Painting

The Frame as Art—Being/Making Green

Want to create something different with your art?  Something cool that can be applied to every painting style?  Then look no further than the frame you put around your art.  Although painted frames have been done for years, they are now a leading edge décor item that is growing in popularity and seen in every surrounding from office to home, exhibit to collections.  Artists often feel the frame is somehow detached from the painting and the need to tie them together may have been the impetus for starting painted frames.  Whether or not that is so, the fact is that when you create a frame especially for a specific painting, you make the look unique and most appealing.

How do you paint a frame?  While there are several ways to extend the subject matter from the canvas onto the frame, some simple preparation will insure that the completed work will match the quality of your artwork.  Start with a wooden frame with as little grooving and fussy detail as possible, as those detract from the image enlargement.

To condition the frame to accept the paint application, remove with stripper the stain or surface treatment.  Using a general purpose paint stripper is the easiest way.  Most of those products are gel-like and easy to apply.  After you have removed as much of the stain/sealer as possible, lightly sand the surface.  This will open the surface of the wood, making it as receptive as possible to the base coat, and make successive layers smoother and more professional.

Once the sanding is complete, use a soft cloth to remove any dust.  Clean all surfaces, whether or not they will be painted.  This will eliminate the possibility of any grit or dirt becoming mixed with the base coat or subsequent layers.  Start with an application of gesso.  Apply it with a foam brush or other soft brush and avoid brush marks.  Should you have areas of unevenness or brush strokes once the surface is dry, a light sanding will remove them.  (Dust to remove any powder.)  It may take two coats for the smoothness you require as a painting surface.

Now you are ready to begin your addition of color.  With the canvas set loosely in the frame, use a light wash of appropriate color to indicate the areas you want to paint.  The idea is to use the exact colors on the canvas to extend the image out and onto the frame, so exact placement of lines, designs and tonal areas is mandatory.  For instance, if a fence in the painting is leading off the canvas, it might continue onto the frame.  Grasses, stones, sky, clouds, etc., are extended off the canvas and painted onto the frame.  It is also a really good idea to wrap the painted area around the outer edge of the frame.  This will insure no interruption of the image when viewed at an angle.

Once the image is extended, it’s good to use a clear sealer over the painted frame to add an extra measure of protection from everyday wear and tear.  This sealer should be selected for its clear, non-yellowing quality, perhaps with some degree of UV protection for long life.

Decorated frames can be created from recycled frames, offering a way to use a slightly damaged frame or one that is a strange color.  By stripping, sanding and gessoing the wood, you give an old frame a second life as part of the artwork.  This is a way of being green that can often translate to making green.

The Artist’s Marketplace

Iwata – New Basic Airbrush Book and New Exercise Kit

Iwata has introduced the new book Basic Airbrush Techniques—A Complete Course, with Robert Paschal. Learn the fundamentals of airbrushing in a foolproof, easy and straightforward method.  Covered are the following concepts and more:

—Introduction to different types of airbrushes and air sources.
—How to clean your airbrush quickly and easily.
—Exercises to gain airbrush control.
—How to use FrisketFilm.
—Creating 3-dimension with shading.

Also now available is a new Basic Airbrush Techniques Exercise Kit.  Conveniently included in one kit are the necessary materials needed to complete the exercises in Robert’s new book above, sold separately:

—Com-Art Airbrush Paints—1 oz. ea. Black and Red.
—1 oz. Bottle of Medea Airbrush Cleaner.
—8 Sheets of Artool FrisketFilm.
—Iwata Art Knife—For Cutting FrisketFilm.
—5 Double-Sided Pre-Printed Exercise Sheets.

See your retailer for the above new products and get started airbrushing!  www.iwata-medea.com.

Artograph – New LED LightPad Series

Take your projects to the next level with the new LightPad Series from Artograph.  The super-bright, cool and evenly illuminated surface gives you the perfect platform to get your ideas off the ground.  The LightPad Series is built to last a lifetime with LED technology that saves energy and means you’ll never have to replace lamps again.  Features:

—Super bright LED lamps provide a perfectly even illuminated surface.
—Maintenance-free LED lamps last up to 30,000 hours.
—Compact 5/8” profile with an attractive and durable extruded aluminum frame with chrome steel corners.
—Double-layered illuminated surface for a firm work surface.
—Power supply; AC/DC Adapter/100V-240V, 50/60 Hz.
—Four sizes available:  6” x 9”, 9” x 12”, 12” x 17” and 17” x 24”.

A custom protective storage sleeve is also included along with a one-year warranty.  See your retailer and visit www.artograph.com.

In the Spotlight:
Stones Crayons from Graphic Chemical & Ink

For years the choice in lithographic drawing materials was simple—there was only one!  With Stones Crayons you not only have a choice, but you have a better choice.  Following are some additional advantages:

—Stones Crayons are ultra-smooth to draw with.  Drag is minimal and they lay down beautiful tones on stones, plates or paper.
—They are insoluble in water.  That means they won’t smear under gum and can save you processing steps.
—Available in 4 different shapes and 7 different hardnesses, they extend the range of lithographic drawing materials, allowing drawings that previously were unattainable.
—The ¼-inch crayons are designed to be used with a holder that provides more usable crayon and a constant length.
—The hardness of the crayon is marked directly in the crayon to avoid the confusion mixed crayons can produce.
—They sharpen easily into a fine point with a simple handheld pencil sharpener.  Get rid of the razor blades and frustration!
—Designed by a Master Printer, Stones Crayons will outperform others in a wide range of applications, i.e., they work better and are easier to use.
—They conform to ASTM D-4236.
—Stones Crayons are economical compared to what you are probably using right now.

With all these benefits, make Stones Crayons your choice in lithographic drawing materials.  See your retailer and visit www.graphicchemical.com.

Competitions & Opportunities

Competitions:

—Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club 114^th Annual Open Juried Exhibition – The National Arts Club, New York, NY – Oct. 5-29. Any woman artist may submit for jurying one original work executed within the last three years.  Eligible media include oils, acrylics, watercolor, pastels, graphics and mixed media.  Awards total more than $9,000.  Prospectus:  http://www.clwac.org/ (go to Calendar of Events).  Postmark deadline:  July 1.

—59^th Annual Central Adirondack Art Show – Arts Center/Old Forge, Old Forge, NY – July 16–Aug. 15. The exhibit is open to all living artists, amateur or professional, age 16 and over.  One original recent artwork may be submitted in the following categories:  acrylics, oils or pastels, watermedia, drawing or graphics, mixed media and 3-dimensional art or sculpture.  Awards. Prospectus:  http://www.artscenteroldforge.org/.  Hand delivery of artwork July 3-11; shipped work must be received by July 5 via the Center’s agent.

—Audubon Artists 68^th Annual National Exhibition - Salmagundi Art Club Galleries, New York, NY – Sept. 13-Oct. 1.  Media categories include sculpture, pastels, oils/acrylics, graphics and aquamedia.  No classwork or computer-generated art will be accepted.  Over $20,000 in awards, medals and merchandise.  Prospectus:   www.audubonartists.org/AnnualShow.

Postmark Deadline: July 17.

—Pastel Society of New Hampshire National Juried Show:  It’s Pastel! – Discover Portsmouth Center Gallery, Portsmouth, NH – Sept. 18–Oct. 30.  All artists in the U.S. are eligible and work must be original soft pastels only, no oil pastels, completed after 1/1/08.  Awards.  Prospectus: www.pastelsocietynh.com. Submit entry on CD only by July 20.

—North East Watercolor Society 34^th Annual International Juried Exhibition – The Gallery at Kent Art Association, Kent, CT – Oct. 24-Nov. 7 – Watercolors executed within the last three years and not previously exhibited at NEWS Internationals are eligible.  No collage or pastels and only one painting per person may be selected.  Awards total approximately $8,000 in cash and merchandise. See http://www.northeastws.com/events.htm. Deadline:  July 27.

Opportunities

Glassblowers Needed! – The Corning Museum of Glass is looking for glassmakers to try out for the Blow Glass at Sea program aboard Celebrity Cruises’ new Solstice class ships.  You must be articulate, friendly and hard working, as well as an expert glassblower.  Successful tryout candidates will be invited to Corning, NY, to train for three to four weeks before being scheduled for an assignment at sea (minimum of three months).  http://www.cmog.org/dynamic.aspx?id=10482.

New Internship: “Art Around the Corner” – The National Gallery of Art has announced a new 2010-2011 Internship in the Museum Profession in the department of teacher, school and family programs.  The intern will assist with multiple-visit programs, including Art Around the Corner, the Gallery’s partnership program with DC public schools and with other outreach programs for underserved youth and family audiences.  Required are knowledge of current research in museum education and learning theory, experience teaching children and a proven ability to teach students in exhibition spaces.  A background in art history, studio art, photography or new media is welcome.  202.842.6257. www.nga.gov/education/interned.htm.

Folk Art and Crafts

Wheat Weaving, Quilling, Over-Mantle Paintings and Fireboards

Wheat weaving is ancient—for as long as people have been growing wheat, they have created designs with stalks and heads of the grain. In England some of these figures are called Corn Dollies.  Other shapes and designs have been used over time but the belief behind saving this precious grain is the same.  These ancient designs symbolize the spirit of the corn. Wheat was thought to house a living spirit, which must be cared for over the winter. The last wheat of the field was harvested and woven into a design to house the spirits and then hung in the family home for the winter. The following spring the design was broken up, and its grain was planted first, returning the wheat spirit to the soil.

From the beginning, Corn Dollies have symbolized all the hopes and desires embodied in the human experience. The most ancient designs were simple, and reflected basic hopes of those early peoples: a successful harvest and plentiful food for the winter. Later designs involved hopes for a prosperous and healthy life, and many were made to fill a particular need such as tokens of love.

Quilling is done with long thin strips of lightweight paper (today in bright colors).  A quilling tool or pick is used to hold the inside of a coil as the artist tightly coils the paper around the pick.  A count of the number of times the strip is wrapped is essential to create exact repetitions of shapes.  For instance, if you wrap a strip of green quilling paper around the pick 10 times, then cut the paper and release the tightness of the coil, the paper will unwind.  Once unwound, the end is glued in place and the concentric coils are pinched.  The result is a leaf shape.  Repeated a number of times in exact duplication, leaves for a flower are created.  The same can be done to create the petals.  Many shapes can be created by coiling, loosening the coil and then pinching the rings to create new shapes.

The name quilling originated during the Renaissance when nuns and monks used feather quills as their tool to roll the paper strips.  They also worked with coiled, thin gold leaf to replicate the fine filigree metal work they favored.  Decades later, quilling became a most respected hobby for ladies of leisure in both Europe and America.  It is used today to create lovely original works of art and exquisite greeting cards and stationery.

Over-mantle paintings were originally large-scale works that were done above mantles in homes of the rich.  Paintings were completed directly on the wall, usually employing a base surface of plaster, and are the origin of today’s murals.  Done during Colonial American building, over-mantle paintings often matched the wooden fire screen (or fireboard) below it.  The wall and the wooden screen created an image that was the focal point of the room.

Subject matter in these paintings was usually pastoral and of the countryside surrounding the landscape.  Some of the painters of the time created the look of rare woods and stone, often too costly to be used, but painterly renditions could be easily afforded.

Fireboards could be used alone, as well.  Fireboards are hinged, wooden panels that until 50-60 years ago were used extensively to cover fire box openings during summer.  Some of the oldest are ornate and intricate and were designed to be accessories that added to a room.  As their use dropped in popularity, they evolved into somewhat utilitarian, wallpapered or simply painted units.

These are only a few of the crafts for which early American artists are known.  See exhibits of crafts and folk art at the Craft and Folk Art Museum, Los Angeles, CA, 323.937.4230, www.cafam.org.; and the Museum of Craft and Folk Art, San Francisco, CA, 415.227.4888, www.mocfa.org. The American Folk Art Museum in New York City has displays of 18th and 19th century American works, 212.265.1040, www.folkartmuseum.org.

Art Events and Exhibitions

—Santa Fe, NM – Art Santa Fe - The tenth edition of Art Santa Fe, the international art fair, will be held July 15-18 at the new green Santa Fe Convention Center.  Visitors will find a total experience that includes not only a high class mix of excellent contemporary galleries from all over the globe, cutting-edge art installations and emerging artists and dealers, but does so in a unique setting that offers visitors the ultimate arts and cultural experience.  Visit www.artsantafe.com for details.

—Boulder, CO – 3^rd Annual Boulder Festival of the Arts on 29^th St. – July 24-25 – Art enthusiasts can expect to find the finest in handmade art just a short drive from Denver at Twenty Ninth Street, Boulder’s popular and vibrant retail and dining destination. http://www.artfestival.com/events/visitorsShow/115/1/
3rd_Annual_Boulder_Festival_of_the_Arts_on_29th_Street_(Boulder,_CO.).html.

—Edmonton, Alberta, Canada – Art Gallery of Alberta – TIMELAND:  2010 Alberta Biennial of Contemporary Art – “Timeland” speaks to geography of the past and the future, the old and new.  As a theme for the 2010 edition of the Alberta Biennial, it is also a conceptual guide for an exhibition that blends both emerging and established generations of artists to create a snapshot of the vitality of the contemporary Alberta art scene.  Through Aug. 29.

Airbrush

Mediums for Airbrush
Part I – Water-Based Media

We often get emails from artists saying, “Help, I can spray cleaner through my airbrush, but when I put paint in it nothing comes out!”  Ninety-nine percent of the time the medium they are attempting to spray is not properly thinned for spraying.  Following is a list of water-based media most commonly used with the airbrush for painting on a variety of surfaces:

—Inks and Dyes (Ampersand Art Supply, Chartpak).  These are the easiest materials to spray through an airbrush.  They come off the shelf ready to be sprayed and no thinning is necessary.  Materials that fall into this category include India ink, drawing ink, fugitive dyes and transparent watercolors.  These are usually available in small jars with eyedropper tops for ease of loading color into the airbrush.  Inks can be opaque, but are usually transparent and in some cases are fugitive (susceptible to ultraviolet light) and may fade over time.

—Airbrush Colors (Iwata-Medea, Schmincke).  Many manufacturers of airbrushes and paints have airbrush colors in their product lines. These are mostly acrylics that are water-based, low in toxicity and designed for work on paper or illustration board. Available in both opaque and transparent formulas, they are much more permanent than inks and dyes.  Even though they are pre-reduced, some must be thinned further for consistent spraying without clogging.  Reduction is easily accomplished with water.  Since these paints are pigmented, a tiny bb is in the jar to aid mixing.

—Artist Acrylic Colors (Da Vinci Paint Co., Grumbacher). Although these paints are water-based, they are not necessarily pre-reduced and may require thinning for use with an airbrush.  These are the most permanent of water-soluble airbrushing mediums and are designed primarily for use on canvas, paper and illustration board.

—Artist Watercolor (Da Vinci Paint Co., Grumbacher) and Gouache (Opaque Watercolor) (Da Vinci Paint Co.).   These are designed for work on paper surfaces and watercolor canvas and are easy to thin.  Watercolor was the first paint used in the airbrush for commercial work—in 1878 to retouch photographs.  You can work either opaquely or transparently.  When dry, the color is permanent, but the paint itself can be damaged by water.

With water-based media, airbrush cleaning can be accomplished easily using liquid airbrush cleaners (Iwata-Medea) available at art supply stores.  And keep in mind that all water-based media are low in toxicity and, therefore, perfect for spraying. 

Airbrush Newsletter

See the FREE new May/June edition of AirbrushTalk at www.airbrushtalk.com, where you’ll find “Perhaps You Should Grow a Beard!” by Wes Hawkins, “Joker’s Wild—Flippin’ Cards with Frasier Stencils” by Thomas Adams, “Paint and Rocks!” by Janean S. Thompson and more.

ArtPourri

NEA News – The latest round of funding for fiscal year 2010 in the categories of Access to Artistic Excellence, Learning in the Arts, Arts on Radio and Television and Partnership Agreements (state and regional) has been announced.  The Arts Endowment will distribute $97,632,100 through 1,323 grants to nonprofit national, regional, state and local organizations nationwide.  Read more at http://www.nea.gov/news/news10/grant-announcement-april.html. - The NEA has created the Blue Star Museums program, whereby participating institutions provide free admission to active military and their families between Memorial Day and Labor Day this year.  For info:  202.682.5578.

Finalists Announced — The Tate Britain has announced finalists for this year’s Turner Prize.  Established in 1984, the prize is awarded each year to a British artist under 50 for an outstanding exhibition or other presentation of his/her work in the 12 months preceding.  And the finalists are:  Susan Philipsz (installation artist), Dexter Dalwood (painter), Angela de la Cruz (painter/sculptor), and the Otolith Group (documentary filmmakers Anjalika Sagar and Kodwo Eshun).  An exhibition of their works will open at the Tate on Oct. 4 and the winner will be announced in December.

Auction News – Sotheby’s evening sale of Impressionist and Modern Art brought a total of $195.6 million.  Artist records were set for Isamu Noguchi and Salvador Dali, while the evening’s top price was achieved by Matisse’s Bouquet pour le quatorze juillet at $28.6 million.  The Contemporary Art evening sale totaled $189.9 million, with Warhol’s Self Portrait setting a record for a self-portrait by the artist at auction at $32.6 million.  At Christie’s, Picasso’s Nude, Green Leaves, and Bust from the Brody Collection sold for $106.4 million, a new record for any work of art sold at auction.  The Michael Crichton collection sale was led by Jasper Johns’ Flag, which set a record price of $28.6 million.

New Galleries Open – New Galleries for Medieval and Renaissance Sculpture and Decorative Arts have opened at The Getty Center, Los Angeles, CA.  Sculpture, ceramics, metalwork, furniture and stained glass will be on view alongside paintings and illuminated manuscripts, all arranged by period and theme.

Postal News –The 2010 44-cent Love stamp, LOVE:  Pansies in a Basket, features a white woven basket brimming with deep and light purple pansies and green foliage.  The floral design is a detail from a watercolor created by the late Dorothy Maienschein, an employee of Hallmark Cards, Inc., who first introduced the design in 1939.

Art Theft Reported – Five master oil paintings on canvas, with an estimated value of more than $100 million, were stolen during an overnight burglary (May 19-20) at the Paris Museum of Modern Art.  The thief apparently took advantage of the fact that the Museum was awaiting spare parts to fix a broken alarm system in some rooms.  See the paintings by Georges Braque, Fernand Leger, Henri Matisse, Amedeo Modigliani and Pablo Picasso online at www.interpol.int.

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Copyright ARTtalk Vol. 20 No. 8 — June 2010