Pastel paintings are a delightful way to create energetic and interesting paintings. The high pigment strength and convenience make pastels a true fine artist medium. Think of the sublime works of Edgar Degas pastel paintings. But excellent artist's pastels can be pricey. You cannot skimp on quality pigment either as this defeats the object of using pastels. I was excited to try out Koh-I-Noor's extra soft artist's pastels recently. They are reasonably priced and look like good quality too. In this article I review Koh-I-Noor's extra soft pastels and Fabriano watercolor paper. Plus a full demonstration pastel painting with a handy technique for pastel paintings. Try it out for yourself. 
It is the end of 2018 and a good time to look back on the year. In Episode 35 of An Artist's Journey Podcast I am reviewing what worked in 2018. In art marketing that is. Well, in my experience anyway. What worked and what failed. Why I am over certain social media platforms and bullish on others. Most importantly what art marketing methods continue to deliver the goods year after year. These are the methods to focus on going into 2019. Let's take a closer look.
White paint is the most important color that you find on any artist's palette. White paint is necessary to tint other colors into more realistic hues. To mix the vast variety of colors that we perceive requires white paint. But are you aware of what your white paint is made of? Research has revealed that modern white paints can lead to a paintings failure in as little as three years. In this article we are going to look at the problem with white paint. Also what artists should be doing to avoid having their paintings deteriorate. 
No doubt about it a good painting knife is an artist's best friend. Often overlooked while brushes get all the publicity. The humble painting knife can play a strong supporting role or emerge as the star of the show. When you want to add that extra touch of texture or punch to your paintings, the painting knife will deliver.
In this article I want to introduce the types of painting knives I prefer. Plus a handy painting knife technique you can use in your next painting. 
How to paint with oils on paper is a popular topic of discussion. I posted an article last year together with a full demonstration on how to prepare your paper. It received plenty of comments and views. I have been meaning to add the follow up lesson on the painting itself. One thing and another has put that off. Until now.
In this article I show a full painting demonstration using oils on paper. I hope it helps you. Please share it with anyone you know who will find if helpful too. 
It has been described in the most unflattering terms. "Shambolic", "Cultural re-colonisation" and worse. This is the state of the Copyright Amendment Bill currently under scrutiny in Parliament. Will South African artist's interests come first or will the new Act be stillborn? What are the objectives of the amendment? What is new and how will artists benefit?
Find out more from my special guest who is also an expert appointed by Parliament's Portfolio Committee on the Copyright Amendment Bill. 
I do like a good paint brush. Yes, they make a difference as I discovered with bristle brushes for oil painting. But what about watercolor brushes? Or a versatile brush you can use for acrylics too. Synthetic brushes preferably. The brush must, above all else, keep its shape and last a long time. Asking too much? Not to the clever Germans at Kum.
Their new Memory Point brushes claim to solve the problem of wayward synthetic hair ruining your painting experience. In this article I going to test the brushes with a watercolor painting. 
How do you respond to setbacks or frustration with your work? For artists this question is especially important. Most artists work alone and must keep creating new work. This can create pressure especially when this involves personal expectations. For example, which of these people remind you of someone? 
What do you think about art prices? Too high, too low or just right? No this is not a Goldilocks story. It is about the very real issue of living artists, collectors and our world today. I was reading various articles on pricing art and the question that stood out for me was this simple question: Why is art so expensive?
It seems like a strange question to ask because there are so many variables. What is expensive? What is cheap? Who knows? It all depends on the buyer or the collector to decide. Two hundred dollars for one person is a lot for some, but is chicken feed for someone else and so on. It doesn't really matter does it? Except I think it does. Here's why.  I like my camera very much. It is a nifty gadget capable of video and images. It is very competent too. All that clever processing in milliseconds. It has made my painting lessons more dynamic with video. I also get to show you my paintings with photographs. Sweet. But my camera is, in the end, a tool. It is also a bit of a fibber. This makes paintings more important. Here is why. |
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AuthorMalcolm Dewey: Artist. Country: South Africa 
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