No Class this Week

So you obviously have a slight reprieve to your landscape due date.  We will critique the landscapes--and "finish" the self portraits-- next week.  Because you have 50 percent more time to work on them, I expect them to 50% better.  Air tight logic.

In all seriousness, I hope the post-Sandy aftermath finds you safe and sound, if a bit in the dark. Stay warm!

Addendum to Landscape Painting Assignment: Making Space

Making Space

Making a painting that depicts realistic space—from very shallow space (a few inches deep) to infinite space (the sky)--demands that you understand the relatively standard and consistent way color behaves in space, though there are always exceptions.  There are several principles that should be understood to use color, or aspects of color, to create the illusion of space.  Another thing should also be understood: that color is purely relative.  Something could look very warm or intense against one color, and relatively cool or broken against another.  What are important are the color relationships, about which the following principles speak.

1.         Value contrast tends to diminish as space recedes.  The darkest darks are under the rocks in the foreground, and then tend to lighten as the space deepens, lowering the contrast between the lights and darks in the background.  However, the lights in the background don’t get much darker, though they do get duller and less intense.   

2.         The cleanest and most saturated color advances to the foreground, leaving the broken colors to recede.  That means that even the objects with not very intense local colors can be brought forward by keeping them clean, even though they aren’t very intense.  The trick is to make sure that there are no complimentary colors mixed into that less chromatic foreground.  Complimentary colors are what make muddy grays and cause whatever they are added to recede.  To make an otherwise strong color less intense but still keep it advancing, match the tone of that color with a mixture of black and white and mix in that gray.  Your color will therefore not change its hue or value, only its chroma, keeping it clean.  Conversely, to make a color recede, dirty it somewhat by mixing in its complement.

3.         Aerial perspective--As any color gets further into the distance, there is of course more atmosphere between that color and you, in effect creating an “air filter”.  As we all know, air is evaporated water, and water tends to have a blue cast.  This means that color relationships viewed through the atmospheric filter get bluer and cooler (as well as less intense) as they get further and further away.  That’s why the distant tree covered hills look decidedly blue gray against the much closer fields and trees.

4.         Layering--The layers of paint underneath profoundly affect the appearance of the top layer of paint.  The final color of the paint is never just the pigments that were mixed together for the top layer, but the sum of all the color underneath as well.  Obviously, a thin layer of yellow paint will look green if put on a black under layer, but even “opaque” paint will be affected by what’s underneath, however subtly.  Colors painted over surfaces that are darker than those colors (however slightly) will instantly cool down, causing them to recede.  This is the reason that a neutral dark wall demands several coats of white paint—the first layer always looks blue.  Conversely, colors painted over surfaces that are lighter will tend to warm up and become more luminous, causing them to advance.   Watercolors look so luminous because almost all of them have the white of the paper showing through.  You end up seeing much more than the color of the paint itself.  A painting over an imprematura cannot be matched exactly over white for this reason.

More notes about layering and luminosity

One of the many things that the Old Masters knew and used extensively was this notion of layering.   One of the beauties of paint—especially oil paint—is that it can become so intense and luminous.  Squeezing out a glob of ultramarine blue and spreading it around on white canvas will give you an immediate sense of what I mean.  That blue that you now see on the canvas cannot be mixed.  It cannot be manufactured.  Yes, that blue was made from a manufactured paint, but you are not looking at merely ultramarine blue.  Because the nature of ultramarine is so transparent, you are looking at the blue with the pure white underneath showing through.  You could squeeze color from that same tube onto a gray or black or even blue ground, but you will not be able to get a blue of even a similar intensity.  In the same way, any color with white showing through—a clean or broken color--is not simply the hue from your palette.  It’s a combination of that hue plus the white showing through.  Nor can you get the same color by putting together the hue and white by mixing—you’ll just get an opaque, much grayer color.  A combination of colors by layering is not the same as a combination by mixing.  Layering a transparent darker color over any lighter color (not just white) will almost invariably produce a more luminous color than mixing the two together.

One of the best examples is in the color raw umber.  By itself over white can produce a very rich, warm brown.  Mixing umber and white together, however makes an extremely neutral gray.  The difference is remarkable.  An example of layering over a color other than white to get a luminous color combo might be to glaze a red over yellow to get an intense orange.  You cannot mix the resulting orange even with the same pigments.  To get a rich gray you might consider layering transparent compliments instead of mixing them together.  This is a great way to create space by breaking color while keeping things rich and not muddy.

I mentioned that the Old Masters used layering and luminosity.  Examples can be seen in many of the 17^th Century Dutch landscapes.  At that time they did not have access to the many different pigments and hues that we have to work with now, in the early 21^st Century.  They might have only had red earth, green earth, Naples yellow, possibly azurite (any of the blues tended to be very expensive), black, and white.   To make up for this dearth of hue options, they had to use all the different aspects of each color to the greatest extent possible.  So in areas that you (as the painter) might want the foreground to come forward you will need to keep those areas clean and luminous.  Broken colors will, in turn, recede into space.  Some of the Dutch landscapes have used only red and green earth in the whole foreground, but by varying its transparency, color intensity, and “chromatic hygiene”(clean color) as well as flawless drawing these paintings seem to lay down beautifully.  Some even made “blue” sky from simply making a neutral gray from black and white, but since you see it against the warm luminous colors of the foreground it seems very blue.

Landscape Assignment

Due In two weeks: Oct. 31st

You are to make a landscape painting in oil that is at least 8x10 (that is: the short side may be no smaller than 8”, and the longer side may be no smaller than 10. You must make your own support.

This project is all about making space—or the illusion of it.  It’s also about controlling color relationships in terms of contrast and “chromatic hygiene” (high contrast advances low contrast recedes, and clean color advances and broken color recedes).

The subject may be of anything as long as it is (mostly) outside and includes close foreground and fairly deep space.  If you work outside from life (the preferred way of working for most landscape painters), you will find that the light will change--the sun tends to move if you hadn’t noticed--during the time you are working, so you have to paint quickly and plan to come back to the same spot at the same time for two or more days.  I’d suggest making either a sunny day painting or a cloudy day painting if you choose a daytime painting.  If you start a painting sunny and finish it cloudy you will drive yourself crazy and you’ll end up with a confusing result.  Trust me!

I strongly encourage you to choose a moment in your painting to be what the painting is about, and then make everything else in the painting merely support that moment.   Don’t just paint a scene.  Also, don’t make a “pretty” painting.  “Pretty” is bad. 

Hints

*Remember the different ways to create the illusion of space:

1-clean colors advance, and broken colors recede.

2-high contrast and hard edges advance, low contrast and soft edges         recede.

3-saturated colors advance, less intense colors recede

*Squint a lot.  This will force you to simplify. 

*Don’t forget your drawing skills.  Make sure your perspective works.

*Values tend to be very high outdoors.  The sun tends to eat away the darks and we find that they are relatively light (though still darker than the lights).  What at first glance seems like a value contrast might be more of an intensity contrast or temperature contrast.

*Research ideas from the old or contemporary masters—try to paint like them!

*Lastly, decide your approach BEFORE the painting begins, and stick to it (which of the four?)!

Self-Portraits this week!

So I mentioned this in class, but here's a reminder.  This week we are starting to work on our self portraits.  We will work from a mirror (no photos), and you must do your best to paint what you see--for the figure anyway.  The minimum size is 16 x 20, and of course you must have prepared it yourself.  We will work on your painting in class for the next three class periods, but after that you must finish it on your own so they will be finished by final critique.

Be thinking about how you want to project yourself to the world.  What will you be wearing?  Any props?  What background will you include?  Make it interesting!  Also, what painting approach will you use?  Which makes the most sense to you?

See you Wednesday!

For next week: Canvas Stretching!

after the still-life critique, I'll show you how to stretch a canvas and prepare a panel to paint on next week.  Below is a primer on canvas stretching, plus a list of materials needed.  Much of it you can borrow from me if you don't mind waiting in line, but you will have to provide a few things.

How to Stretch a Canvas

What you need (if possible get this stuff from Utrecht or Jerry’s and let them know you’re in this class):

• Stretchers (not to be confused with strainers)—make sure they fit together snugly and that opposite sides are of equal length, ensuring a proper rectangle
• Canvas*—make sure you have at least 3 or 4 inches or so of extra canvas beyond the edge of the stretchers.
• Scissors**
• Staple gun **
• ¼ to 3/8 inch staples (my staple guns take JT-21 staples)
• Tape measure**
• Acrylic gesso (if you are using unprimed canvas)
• Sand paper or sanding sponge*
• Canvas pliers (optional, but recommended)**
• house painting brush 2 inch (or so) **
• skinny flat screw driver and/or needle nosed pliers; (for prying out errant staples)*
• Stretcher keys
• Tack hammer**

*A heavy canvas drop cloth from a paint store often does very well in lieu of “art” canvas—much cheaper, too!

** You may possibly share these items with others

At the very least, you should bring in your own canvas, stretchers, gesso, and JT21 size staples (they fit my staple guns).  You can borrow just about everything else.

Directions

To start out, unfold or unroll and lay out your canvas on a flat, clean surface face down.  It should be cut large enough to comfortably fit over the stretchers to the back inside edge.  Fit the stretchers together to make the desired rectangle (be sure that your rectangle has exactly square [90 degree] angles—don’t stretch a trapezoid!).

After making sure that the weave of the canvas is parallel to the stretchers, carefully fold the canvas around to the back each stretcher and put a single staple in the center of each, making a cross.  The canvas should be “finger taut” between the staples.

After making sure the stretchers are still square (measure the diagonals), start from the staple in the middle of each stretcher and staple down one side of the stretcher to the corner while pulling the canvas finger tight (pull it tight enough to ensure that the weave is still parallel to the stretcher).  Do this on only one side of the center staple.  By working from the center to one corner you will end up completing half of the stretcher.   Do all four sides but make sure that you always do the same side of the staple each time.   When this is completed the staples will resemble a pinwheel or swastika shape.

Now that the canvas is halfway stretched, the tightness of the canvas becomes more important.  As you work your way down the other side of each stretcher, you will realize that you are now pulling against the part of the opposite stretcher that is already stapled.  It is at this point that you can start to pull the canvas as tight and evenly as possible (canvas pliers will become a welcome time saver and knuckle protector).  Work your way down the unfinished side from the middle staple, ensuring that there are no wrinkles between staples. Always work from the middle to the corners.   Excess canvas can be dealt with at the corners.  Also do your best to keep the weave of the canvas parallel to the stretchers.

Once you have finished all four sides of the stretchers and after having made sure that everything is still square, evenly taut (no wrinkles or dead areas), and passes the quarter test, it is time to finish the corners.  The key to good corners is neatness and cleanness.  There are several ways to do them cleanly, and you may need to devise your own way, but I find that if you just make sure that the visible fold goes down along the corner of the stretcher, the rest will take care of itself—as long as it’s neat and clean!  There is no point in doing a nice painting if your support is shotty, you know?  Take pride in your handiwork.

Once the canvas is stretched evenly with the corners finished cleanly, the canvas is still not ready to be painted . . . it needs to be sized/primed.  Acrylic “gesso” is the simplest and most common way of sizing a canvas.  Brush the first coat on liberally with a house painting brush, and sand it lightly after it dries completely.  Put at least one more liberal coat of gesso on after this one, sanding between each coat, but do not sand the top coat.  It’s usual to make the brush strokes parallel to the weave of the canvas, with each subsequent coat being perpendicular to the previous one.  Also, be sure to gesso the side of the stretcher as well, both to protect the weave and for a cleaner look.  Give the top coat of gesso at least an overnight to fully cure, and the canvas is ready to use.

Eventually, no matter how taut your canvas is when you stretched it; due to atmospheric conditions it will relax and start to wrinkle or get wavy.  To make the canvas taut again, with a tack hammer lightly tap some stretcher keys (little plastic or wooden wedges designed for the purpose) into the slots on each inside corner of the stretchers.  Working around the stretcher, give a few taps to each key so that they slowly tighten up together.   This will force all the corners to expand enough to take up any slack that the relaxed canvas offers, resulting in retightened canvas.  Be careful not to tighten any corner more than the others, as this will cause the canvas to go out of square.  Good luck and happy painting!

This semester we will make 7 paintings (not including the color and approach exercises).  Except for the first still-life, you are to make them all on non-commercially produced supports, and at least one is to be done on a stretched canvas.  If you are interested in planning ahead and buying supplies for all seven at once, here are the size ranges you will need:

1. (self-portrait): 16x20-24x30
2. (landscape): 8x10-11x14
3. (in class Abstract) minimum 18x24
4. (at home Abstract) no size restrictions
5. (in-class figure) 11x14-16x20
6. (final project): no size restrictions

Art Club Meeting on Thursday!

So tomorrow is our first Art Club meeting!  All art students are automatic members of the Art Club, so come and take part.  Please show up at High Noon (that is, 12:00 pm) in FA115!  We'll elect officers, discuss possible activities, and talk about ART.