art secret 19 - creating the black value: acrylic

Mickey Mouse looks good in black but black is not always the best choice in a painting...so let's create the illusion and mystery of black without actually using it.

I used a combination of colors sometimes just mixing two and sometimes all of them. The first one in the top row is Dioxine Violet and Burnt Umber mixed together and directly underneath is a tint (adding white) of that mixture. 

 

So you'll see that the top row is a mixture of colors and the row directly underneath is that mixture's tint. Try mixing them yourself and add new colors. It is a mystery and one for you to solve, so go create the black value!

art secret 18 - maryellen minute #4

geranium joy

Warm up with a quick watercolor wash, flowers and more.

Mundane Creativity

I came across a wonderful article on THE MAN'S COACH at HeartCenter Coaching Blog. 
Mundane Creativity is a must read!

Susan and I have been friends since 1996 when I first went to her studio for art lessons. This week she’s turned 65 and is younger than ever. She’s constantly recreating herself. Whenever Susan gets feeling low, she either goes out for a brisk run, or, in the winter, goes speed skating on a frozen pond. She makes it a point to get her friends together for a few drinks and long, therapeutic chats. Susan is more than a survivor; she’s a thriver.

The best thing Susan has taught me is to recalibrate my creative energy whenever I feels I’m getting stale. She’s amazing. Lately she’s been making one-minute videos to put in her art class newsletter and on YouTube. These videos are brief art instructions, pithy “quickies” that extend her influence to reach out and encourage budding artists to pick up a brush or a pencil and just start expressing themselves.

Don't Stop Now........Continue reading at HeartCenter Coaching!

art secret 17 - maryellen minute #3

Maryellen Minute #3 horizon line hint

art secret 16 - maryellen minute #2

going green

The secret to painting a wonderful green color.

art secret 15 - maryellen minute #1

Art Stretchies!

art secret 14 - inspiring creativity using watercolor or acrylic

....and Helen Frankenthaler

Suffering from painter's block?? Out of ideas? Time to loosen up and and be freeeeeeee!

1. Get a piece of watercolor paper 12x18" or larger, some watercolors or acrylics, water, brushes and a spray bottle. Then.......

2. Without thinking about it, start painting random shapes using random colors and the only rule is....there are no rules, right or wrong.

3. You can overlap shapes and have them go off the paper, use your whole body as you move the brush, stand up if you want.

3. Turn the paper upside down and continue painting. Turn it on its side and paint some more. Keep painting because Helen Frankenthaler said:

"For me, as a picture develops, color always comes out of drawing. I start out as a spacemaker on a flat thing with four corners. But color is the first message on the picture plane."

"Color is extremely important to my process. It's born out of idea, mood, luck, imagination, risk, into what  might even be ugly: then I let it tell me what might/should be next, until I get the light and order that satisfies to perfection. The result is color and space and, I hope, a beautiful message."

Helen Frankenthaler  1928- 2011

Here are some spontaneous studies that my students are working on:

As you can see, everyone has a different way of expressing their creativity.

Give it a try and have some fun!