is not listed does not mean that they are not a creative and accomplished artist, but a "listed" artist has the added confirmation and recognition of their talent.

Most artists never receive this recognition and sometimes, not until after they have passed away.

Melanie Smith is one of the owners of Seaside Art Gallery which has been established since 1961. She is an accredited member of the International Society of Appraisers with a specialty in fine art and animation art.

She has hosted and organized numerous art shows and has been a judge for art shows in eastern North Carolina. She also developed and presented the webinar, "Prints, Original, Fakes or Reproductions" for the International Society of Appraisers.

Seaside Art Gallery specializes in original works of art. You can visit them in Nags Head, NC or on their website at http://www.seasideart.com/.

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How to Paint A Unfinished Wooden Bangle

Unfinished wooden bangles are the perfect jewelry craft project for experienced or new crafters. The design and creativity possibilities are endless. You can use one color or a multitude of colors to truly embellish and accent the wooden bangle. People also paint polka-dots, hieroglyphics, trees or even flower designs on their wood bangles.

And, after the paint dries the bangle can be covered with glitter, stickers, fabric, or even cloth flowers.
Some people buy wooden bangles to decorate and resell while others create and add the bangles to their wardrobe. It is also a wonderful craft project to bond with others. One of the greatest pluses is the fact that it is very inexpensive and easy.

Materials needed:
• Unfinished wood bangles
• Acrylic Paint
• Modge Podge or Polyurethane
• Two Paint brushes
• Water basin
• Wax paper
• Towel
• Paint Palette or Plastic Plate

Most of the materials can be bought at any craft store or online.

Step 1: Prepare Your Working Space
Place a sheet of the wax paper under your working area to prevent creating a mess. Put water in a water bottle to hold the paint brush. Organize the wax paper you are going to use. Wood bangles are small so you will probably only need one sheet of paper to lie across your work station.

Step 2: Pick your acrylic paint color
Although there are other paints that can be used acrylic paint works perfectly on unfinished wood. It goes on smoothly and is not to runny. You can find acrylic paint at any craft store or online. If you do not have a color palette you may want to use a plastic plate or simply pour the paint onto the wax paper. And, dab the paint on your brush.

Step 3: Pick your unfinished wood bangle
Wood bangles come in an assortment of different sizes and styles. Are you interested in a dome bangle? Pentagon? Geometric? Or, a chunky bangle? Domes seem to be the most popular. And, if you are creating a custom wood bangle for a client be sure and ask what style they prefer.

Step 4: Painting the Bangle
Grab your brush. Dip the brush in the paint on the platform of your choice. Stroke the paint in the same direction to prevent the paint from bubbling up. Once you have covered the entire bangle let it dry for about thirty minutes. Then, begin to paint the inside of the bangle. Let the inside dry for another thirty minutes.
Repeat step four one more time because you are going to want to add two coats of paint for a rich look.

Step 5: Seal the Bangle
There are many sealants to choose from. I personally like modge podge because it is non-toxic and goes on smooth. And, modge podge can be applied with a paint brush. Tung oil is my second favorite. Other sealants to choose from are: polyurethane, mineral oil and linseed oil to name a few.

T.C. Hill is the Creative Director of Banglewood Crafts an online craft store, blog and how-to-information source. They sell unfinished wooden bangles and wood bangles for decoration resell.

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