Artist Profile

Norman Percevel Rockwell 1894 – 1978

Norman Percevel Rockwell was born in New York City in 1894, and it would be hard to find a single person who has not seen one of this charismatic artist’s paintings.  His credentials are most impressive as are the sheer numbers of works completed during his career.

It is unusual that a young man decide his career early in life and stick to it, but that is exactly what Rockwell did.  He was always sure he would be an artist.  At age 14, he enrolled in art classes at The New York School of Art.  Two years later, he left high school to enroll and study at The National Academy of Design.  He soon transferred to The Art Student’s League where he concentrated on illustration.  It was here that Rockwell learned the technical skills that would be with him for the rest of his career.

Before he was 16 Rockwell had already painted a commission.  He was hired as Art Director of Boys’ Life, the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America, while still a teenager.  At 21, Rockwell’s family moved to New Rochelle, NY, a community full of famous illustrators.  Here he joined the studio of cartoonist Clyde Forsythe and produced work for publications like Life, Literary Digest and Country Gentleman.  At age 22, Rockwell painted the first cover for The Saturday Evening Post, where he was considered to be the illustrator of America.  Three hundred twenty-one covers over 47 years is testimony to his skill and popularity.  This is the same year (1916) that Rockwell married Irene O’Connor, but they were divorced in 1930.

That year, 1930, started what is considered to be the most important years of Rockwell’s career.  It began when he married Mary Barstow, a schoolteacher, with whom he had 3 sons.  In 1939, the family moved to Arlington, VT, and Rockwell’s work began more to reflect rural America and the scenes with which we are all familiar. 

Although very successful, tragedy struck in 1943 when Rockwell’s studio, many paintings and his collection of historical costumes and props were destroyed by fire.  In 1953 the family left Arlington and moved to Stockbridge, MA.  Six years later, Mary died unexpectedly.  The next year, in collaboration with one of his sons, Rockwell published his autobiography, My Adventures as an Illustrator. 

In 1961, Rockwell married Molly Punderson, a retired teacher.  Two years later he left his affiliation with The Saturday Evening Post and began work with Look magazine.  During this time Rockwell became very concerned with civil rights, America’s war on poverty and space exploration.  Much of the work he did for Look echoed these concerns.

During his career, Rockwell was commissioned to paint the portraits for Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon.  One of his last works was a portrait of Judy Garland, done in 1969.

In 1973, Rockwell created a trust to preserve and protect the artistic legacy he had created.  He gave the Old Corner House Stockbridge Historical Society full custodianship of his collection of 574 original paintings and drawings. In 1976 his entire working studio and its contents were added to the trust. This later became the Norman Rockwell Museum at Stockbridge at a dedication ceremony on the 100^th anniversary of his birth in 1994.

In 1977 Norman Rockwell was presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor, by President Gerald Ford for his “vivid and affectionate portraits of our country.”  He died on November 8, 1978, at age 84 in Stockbridge.

Visit the Normal Rockwell Museum, open year round (Phone 413.298.4100)—and, while there, think about the positive impact this man had on the world.

Opening at the museum on Feb. 7 through May 25, Artists in Their Studios offers a unique glimpse at the lives and studio spaces of more than 75 important American artists from the late 19^th century to today and features rarely seen photos and primary source materials from the Smithsonian’s Archives of American Art.  Also, American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell opens at the Detroit Institute of Arts on Mar. 8 - May 31 and traces the evolution of Rockwell’s art and iconography throughout his career with 42 original artworks and a complete set of 323 archival Saturday Evening Post cover tear sheets that span 47 years.  Travels to Fort Lauderdale, Wichita, Raleigh, Tacoma, and Sacramento.

The Artist’s Marketplace

Strathmore – New Sequential Art Surfaces

Strathmore Artist Papers will introduce this month their new Sequential Art Surfaces.  Fine art bristols and illustration boards have been the choice among sequential art professionals and award-winning illustrators for years.  These same surfaces are now available in convenient sizes requested by artists in the comic, cartoon and graphic novel industry.

—200 Series Bristol is an economical, smooth bristol weight board printed with non-reproducible blue lines for comic and Manga applications.  Printed surfaces for inner pages are available in sheets or pads, with printed cover surfaces available in 12-sheet packs—all sized 11” x 17”.

—300 Series Bristol is offered in a Smooth surface for both traditional and specialty pen and ink tools and in Vellum for pencil, charcoal, sketching sticks, airbrush and pen and ink; both surfaces work well with specialty pens and markers.  Sizes: pads—5”x17”, 12”x12” and 11”x17”; and sheet packs—11”x17”.

—500 Series Bristol is available in Plate Surface with an ultra-smooth finish for detail work using traditional pen and ink tools, specialty pens/markers and airbrush; Semi-Smooth, slightly textured, is suited for pen and ink tools, pencil and specialty pens/markers; and Vellum Surface has a toothy finish excellent for graphite/colored pencil, sketching sticks and specialty pens/markers and is also very good for charcoal, pen/ink, airbrush and light washes. Pads and sheet packs are 11”x17”.

—500 Series Illustration Board for Wet Media is of professional quality and designed to accept all illustration media, with a strong durable vellum finish for traditional drawing techniques.  It’s internally sized to accept wet media and can be used for light washes up to wet-on-wet applications.  Heavyweight sheets are available in 15”x22” and 22”x30”.

See your retailer and visit www.strathmoreartist.com.

Artograph - New Chief Operations Officer

Artograph, Inc., a manufacturing company of equipment for the Arts and Craft industry in Minneapolis, MN, has announced the addition of John Davis as the new COO. Don Dow, the CEO of Artograph, says “John brings a wealth of experience in lean manufacturing and operational management and planning that is so critical in today's business environment.” John will be managing the day-to-day operations of the business with a focus of applying the principals of lean manufacturing and continual improvement to all areas of the company.

Art/Craft Equipment

Painting Murals/Opaque Projectors

Painting murals is a great challenge and lots of fun to try, so never pass up the chance to create one.  If you have never painted a mural, it is something that is worth the time and energy to experience.  There are several ways to approach doing a mural from the standpoint of layout and design.

Many artists use a grid plan.  This is accomplished by dividing a drawing into exact squares and duplicating the same proportions onto the spot where the art is to be completed.  The artist then transfers the image square-by-square to the wall/oversized canvas.  As each portion of the drawing/scene is transferred, the artist enlarges the image to the proper size.  This is a pretty laborious method, but it has been used for centuries to enlarge to monumental a much smaller painting/drawing.

For the modern, time-conscious, industrious, large-scale painter, there is another method that could be of real assistance in the mural creation process.  When a drawing is placed into an opaque projector, it can be enlarged to huge proportions instantly.  Then it is a matter of recording the image on the wall/canvas.  Now, that sounds like a “piece of cake.”  But, in actuality, having the drawing enlarged is but one hurdle towards completion of the grand-scale artwork.  It is, however, a huge improvement over manual transfer of an image.

The opaque projector displays non-transparent materials (unlike the overhead projector, which uses transparencies) by shining a bright lamp onto the object from above. A system of mirrors, prisms and/or lenses is used to focus the image of the object onto a viewing area. Opaque projectors require brighter lamps and larger lenses than overhead projectors. Due to the heat generated by the light source, care must be taken that the materials are not damaged.

Early opaque projectors were produced as low cost novelties for children. They were – and are - also marketed to artists, to project enlarged images onto walls/canvases for tracing. Eventually they came into widespread use for lectures and presentations. Opaque projectors are great for projecting notes, pages from books, photos and artwork, or even thin three-dimensional objects. They come in especially handy for art and science classes or seminars.

Once the surface is prepared for acceptance of the mural image, the opaque projector is used to display the image.  Tracing is done around all components of the design. To be sure that the image has transferred correctly and is in proportion, the artist usually relines the drawing with a narrow paint brush to view the finished “sketch.”  Then painting/fill-in starts.  Most artists work from one side to the other, but some prefer to select a portion of the image and complete it as a single unit and then progress to another part of the painting.  Either way, the use of an opaque projector can be invaluable as a check and balance monitor.  Because the artist is “close” to the image, it can begin to warp or change if systematic checks are not used.  The projector can be used to verify that all parts of the image are done well or to indicate if they need some alteration.

Two issues are important in the selection of an opaque projector.  One is the amount of light emitted from the source—the brighter (stronger) the illumination, the better.  Second is the size of acceptance area for the image—the larger, the better.  Also, the less repositioning of the projector, the better and easier it will be for duplication of the image.

See your retailer for the variety of projectors available from Gagne and Artograph.  Porta-Trace from Gagne is a line of high quality, low cost opaque projectors that come in four different models—for the beginning artist or casual crafter to the serious artist or visual professional.  Features include convenient handles, rugged plastic housing, cool and quiet operation, bottom loading and large field of view.  Included are the Mini-Sketch, The Projector, Tracemaster, Tracemaster Deluxe and a new second generation Projector Floor Stand.  www.gagneinc.com/ProjectorInfo.html.

Artograph offers opaque projectors in different price ranges and with different degrees of excellence that include the Tracer Jr., Tracer, Prism, Super Prism, Designer, Designmaster, Designmaster II and MC 250, as well as a Mobile Projector Floor Stand. www.artograph.com/projectors.htm.

From weekend crafters to professional artists, crafters and designers, there is a projector that fits well into your budget and your needs.  Check out what is available and see how an opaque projector might help you be better at what you love to do.

Art Competitions

Watercolor/Pastel - The 28^th Annual Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolors will be held Aug. 2-Oct. 4 at The Arts Center/Old Forge in Old Forge, NY.  It’s open to all living artists working with water media on paper. Jurors: Jeanne Dobie, AWS, NWS and Dean Mitchell, AWS, NWS.  Awards.  Deadline:  March 20.  (NOTE:  Deadline for The Fifth Annual Northeast National Pastel Exhibition, open to all living artists working in soft pastel, has a deadline of March 2.)  315.369.6411.  www.artscenteroldforge.org

All Media - Wild Things—an exhibit inspired by animals-extinct, extant, real, imagined—is a national juried exhibition to be held at the Annmarie Garden Sculpture Park & Arts Center in Solomons, MD.  All artists age 18 and older who are working in the U.S. and all media are welcome. Jurors: Donald E. Moore, III, PhD and Prof. Sue Johnson, MFA.  Cash awards total over $3500 and winners will receive an invitation for a solo or group show.  Deadline:  March 23. 410.326.4640. http://www.annmariegarden.org/ArtsBuilding/CallForEntries/index.htm

Watercolor

Watercolor 103 - More Advanced Techniques

As one grows more confident and accomplished in dealing with watercolor painting and all the delightful challenges it presents, there may come a time when even more testing and demanding methods are sought.  In the following paragraphs we’ll examine and discuss some elevated difficulty factors in the application of watercolor paints.

The subject of brushes comes first. That may seem very basic, but many are the artists who select a tiny group of brushes and never explore possibilities past these.  Different brushes can offer changes in the way paint is applied, either in pattern or intensity.  Also the makeup of the brush bristles can make a huge difference in the way it performs.  Soft, flexible, yet resilient bristles can hold a lot more pigment than those that are simply soft.  Some rigidity helps the brush create an expected result and maintain that result for greater amounts of “line.”

An example is the script brush.  For an artist unfamiliar with this brush, the script brush is one that helps create long, slender lines of remarkable length.  It has long bristles sometimes made from natural animal hair.  They are known to hold and then distribute a surprising amount of line.  Fan brushes, again made of natural animal hair, are soft with a spread or “fan” shape to draw color away from an applied line into a feathery, fur-like look.  Both are specific in their original use, but can be employed in many other applications once the artist is familiar with their qualities and strengths.

Working and exploration of pigments can be very interesting.  It doesn’t take a watercolor artist very long to discover that some pigments hold their colors vividly, even when diluted heavily.  Others wimp out and almost vanish.  But these qualities can be very helpful once you know which pigments do what.

Switching brands of paint can also help you explore textural differences between colors given the same name or near the same color.  Some are “heavier” and often leave actual minute chunks of dark color when swished across the paper.  Some simply dilute to a fine, soft tone that is extremely useful for less defined backgrounds.  And when combined, dark over light, most unusual things can happen.  The pigments can pool in unusual ways.  Perhaps the light undertones shimmer along the edges of the darker patterns.  Or the tiny, darker sediments collect in unexpected patterns.  Either can add dimension to your work if you learn ways to control the effects you like.  Although you won’t find a manufacturer who recommends it, combining different brands of paints can cause some pigmentation changes and interesting interactions, too.  Try some new combos and see what you can come up with.

Normally, anything past combining more than two or three colors creates muddy, unusable colors.  But sometimes playing with multiple colors can help you create new shadow tones, grays and other darks.  Combinations that you are already accustomed to, when tried in new brands of paint, might give entirely different results.  When multi-pigment combinations are used as a wash, you might create a completely new palette.

Using solid shapes of paint-resistant material can help you create new and exciting effects in your work.  For instance, using mat fall-out shapes (circles, ovals, rectangles) or hand cut shapes you make and over which you splatter or spatter watercolor tones can create very unique backgrounds for impressionistic or abstract scenes.  These irregular or unusual shapes can draw attention to your work and give you a signature effect.  Stiff brushes (old toothbrushes) can help you splatter very easily.  The resulting droplet size is similar to airbrush work and is very visually appealing.

Glazing is a tricky method for watercolor artists.  One color laid over another is a recipe for disappointment unless it is done very carefully.  The bottom color is applied and allowed to completely dry. It should be applied in a tone slightly lighter than what the artist desires.  As you add another tone, it too is applied slightly lighter or more dilute so that the combination of both gives a moderate tone.  Tests are required to master this method, but it is very useful to the landscape or portrait artist.  More glazes can be applied to build up a richness of tone.

Use of glazing mediums can also change the effects you have in your paintings.  These coatings darken and make richer the tones in your work.  Darks take on a deeper hue and bright colors seem to pop.  And glazing/painting medium can create a harder, more resilient surface.  This means that if you transport your works to shows and fairs, they are less likely to become damaged.

Airbrush

Airbrush Newbies—Do’s and Don’ts – Part II

To continue this month, let’s look at the parts of the airbrush and see how they apply to its proper performance.  All internal mix airbrushes have a needle that runs through the body and controls the flow of paint.  It has a very sharp tip and, if bent, the airbrush will not spray properly.  The harder the material of which the needle is made, the more difficult it is to bend, and the most durable needles are made of spring steel.  When the needle is removed for cleaning and then replaced, it can be accidentally pressed in against the internal metal parts and bent, causing a “fish hook” at the very tip.  This can sometimes be straightened by rolling the needle against a flat metal object.  Be aware that if this is done too many times, the tip will become weak and break off.  However, airbrush needles are readily available at your local art supplies store.

The two parts located on the front of the airbrush covering the tip of the needle are called the air cap and the head assembly.  These control the atomization of the spray.  If these become dented the airbrush will not operate properly, so try to avoid this happening.  If the air cap is dented, it must be replaced and is also readily available at art supply stores.

On all internal mix airbrushes the needle is removed for cleaning.  But the trigger can fall out because the needle runs through a slot in the trigger that holds it in place.  Behind the trigger is the back lever, which is spring loaded and pushes the trigger forward to a shutoff position when you release your finger from the trigger.  It can also fall out when the needle is removed, which is an annoyance that all airbrushers have encountered.  But, with practice, most people learn to easily replace these parts.

You must be cautious that you do not cross-thread any of the parts on the airbrush, such as the hose or where the head assembly screws onto the body of the brush.  Cross-threading can result in an air leak that will affect the spray.

All in all, the airbrush is actually quite durable. It’s a precision instrument that if properly cared for and maintained will last you a lifetime.  

New Free e-Newsletter – See the new issue of AirbrushTalk at www.airbrushtalk.com, which includes Paper Jewelry—Fabulous Fun!, SEMA 2008—Las Vegas, NV, and Checkered Out—Creating Auto Special FX.

ArtPourri

Restoration/Temporary Closure – The Corcoran Gallery of Art is in the midst of a major restoration of its historic Beaux-Arts building and the Gallery is temporarily closed through March 13.  (All other activities within the Institution will continue as scheduled.) The exhibition Maya Lin:  Systematic Landscapes is scheduled to open March 14.

USPS News – The 200^th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth will be recognized with the dedication of four commemorative stamps on Feb. 9 in Springfield, IL.  The stamp art was created by Mark Summers, who is noted for his scratchboard technique.  Each stamp features a different aspect of Lincoln’s life:  Rail-Splitter, Lawyer, Politician and President.  All include photographs of Lincoln. 

New Arts Center Debuts– The grand opening of the Southern Nevada Center for the Arts was celebrated recently a 450 Fremont St, 2^nd Floor, Neonopolis Bldg., Las Vegas.  Works of over 50 artists, including painter A. D. Cook, are represented at the Center and there are currently 30 artist studios and gallery spaces leased by painters, sculptors, photographers, jewelers and other art related services. www.artcenteronline.com.

Milestones – Edd Cartier, American pulp magazine illustrator (The Shadow, and more), has died at age 94 in Ramsey, NJ. – Sculptor Robert Graham, known for civic works such as the F. D. Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C., has died at age 70 in Santa Monica, CA. – Andrew Wyeth, renowned realist painter who worked mainly in a regionalist style, has died at age 91 in Chadds Ford, PA.  One of his most popular paintings, Christina’s World (1948), is in the collection of MoMA in NYC.

Portrait on View – A portrait that came to symbolize the historic campaign of President Barack Obama is now on display at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.  Created by Los Angeles-based graphic designer and street artist Shepard Fairey, this large-scale mixed-media stenciled collage is on view in the “New Arrivals” exhibition on the museum’s first floor.

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Copyright ARTtalk Vol. 19 No. 4 — February 2009