21st February 2010 - Who's made a mark this week?

The image below is the one that got away and didn't make my submission to the Annual Exhibition of the Society of Botanical Artists. It's still a work in progress but once I've completed it I'm thinking it might just take a trip to California instead for an exhibition I'm participating in later this year!

Scarlet Charlotte (a work in progress)

7.5" x 11.5", coloured pencils on Arches HP
copyright Katherine Tyrrell

My big rumination on computers! Some of you will have noticed that I've been having a mega think about computers this week. I've been sharing it online as I guess all artists all think about pretty much the same sort of things when we're trying to make a decision about options for the next computer.

I'm not there yet but you can follow my thought processes in the following posts plus all the really terrific advice and thoughtful comments that these posts attracted

• PC vs Mac for artists - explaining the reason for the exercise and inviting views - which attracted 50+ comments
• PCs versus Apple Mac - for artists (Part 2) - in which I tried so summarise what people were saying in the first post and I created the chart below - and which also got a lot of comments
  
• Decision time: pros and cons of PC vs Mac for artists - in which I explained my own particular set-up and key considerations - and then applied these to analysis of what I'd found out to date (not all of which is on this blog. I've been looking at websites for a long time)
  

This exercise helped to generate this chart - which some people may be surprised by. I know I was.

PC versus Apple Mac - what you recommend
(right click chart and open in new tab to see bigger image)

My conclusion to date? I'm really not bothered about operating systems or software investment as this has to be updated all the time. I just want to be secure and buy a machine from a manufacturer who will impress me and make me want to repeat the experience. It's not much to ask. You can help suggest which one in the last post above.

I really want to emphasise just how very grateful I am to those who took time out to write about their own experiences and recommendations. These comments certainly helped me but I have a sense that they've maybe helped other people as well!

Art Blogs

By way of thanks for all the useful advice given this week in response to my request for help on Thursday about PCs versus Macs a number of the blogs featured this week are ones I came across when checking out the people who responded to my post on Thursday

Drawing and sketching

• It's not often I get to feature a silverpoint drawing - and I do very much like the delicacy of silverpoint. It's always seemed to me that it dictates what type of subject is appropriate. Candlelight by David Boles (Cobalt Blues) in Missouri seems highly appropriate
• Cathy McAuliffe's sketches in a fire station - Berkeley Firehouse Part II: Cathy’s Sketches -
  have been featured in Jana Bouc's blog. Do you feature people who don't have a blog on your blog?
  
• I commented on Cold weather and small quick sketches on Travels with a Sketchbook...
• ...and then resolved to start posting some of the sketches I've done my travels over the years. The first is Sketching the past: Salle le Sources and dates back to July 1994!

Salles la Source
(19th July 1994)
8" x 11", pen and sepia ink
in black Daler Rowney Sketchbook

copyright Katherine Tyrrell

Coloured Pencils and Pastels

• The United Kingdom Coloured Pencil Society (UKCPS) has posted its call for entries to its members to submit work to the World of Coloured Pencils Exhibition at the Pencil Museum in Keswick in June. The rules have changed this year. For more details see Call for entries: 8th Annual "World of Coloured Pencil" Exhibition 2010 on the UKCPS News blog.
• Sue Clinker and Karie Ann Cooper have both been tackling that bete noire of the coloured pencils pet portrait commission - the black dog! See the results on their respective blogs Sue Clinker and Pet Portraits and Wildlife Art Blog
• Meanwhile over in Newfoundland Jeanette Jobson has been drawing cats in coloured pencils non-stop during February on her blog Illustrated Life.
  
• CathyAnn Burgess (CathyAnn's Studio) has been displaying a portrait in progress on her blog . This is the last post WIP Reading with Poppa completed
  

Landscapes

• Deborah Secor is publishing a book online in a new blog Landscape Painting in Pastels. I recommend a subscription for both pastel artists and those interested in learning more about landscapes. I featured her book blog in Art Instruction: Landscape Painting in Pastels. I know publishing via a blog has been done by writers but think an art instruction book blog might well be a first in the art world. Does anybody know of any other?
  
• On Tuesday I did a post about Defining Landscape #1: Landschaft and landschap.
• Loriann Signori (loriann signori's painting-a-day) has been doing studies of winter landscapes and writing about whistler and thumbnail color studies
• Some more wonderful winter landscapes on a relatively new blog Bauer Studio
• Plus Richard McKinley comments on the season and painting snow in To Every Season on Pastel Pointers
  

Painters and Painting

• My post about the survey which defined The Most Wanted Paintings on the Web told me a few things I had never come across before.
• Lionfish is another stunning watercolour batik on masa paper by Jeanette Jobson
• Larry Seiler (Painting From Life) shows us his painting set up for painting small studies in gouache indoor
• Sophie Ploeg (Sophie Ploeg) in Gloucestershire has commented on what's so special about an original painting or drawing in Original Art

Photography

• Tina Mammoser (the Cycling Artist) has created a special etsy shop for her photograph of the coasts of the UK and her wave mechanics project relating to the River Thames. It's called ThamesLady.etsy.com
  

Portraiture

• Carol Nelson (Carol Nelson Fine Art Blog) has a project/personal challenge of painting 100 portraits in 100 days. She's just passed the half way mark. She's asked her readers to help her goal by providing herwith reference photos. Each post shows the reference photo and the resulting portrait. Thanks to Regula Schiefele for suggesting I highlighjted Carol's blog.
• Ed Terpening (Life Plein Air) has stepped out of his comfort zone and is learning to paint the figure - check out Self-Portrait, Video Demo and Figure studies, influences
  

Art Business and the Economy

• Selling art into a headwind is a post on the Art Biz blog by guest blogger Eric Sparre, Artist & Founder of Artspan.com. It includes his top ten tips for marketing your art in the current economic climate. It's maybe not so surprising that his first tip is 'get a website'! ;)
• Alyson Stanfield's post about The Shaun White Guide to a Gold-Medal Art Career made me smile. I absolutely agree that Olympics stimulate new takes on how to be successful. (See gold medal art - lessons from the olympics for artists which I wrote 18 months ago during the Peking Games)
• Lori Woodward Simons (Lori Woodward Simons Blog) has a neat take on Original Editions which may well be appealing to some of you.
• I really liked Luann Udell's notion about Why you shouldn't ditch your slowest seller. It certainly chimes with my notion about much worse the world will be when globalisation and commoditisation by the 'big boys' means there's nothing unique left which is independent or available for a niche market.
  

Art Market / Art Collectors

• On Tuesday I highlighted a 1995 survey which identified The Most Wanted Paintings on the Web - and the least. I found the survey results to be absolutely fascinating. Who knew that blue was the favourite colour in so many different countries and cultures?
  
• The Telegraph reported that a Businessman is to paint over Banksy artwork 'because he doesn't like art'. Obviously not interested in a profit either!

Art Museums, Exhibitions and Fairs

• Michelangelo's Dream opened at the Courtauld Gallery this week. The exhiition continues until 16th May 2010. It's had some very good reviews - including Michelangelo at the Courtauld by Rachel Campbell-Johnston and Michelangelo's drawings at the Courtauld gallery are intimate encounter with an artist in love by Jonathan Jones
  

Michelangelo’s masterpiece The Dream is one of the greatest of all Renaissance drawings. This complex work shows a nude youth being roused by a winged spirit from the vices that surround him.

• Paul Nash: The Elements opened at the Dulwich Picture Gallery on February 10th. More about this on The Art of the Landcsape next week.
• The Henry Moore exhibition opens at Tate Britain next week (24th February – 8th August 2010). There's a Henry Moore: Curator's Talk on Thursday 11 March 2010. For more about Moore see my resource website Henry Moore - Resources for Art Lovers

With Tate Britain's Henry Moore exhibition nearly upon us, publicity is seeping out that his much-acclaimed shelter drawings were perhaps not as originally inspired as once thought. The myth is that these drawings, of figures huddled together in the Blitz, were triggered by encounters on the Underground. However, it appears Moore may also have been inspired by photographs in Picture Post.
The Telegraph - Art Market News

• Mastering the Art of Chinese Painting: Xie Zhiliu (1910–1997) opened recently at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (February 6, 2010–July 25, 2010). You can read a New York Times review here Tracing the Path to Chinese Finesse. I loved the drawing which features in the review.

The rare trove of material on view demonstrates how studying and copying earlier models were as much a part of Chinese artistic tradition as learning from nature

• Bloomberg has a review of the new Bansky film "Exit Through the Gift Shop" - see Banksy Pokes Fun at Art Market in Film of Mr. Brainwash: Review. It reaches British cinemas on March 5th. This is the link to the YouTube trailer for the world's first street art disaster movie
• I missed this post in December about by Pete at New Curator concerning predictions about the future of museums - so here it is Museum Future Predictions
• Dann Cull (Dan Cull weblog) highlighted the Strike hits National Gallery (London): over Minimum Pay Dispute

Art Education / workshops / Tips and techniques

Art Education

• James Gurney (Gurney Journey) has a post about
• Light and Form, Part 1 in which he covers modelling factors
  
• Light and Form, Part 2 in which he talks about the impact of different sources and strengths of light
  
• Light and Form, Part 3 covers the impact of soft and diffuse light
  
• Deborah Secor's first two chapters of her blog book Landscape Painting in Pastel are about
• Chapter 1: Pastels and other materials
• Chapter 2 Surfaces and Effects

Workshops

• International Plein Air Painters have a Plein Air Painting Workshop - at Sarasota/Longboat Key on the weekend of Feb 27 & 28
  

Tips and techniques

• Liz Steel (Liz and Borromini) created a post about How did I make my issuu books?
• Myrna Wacknov (Creativity Journey) has a post which provides a small tutorial on creating a video
• Tina Mammoser shows you how she developed cost effective Light solutions (for) photographing artwork

Art History

• On The Art of the Landscape I posted about

• Turner's Sketchbooks: 1790s
• Spanish Landscapes - and Picasso.

• This is a link to a Time Online article by Ben Hoyle about a painting by Verrocchio, Leonardo da Vinci's tutor, (which) emerges from epic restoration

Art Studios

• Marion Boddy Evans, the About.com Guide to Painting and author or Marion's Painting Blog has some Art Materials: Studio Safety Tips
• Tina Mammoser has a piece of advice for working in your studio - work in chaos - see Achievement amidst chaos. Mind you it's a different story when it comes to getting ready for open studios! See Conquering the chaos

Book reviews

A lot of you were interested in my post highlighting Harold Speed's The Practice and Science of Drawing which is available to download on the Project Gutenberg site.

Colour

Did you know that PANTONE 15-5519 Turquoise is the colour of the year 2010? I know I've been seeing an awful lot of turquoise in clothes shops in the last few weeks so maybe it's a decor choice too? It's certainly one of my favourite colours. Anybody up for a 'painting in turquoise' challenge?

The Web: networking, blogging, webware and websites

Blogs

• Christy (Average American Girl) is a digital artist and webdesigner. She tells us How to add a button or banner in your sidebar

Networking

• 4 Steps for Managing Social Media Attention was featured on Mashable. Worth a read.
• CNET commented on The buzz about Google Buzz
• and also announced the latest update to the Free Microsoft Office alternative OpenOffice.org also updated, shortening its boot time and gaining some greater compatibility

and finally........

Find out what species of web animal you are. This BBC test is linked to its recent series of excellent programmes about The Virtual Revolution. The test takes about 20 minutes and you need to have woken up before doing it! You can explore all eight animals in the test

For the record apparently I'm a web leopard! I must confess to actually feeling quite old by the time I'd finished (I shall ignore the snorts from those trying to remind me of my actual age). I got very confused by one of the tests and just couldn't finish it and had to skip it. I may just go back and try again...........

You are a Web Leopard

Fast-moving - Web Leopards like you are adept at getting information from the internet very quickly. Your speed is a trait you share with real-world leopards, which are among the fastest land animals.

Solitary - Leopards live alone, fending for themselves in isolated home ranges. Similarly, the Web Leopard likes to go it alone when looking for information, rather than rely on social networks, or other sites where the users create the content.

Specialised - Web Leopards are best suited to performing one task at a time rather than multitasking. The real-world leopard is similarly specialised, being perfectly adapted to silently tracking its prey before pouncing.

BBC - The Web Behaviour Test (What species of web animal are you?)

However given the name of the new Mac operating system I'm taking this as a SIGN!