A few sunny days last week tricked me into thinking Spring was coming to NE Ohio. Today’s snow proves that hope was false. My son’s golf outing yesterday was cut short by a snow squall and high winds. There is more snow in the forecast. Yes, this is a color photo of the lake from…
Drawings, How to, materials
Good paper for large drawings
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•Bio, cameras, Cleveland, Vermilion, OH
Unseasonably mild in NE Ohio
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•How to, materials, Reviews, Shop Talk, Uncategorized
Old Holland painting medium
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•No, I haven’t lifted my boycott against Old Holland. But a comment on this related post sent me looking at my dwindling stock of Old Holland supplies–things I bought pre-boycott. This photo shows my bottle of Old Holland Oil Painting medium. The ingredients are nowhere found on the label. Based on smell it contains linseed…
materials, Shop Talk
Canvas prep
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•materials, Shop Talk, Uncategorized
Is there something wrong with stand oil?
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•After reading some of my disparaging remarks about stand oil, a reader asked me if there was something wrong with stand oil. The short answer is no, there is nothing wrong with stand oil. The longer answer is, well, complicated. An ancient and still common method to improve oil is to heat it. Heating oil…
Main Street, Paintings, Shop Talk, Studio Corner
What’s in the kitchen
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•This corner of my studio shows two paintings that I’m working on. The unfinished painting on the floor is the latest in my Main Street series. The large vertical painting is the newest work in my Amusement Park series. I had my first painting session with it yesterday. I’ll continue to work both of these…
Art history, Culture, Uncategorized
YouTube art instruction
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•If you are looking for art instruction videos, YouTube is loaded with them. That’s the good news–videos for every taste and interest. The bad news is that the quality is–to put it charitably–spotty. You get what you pay for. Of course, you know this, so why am I taking the time to discuss something so…
Bio, Paintings, Uncategorized
Studio corner
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•Drawings, Uncategorized
New drawing
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•Normally, a new drawing isn’t important enough for me to write about, but the drawing I completed today is noteworthy for its large size–30″ x 36.” “Three Sisters” is from a large roll of Canson paper. This paper is new to me and I tried different mediums some of which, charcoal for example, are ill-suited…
art boards, Drawings, pen and ink, Uncategorized
Drawing on canvas board
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•Whenever I have time, I prepare new canvases, consequently, I have a large stock of canvases and boards for painting. I prepare canvas boards by sanding the supplied surface and applying additional layers. I like smooth surfaces for painting and find that my canvas boards serve well for drawing. These surfaces also provide a large-format…
Books, Culture, Fiction, Grumpy review, Reviews, Uncategorized
Grumpy book review: Lapvona
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•I don’t fit into the intended audience of most contemporary fiction reviewers so I try to avoid them. But a recent YouTube reviewer had one of my favorites, Blood Meridian, on his top fiction list so I stupidly followed one of his recommendations. If I had researched contemporary author Ottessa Moshfegh better, I would have…
materials, Uncategorized
A lot of paint
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•Amusement Park series, Drawings, Studio Corner, Uncategorized
More painting designs
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•I finished the drawing for this painting which is the latest in my Amusement Park Series. I’ve pushed the drawing on the canvas farther than usual to clarify the complicated relationships among the 16 or so figures. The drawing is lead pencil which allows more precision than charcoal. You might wonder why I spend so…
Drawings, materials, Uncategorized
What I have been up to
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•Not only haven’t I posted much lately, I haven’t painted either. But I have been busy. I’ve spent the last couple of weeks drawing and completing painting designs. Normally, when I finish the design for a new painting, I can’t wait to pick up the brushes and pitch in. As an exercise, I’ve been pushing…