A top art blog for artists and art lovers: news about major art competitions and exhibitions, interviews with artists, techniques and tips for art and business
In this post you'll find links to some of the most popular blog posts on this blog this last year.
Apparently rather a lot of people took a look at a fair few posts on this blog in 2014. Over half a million people paid unique visits and created 0.75 million page views in 2014.
That's not to say the posts with the most views are intrinsically better than any of the rest - but it's always interesting to see what peaks interest!
Please note I've left out the normal art competitions and art society exhibitions as I'll be doing updates on those this week and will highlight past posts when I do.
Top 10 tips for being an artist highlights the tips offered by Suzanne du Toit in a BBC article. Suzanne won the BP Portrait award in 2013 and I had the delightful experience of sketching with her in November. She's a very fast sketcher!
While writing my book I couldn't maintain my normal output re blog posts - so took to creating some compendiums of past posts on a topic. This is A Compendium of Colour
The very popular post which isn't here is "How to hold a pencil". I really wanted to write a post about it as soon as I'd written that section of the book - mainly because of the contortions involved in actually producing the images! In the end I decided that you'll have to read my book for that - but I will show one of the images.... and later on I'll tell you the story of how that section was produced.
this is the basic grip for drawing and is one of four drawings for different options in the book!
My book is published on 8 January 2015 in the UK! It was also published on 1 January in the USA. Here are my posts about it - so you know what to watch out for.
John Smolko who says much better than I could in a tips book what the very good reasons are for continuous line drawings - do please read John Smolko's Top Tip for Drawing
I also wrote two blog posts about preparing images for a book - it seemed like a good idea to record the lessons learned (while I could still remember them) for anybody else who does down this route and writes an art instruction book at some point in the future!
How can an artist find out who bought their painting? a response to a very frequent question which artists ask. The post covers what is normal practice in terms of sharing the name of buyers and comments on the different perspectives of art gallery, art competition and artist
This is the section which generated the most visited blog post in 2014! It covers websites, internet marketing, blogging and Facebook. In 2014 I started to deliver workshops for art societies and art venues on artists and social media - and I continued to write about issues relevant to artists on my blog.
Following on my from last post, here's a round up of blog posts by artists looking back at 2014 and/or looking forward to 2015. You might find a few tips in these as well!
Jeanette Jobson (Illustrated Life) came up with a Top 10 of 2014 and a new outlook for 2015. Here's wishing a better New Year to Jeanette whose mother passed away two days before Christmas
I've closed the door on 2014 and am looking forward to a new year full of challenges and opportunities. Health, happiness and creativity is all I wish for you. I know for some it can be difficult to find even one of these and especially all three together at times, but we can still wish for them, can't we?
In years past I would often have big lists of goals....New Year's resolutions. It was overwhelming to keep track of and to know where to begin. I have been able to whittle the list down and this year there is nothing on the list except to Simply Paint.
The Best Picture of 2013 on an Art Blog is the final award
to be announced as part of the 8th Making A Mark Art Blog Awards.
But first we have the category winners!
There were four categories - Nature, Portrait, Place, and Still Life. Readers of this blog were invited to vote for the artwork they thought was best in each category in my post on Boxing Day - see VOTE for the Best Artwork on an Art Blog in 2013. This includes links to the posts in which I listed all the nominations received.
The Polls were conducted on Polldaddy and I'm happy to supply anybody with a pdf copy of the results if they'd like a copy.
I've had the pleasure in 2013 of seeing Sarah's work hanging in exhibitions and in my opinion, while images on her blog are excellent, they don't do justice to the work in real life. She never disappoints me. I also chose this work because it's monochrome and a drawing.
The number of votes for the three other artworks kept changing all the time. If it had finished at a different time it might have been a different result.
"O'Keeffers" by Karin Jurick (A Painting Today) | Post "O'Keeffers" 20th September 2013 | Nominated by: Katherine Tyrrell
This painting appealed to me for three reasons - first this painting also has more than one person and a context! Second, I'm a big fan of both Karin Jurick and her paintings. Third, I'm a big fan of Georgia O'Keeffe so to get both Karin and Georgia in one painting is fabulous! I was also greatly amused to learn from her post that both she and I spend time and effort on our floors in terms of colour, tonal value and reflections! I see so many paintings where people have filled the space in round the people in a fairly cursory way whereas people like Karin think about the whole space. Finally, Karin Jurick is also the mistress of the natural pose and the cut in with respect to negative painting. Her paintings repay careful study.
"In the Spotlight" by Ramesh Jhawar | Post: : In the spotlight (2nd September 2013)| (Nominated by: Roger Brown)
Well I am going to nominate a larger than normal still life,a bicycle! It's entitled "In the spotlight". I love this painting for is strong contrasts between the ultramarine and cobalt blue and how the bicycle is illuminated by a shaft of warm light.
I've seen this painting in the recent ROI Exhibition - plus it was saved by the artist since January for this exhibition - and it sold straightaway. Haidee-Jo has an excellent eye for colour and tone and her draughtsmanship is pretty good too. She paints in a looser impressionistic way. One of the things I like particularly about the way she works is that she keeps going back to the same place and painting what is basically the same scene from slightly different perspectives and in different seasons.
This was a very close run battle between the two paintings which came first and second. They were vying for position for most of the poll and there was often only a few votes in it. However Haidee-Jo drew away towards the end of the poll.
The Making A Mark Award
for
Best Picture of the Year
on an Art Blog 2013
Every year you decide who wins The MAM Award for Best Picture of the Year on an Art Blog. The way it works is that the award always goes to the picture which got the most votes overall across all four polls. That means it depends on how many votes each poll gets - and what percentage of the poll the winner gets
This year the winner was very clear "from the off". It streaked into the lead and never ever looked as if it would be pipped for first place. The interesting question was who was going to come second as places changed several times during the course of the poll.
Total Votes
The total votes cast in each category were as follows
Nature: 248 votes
Portrait: 227 votes
Place: 235 votes
Still Life: 223 votes
Final Placement
The placements were as follows:
'Gone' by Sarah Gillespie (Sarah Gillespie - Artist) Devon, UK | Charcoals and watercolour on Arches paper. 13" X 13" Original post: (Nominated by Katherine Tyrrell)
"O'Keeffers" by Karin Jurick (A Painting Today) USA | oil on panel, 9" x 12" Original post: (Nominated by Katherine Tyrrell)
"Galley Hill Allotments in the Snow" by Haidee-Jo Summers | Haidee-Jo Summers artist (UK) oil (Nominated by: Katherine Tyrrell)
Which means Sarah Gillespie is the 2013 Winner of the Best Picture Award.
I think it's worth quoting what Sarah said in the blog post in which she posted her drawing on her blog.
Over the past weeks, as a result of the exhibition TREE at Beaux Arts in London, I have been asked several times if there is a 'Japanese influence' to my work.
Sadly, I have never visited Japan but I own to a long-term interest in Buddhism and, more recently, the profound influence of two small books: In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki, and A Tractate on Japanese Aesthetics by Donald Richie. In the latter, amongst many other elegant and subtle ideas, Richie discusses the term aware. Aware emphasises the wistful melancholy of the sympathetic response. It applies to that which moves one to an awareness of the ephemeral beauty of a world in which change is the only constant. The element of aware may move one to melancholy, awe, or quiet acceptance. Often such feelings run too deep for words
I hope that recent drawings have held this in mind.
Thank you again - to you all - for sending in nominations and for voting.
It just remains for me to wish you all..............
HAPPY NEW YEAR
MAY ALL YOUR ARTWORK ACTIVITIES BE FRUITFUL
AND I HOPE TO SEE SOME OF IT AT THE END OF NEXT YEAR ON THIS BLOG!
PS You can see all the other awardwinners by visiting this page Making A Mark Awards
This is the last but one category in the 8th Making A Mark Awards - just the Best Picture of the Year to go!
The Home Front concerns matters relating to the practical aspects of our artistic art and/or how to make life at home with the artist that bit better. There are three awards:
The Most Gorgeous Mouthwatering (MGM) Studio of the Year
The Art Innovation of the Year Award
“The Moose” - the award for the best animal in an illustrated blog
The Most Gorgeous Mouthwatering (MGM) Studio of the Year
The Most Gorgeous Mouthwatering (MGM) Studio of the Year is for the Most Improved Studio of the Yearand reflects the continuous efforts of many artists to improve our studio and working environments
2008: Tracy Helgeson (Works by Tracy Helgeson)[This award was originally made under The “Tales from the Frontline” Amusing Musings Trophy - now retired. It prompted the creation of this new award in 2009]
The results of a poll in 2012 (What's the best place to sell art? ) identified "Direct from the studio" as the best place to sell art by nearly a quarter of artists. Overall it ranked #1 for both revenue and profit.
The third section of the 2013 Making A Mark Art Blog Awards is about Learning about Art and the Art Business. There are three awards:
The FAQs and Answers Really Useful Medal
The Make Me Think Gong
The Best Book by an Art Blogger Blue Ribbon
This particular section of the awards focuses on our personal development - whether that's via:
regular posts on a blog wholly focused on the development of artists
a really good series of posts on a particular topic of major relevance to artists
a new art instruction book
a new book about the artist and the art business
For some reason there's a very strong art business flavour to this year's award winners.
The FAQs and Answers Really Useful Medal
The FAQs and Answers Really Useful Medal
values those art blogs which aim to share useful information for artists - including what they have learned with/from others
"Getting out of the Studio" inThe 8th Making A Mark Art Blog Awardsis the category of awards for all those people who draw and paint outside their studio - sometimes producing finished sketches or paintings plein air and sometimes producing material to develop further in the studio.
They are:
The Painting Plein Air Plus Prize
The Travels with a Sketchbook Trophy
The Going Greener Gong
They're also awards for people who place an emphasis on sharing information.
This is the first post in The Making A Mark Art Blog Awards 2013 to announce who has won an award this year.
The Making A Mark Awards are for Art Blogs and for blogging about art on art blogs.
A year of transition
This year seems to be a period of transition!
What's very clear is that during 2013 fewer people have been keeping up with their blogs compared to times past and fewer people have been visiting blogs to comment. So we've seen:
fewer blog posts,
less visits to art blogs (although changes in the Google algorithm certainly affected stats re. visits), and
people reading fewer blog posts (the loss of Google Reader has been significant).
At the same time I'm also seeing evidence of people working out a clear social media strategy for displaying their art which involves their blogs alongside websites and a presence on social media sites and vlogging (video blogging).
What I need to do is work out whether I continue to limit these awards in future to just art blogs or take on board the wider social media aspects as well. Time will tell - I've certainly not made any decision as yet.
The Generating Art category
There are three awards in this category - all associated with with making, displaying and exhibiting art.
The Best Art Blog Project Virtual Challenge Cup
The Best Art Society Blog Prize
The Showcase Shield (which replaces The Painting A Day Stickability Shield )
First however there is a an announcement of a retirement - and it marks the end of an era.
You are invited to VOTE for
the Making A Mark Award
for the BEST PICTURE ON AN ART BLOG in 2013
There are FOUR polls below - please take your time and vote on each The results will be announced in a post on this blog on 31st December.
One will become Picture of the Year.....
The shortlist for Best Picture of an Art Blog 2013
On Christmas Eve I published the results of nominations in the FOUR different categories of the Best Picture on an Art Blog Award in FOUR separate posts.
Today I've drawn up the shortlist for voting via the Poll
I chose two works from the nominations
I then selected two works myself. The aim here is to give a balanced range of artwork to vote for in the Poll - with the criteria varying per category (e.g. media used, nationality of art blogger). I've also tried to reflect the artwork I've enjoyed during the year.
I've listed all four nominations in each category below. Within each category you will find
the award categories - and a commentary on that category
the shortlist - including an image and details of the artwork and details of who nominated the work
the poll
You now have four days to vote for which is the best artwork in each category.
HOW YOU CAN VOTE FOR
BEST PICTURE ON AN ART BLOG IN 2013
Please note: LOBBYING IS NOT ALLOWED. However a selected artist can a link to this post on their own blog and explain how to vote - in a post of their own blog.
Others can feel free to share a link to this vote if you want to encourage people to look at the options generally - but please do NOT tell people to vote for anybody specific. I've had to eliminate an entry from the poll in the past for votes being distorted by lobbying.
Vote for the artwork you like the best not the person you like the best!!!
You have one vote for each category - so make sure you get the result right first time as you'll be blocked from changing your vote.
The deadline for voting is 23.00 hours (GMT/London) on Monday 30th December 2013
I suggest you view larger sizes of the images before voting - right click on the image and it should open in a new tab in your browser - so you can see all the work properly.
Decide which picture you like best (see images below) in each of the FOUR different categories below and then vote in the poll relating to each category.
When you've voted you can then:
view the results by clicking on the 'view result' link in the bottom left hand corner (just above the polldaddy link).
see the percentages of the vote which each piece attracts - but not the number of votes.
share a link to any of the polls on your own blog. Just click the 'share this' link for the poll you'd like to share
The work which attracts the most votes in total is also declared PICTURE OF THE YEAR!
I will announce the winner of each category in the Best Picture - Making A Mark Awards in a post on Tuesday 31st December.
[Note: At the end I've made a note of the things which struck me as I was making my choice of paintings to nominate]
The Making a Mark Prize for Best Portrayal of a Place
on an Art Blog2013
aims to celebrate and highlight excellence in creating pictures
about places in our environment - both landscapes and interior scenes
The monochrome palette and the vertical and lateral lines in this painting are exceptionally strong. They're relieved by small dots and dashes of movement and highlights. It certainly leaves you feeling as if you're sitting in an urban traffic jam.
I've seen this painting in the recent ROI Exhibition - plus it was saved by the artist since January for this exhibition - and it sold straightaway. Haidee-Jo has an excellent eye for colour and tone and her draughtsmanship is pretty good too. She paints in a looser impressionistic way. One of the things I like particularly about the way she works is that she keeps going back to the same place and painting what is basically the same scene from slightly different perspectives and in different seasons.
"Afternoon Siesta" bySarah Wimperis | The Red Shoes(Cornwall)
This particular nomination relates to a painting which takes me straight back to that particular sunny place and a painting holiday in Provence in 2011. I also chose it because it seemed to me the place category needed a bit of sunlight! Sarah is also an excellent example of a painter who produces a lot of paintings which sell.
NOTE: ANSWERS ARE RANDOMISED - check the names carefully
__________________________
The Making a Mark Prize for Best Artwork about People
on an Art Blog2013
aims to celebrate and highlight excellence in portraiture and/or artwork
on an art blog predominantly involving figures
(right click the image and open in new tab to see a larger image)
I review at least three top notch portrait exhibitions each year as well as seeing a lot of paintings of people - as portraits and figurative work - in other exhibitions. I had two thoughts when trying to find artworks for me to nominate this year:
I was amazed at just how many people paint portraits as "heads" which have no background and no interesting lighting.
Where's the background which explains who this person is?
Why stop at just the head?
Why was this view the of an individual person chosen from the options available options?
I cannot tell you how depressing it is to view images on blogs which come up in response to specific queries on Google. There are far too many bad copies of photographs of celebrities!
There are far too few paintings of people which incorporate more than one person - and far too few that then locate them within a context
It continues to be very difficult to find people who create paintings of people which avoid cliche! I also noted a fair number of people creating paintings of people who really need to attend a life class. That said - when do find people who have developed their artistic practice and skills around portraying people you can find some of the most satisfying artwork around.
Post: Night Scene (10 November 2013)
Nominated by: Natasha Kimstach
It's very rare to see such an animated person in a person - which is the reason I selected this painting from those nominated. I also like the use of chiaruscuro and the fact that not all the features are in the light and the painting might have used a photograph for reference but is not hyper-realist photographic in style. The foreground of bottles and glasses looks natural and is a good foil for the rest of the painting - while adding in a subtle threat that this might be a man who is out of control.
Portraits executed in a landscape format appeal to me for some reason - maybe because the space around the head gives them room to breathe. I'm also very fond of portraits which use a Holbein Blue background although this one has not adopted the smooth and flat approach employed by Holbein.
Post: Collagraph: Breakfast Alarm Nominated by: Katherine Tyrrell (Making A Mark) Belinda del Pesco is a figurative artist rather than a portrait artist - which means she regularly creates artwork based on her observation of the things around her. This one ticks the boxes for grouping, context and not being afraid to portray a person while not showing all their face or features. What I like about this image is you get two 'portrait's for the price of one. It also has context and a reality which will amuse all cat owners who are very familiar with this particular tactic for getting breakfast served! Plus it's a collograph accented by the use of coloured pencils - and I always like people who explore the full range of media available to an artist.
This painting appealed to me for three reasons - first this painting also has more than one person and a context! Second, I'm a big fan of both Karin Jurick and her paintings. Third, I'm a big fan of Georgia O'Keeffe so to get both Karin and Georgia in one painting is fabulous! I was also greatly amused to learn from her post that both she and I spend time and effort on our floors in terms of colour, tonal value and reflections! I see so many paintings where people have filled the space in round the people in a fairly cursory way whereas people like Karin think about the whole space. Finally, Karin Jurick is also the mistress of the natural pose and the cut in with respect to negative painting. Her paintings repay careful study.
NOTE: ANSWERS ARE RANDOMISED - check the names carefully
__________________________
The Making a Mark Prize for Best Portrayal of Nature
on an Art Blog2013
values the natural world and its plants and animals
and celebrates excellence in portraying every aspect of nature
(right click the image and open in new tab to see a larger image)
Some strong nominations in this category this year and it was difficult picking the two to carry forward to the Poll. This year we're seeing more flowers and plants nominated in a category which has to date been dominated by the animals and birds.
I could select this painting just because it's a fine painting. However these awards are about by art bloggers and what also distinguishes this painting is the wealth of information contained in its associated blog post. Eunike repeats this process of writing about her artwork and providing excellent images in all her blog posts.
I love compilations with a theme - particularly if they're of natural items. Creating a pattern which varies line, form, colour and texture while at the same time maintaining unity is rather like a puzzle - and it's great when you see someone who has worked hard to arrive at her very effective solution. I like the way Claire takes us through a complete year and all the seasons in a welsh wood of oak trees.
I've had the pleasure in 2013 of seeing Sarah's work hanging in exhibitions and in my opinion, while images on her blog are excellent, they don't do justice to the work in real life. She never disappoints me. I also chose this work because it's monochrome and a drawing.
Many times I hear that wildlife artists have to work from photographs because they can't get close to or access to the wild animals. By way of contrast, I especially like artists who demonstrate to me, time and time again, that those who have an excellent eye and a practised hand can draw and paint plein air (often via a field telescope) if they do it enough (i.e. putting in the hours enables many people to become excellent at whatever you do). Museums also offer a wealth of opportunities to draw animals shapes from observation - and with the huge benefit that the animals do not move! These sketches - as a double page spread in a sketchbook - is an excellent example of the sort of keenly observed animal art I admire. I could have nominated any number of works from Federico's sketchbooks and blog but this one caught my eye because of the multiple subjects.
NOTE: ANSWERS ARE RANDOMISED - check the names carefully
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The Making a Mark Prize for Best Still Life
on an Art Blog 2013
aims to highlight and celebrate excellence in creating pictures
which help us to reflect on how the small and/or still can be beautiful
(right click the image and open in new tab to see a larger image)
In an era of apparently endless dayglo still life paintings it's really nice to see a painter who knows how to balance out hue and tone to best effect. I'm very impressed with the coloured grey!
Nominated by: Katherine Tyrrell (Making A Mark) Three very convincing truffles which have greater impact because of the space above them which allows them to have a presence. It's also nice to see the treatment given to what are in effect three simple spheres.
NOTE: ANSWERS ARE RANDOMISED - check the names carefully
__________________________
Notes on my choices
I started to make notes as I was looking for art to nominate and posted them to my Facebook Page - and I'm repeating them below.
It's fascinating how I can be reviewing images only (ie not names or media or price), and I think I spot a definite possible - only to find that it's somebody who has won in previous years who's not eligible!
I don't pick artists who are trying to copy the style of other artists - I'm looking for those who develop their own unique style
It's very frustrating when trying to pick out work to be totally unable to tell from the post whether or not this was produced in 2013. I note a fair few artists who I'm pretty certain are posting their archive.
The problem with artistic licence and 'faking it' is that somebody people know the view you're painting!
I've been finding painters who do remarkable work and have art blogs - but fail to post their work to their blogs!
I stop looking at art pretty quickly on blogs which have image files which are too big and load too slowly.
At the weekend, two more posts continue the Making A Mark Awards for Art Blogs. You can still nominate art blogs that you value for these awards - see the side column
The 2013 Making a Mark Prize for Best Artwork on an Art Blog - Nature aims to celebrate and highlight excellence in artwork which is about Nature - botanical, natural history or wildlife - as seen on an art blog in 2013.
Listed below you will find the nominations for the Best Picture (Nature) on an art blog in 2013. The details of the nomination process and criteria for submissions can be found in NOMINATE: Best Picture on an Art Blog in 2013 - Nature
Three works will be shortlisted (including the nomination I've yet to make)
Larger images of the three shortlisted works will be included in the invitation to vote for the winner which will be posted on Thursday 26th December 2013
voting for the best picture continues until a minute after midnight on 30th December
no lobbying is allowed
These are the links to the other nominations for Best Picture:
I think it deserves to be nominated because it is a wonderful rendition of a botanical subject. I enjoy artists showing botanical subjects in a bold and lively way and this artwork exemplifies that. It would certainly have great wall appeal and allow the viewer to see well into the plant without having to peer too closely - her technique always shows a full range of tones and wonderful light and depth with gorgeous rich colours. Eunike shows the viewer the process in such a way that you feel you are in the studio with her, Just by watching the progress of this piece makes me want to paint!
Just about any item on her blog could win this award, however, the reason I select this particular one is because it is 'the one that got away.' That is to say, the one she rejected from her exhibition as being below par. I think it is marvellous and would love to see it in its full sized glory - but it's a long way from Yorkshire to El Paso (although she originates from Manchester). Julie is among the leading exponents of fractured techniques and makes no secrets about explaining them to us novices. Here she walks us through the research and we share in the battle and anguish, of all artists, as she produces a series of works in progress. I would love this painting to win this award as it has everything about it that I dream of achieving - but never will. It has the detail, the richness of texture and colour, the uniqueness of subject and context. It's inspirational.
Diane's paintings of cats are so beautifully soft with exquisitely detailed backgrounds in most of them. While she does work with other subjects, her cats stand out as unique. Sun Cat is an odd looking cat, and appealing simply because of that as well as the colouring, stance and background. Its not just a painting of another cat, its a portrait that provides the essence of the animal.
Nominated Artwork:"Welsh Oak Woodlands", watercolour, 84x60cm
The reason why I like this is because it is an enormous labour of love, taking most of this year to complete. It depicts the little treasures found in a woodland throughout the seasons. Each little piece was carefully chosen and exquisitely rendered.
