Oil Painting

2013 Fall Online Showcase Winners Spotlight

Oil Painters of America · Mar 17, 2014 · Leave a Comment

Adam Clague

Adam Clague Adam Clague studied at Pensacola Christian College, where he received instruction from master artist Brian Jekel and earned a Master of Fine Arts degree. Adam now lives near Kansas City, Missouri and enjoys the adventure of pursuing art with his wife and fellow painter, Andrea Orr Clague.
Adam is a member of the Oil Painters of America and the Missouri Valley Impressionist Society. In 2012, he was chosen for Southwest Art Magazine’s annual “21 Under 31” feature. His work has received national awards, including First Place in the 2011 Laumeister Competition, Portrait Award of Excellence in the 2013 OPA National Exhibition, and a Merit Award in the 2013 Scottsdale Salon. Adam’s work is represented by Hudson Fine Art in Ohio and Augusta Wood in Missouri.
Adam is grateful for the opportunity to paint the beauty of God’s creation. He hopes to share that beauty with others and seeks to glorify the Lord through his work and life.
www.adamclague.com

Bruce Petrie

The artwork of Bruce I. Petrie, Jr. began with an early enjoyment of drawing and caricature–a curious eye for what gives anything, anyplace or anyone its unique character.   In college, graduate school and years following, he pursued free lance illustration, caricature and editorial cartooning, producing a portfolio of several hundred published and reproduced works. In 1989, he began oil painting with American Master Thomas Buechner in the beautiful Finger Lakes Region of Upstate New York.
Over the years since, Bruce has refined his skills through many hours of painting outdoors directly from nature. His easel has traveled across the United States and in France, Italy, Canada, Mexico and Guatemala. He paints in the parklands and natural areas near his home in Cincinnati, as well as in Southwestern Ohio, Northern Michigan, Upstate New York and the American West. He is a member of a guild of artists who meet and draw weekly in Cincinnati and share a dedication to carrying on classical disciplines of direct drawing and painting. His artwork is regularly shown and is held in distinguished private collections.
In a style that blends classical methods with the freedom of the outdoors , the artwork of Bruce I. Petrie, Jr. still draws on his early eye for character within the subject-that substance and spirit which makes the landscape, the natural object or the person distinct and humane.
www.brucepetrie.com

James Crandall

A professional artist all of his adult life, James Crandall worked as a concept illustrator in the advertising and entertainment industry for decades, but has now turned his full attention to easel painting.
At home in northern California and on travels in the southwest U.S. and Europe, he finds subject matter in everyday life, and is always looking for an intriguing play of light or the unstaged gestures of people at work or play.
An ongoing series of paintings depicts life in his maternal grandfather’s hometown of Lucca in northern Tuscany. Living abroad for months at a time, he does sketches and collects reference for studio paintings to be done back in the States.
His work has earned him a growing reputation in the traditional market, with a wall of awards and almost routine inclusion in juried exhibitions. His recent solo show at the Lee Youngman Galleries in Calistoga, California saw a third of the paintings sold before the opening reception.
He has been an Artist Member of the California Art Club for over 15 years, and was recently elevated to Signature status by the Oil Painters of America.
jamescrandall.fineartstudioonline.com

James Tennison OPA

James E. Tennison graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California in 1982. He cites his time at Art Center, where he studied under such artists as Dan McCaw and John Asaro, as his most formative educational experience. After graduating, he spent several years as a freelance illustrator, eventually making the transition from illustration to portraiture and fine art.
Inspired by local geography, neighborhoods and landmarks in his hometown of Fort Worth, Texas – as well as subjects he finds on his travels – James seeks to paint the beauty he sees all around. He is particularly excited by the effect of light – sunlight and shadow – and the colors that can be seen in shadows and reflected light if one looks closely.
Tennison’s paintings have been exhibited in galleries throughout the United States, including the Salmagundi Art Club in New York City, the Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona, Howard/Mandville Gallery in Kirkland, Washington and Galerie Kornye West in Fort Worth, Texas. He has participated in many group shows and competitions and has had a one man show titled “A Year In Fort Worth”.
His portrait commissions have taken him across the United States and to England. His commissions include the official portrait of former Texas Governor Ann Richards, which hangs in the state capitol in Austin. He has painted portraits for Harvard University, Southern Methodist University, Texas Christian University, The National Cancer Institute, the New York County Lawyer’s Association as well as many other public and private collections.
His awards include the Salmagundi Art Club Purchase Prize, the People’s Choice and First Honor Awards at the Portrait Society of America’s International Competition, the RayMar Art Competition Best of Show Award and the Oil Painters of America Online Showcase Silver Medal.
www.jamestennison.com

Jeff Merrill

Jeff Merrill comes from the quiet solitude of Idaho and has always been sensitive to the beauty around him. After living in Spain for two years as a missionary he returned to study illustration at Brigham Young University. He worked as an illustrator for more than a decade before marrying and starting a family. In 2011, he completed an M.F.A in figure painting at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. There he was able to study with many inspirational teachers including Zhaoming Wu, Baoping Chen, and Huihan Liu, among others. Although, his primary passion is the human figure, he loves plein air painting and its implicit challenges. “I paint outside to hone my skills, of simplifying shapes, perceiving color, and visual expression. It helps me focus in the studio and keep my eyes fresh.” Jeff is currently a Professor of drawing and painting at BYU-Hawaii, where he lives with his wife and three children.
Of his process he states, “My primary focus in painting is founded in the principles and elements of design. I paint things because they move me but I strive to present them in a compelling and balanced way. Much of my motivation to paint comes from the inherent duality of the painting process. On one hand, it’s incredibly abstract and disorganized, but on the other hand it has beautiful purpose and strength when it maintains its representational integrity. Working within these two forces creates a sort of reconciliation of opposites. It moves me to find solutions that satisfy my desire to balance these disparate elements. Beyond the technical processes of painting my ultimate goal is to express in visual terms something that isn’t readily definable in words. This involves beauty and truth, introspection and observation, as well as our own mortality and eternal purpose.”
www.jeffmerrill.com

Kathryn Miller

“Art has always been my passion. Throughout my life, I have always tried to involve myself in art.” Kathryn Miller spent 14 years travelling the world as a flight attendant. This gave her the opportunity to see first-hand the artistic creations of many cultures, from the beauty of the temples of India to the Louvre. These experiences nurtured her instinctive desire for creativity.
Sculpture and oil painting have been the media in which she has concentrated. Although she has been painting for a number of years, it was not until recently, that she has been able to devote full-time to this pursuit. She finds it challenging and a constant learning experience. “I am a studio artist; a still-life painter. My work is about the passion I feel for painting. Every time I sit down at the easel, it feels as if I have come home. The peacefulness of my studio and the light and shadow from the north-facing windows, inspire me.”
After taking a still life seminar in 1995, she realized that she found her artistic passion. “I decided at that point to commit my energy to becoming a still life artist.” While still life remains her main focus, plein-aire and portraiture are of interest to her.
Since 1995, Kathryn has studied with several well-regarded artists. “I have been fortunate to have accomplished artists as my mentors. But even more so, I am lucky to have had their support, friendship and encouragement. She continues to participate regularly in workshops and seminars. “I can never learn enough about art.”
She has been a member of Oil Painters of America (OPA) since 1999. In 2001, the OPA awarded her Signature Member status. She has exhibited in four national OPA shows, receiving an Award of Excellence at the Palm Springs OPA Show in April 2001 and the Missoula Montana OPA Show in May, 2006, as well as the Friends of OPA Award of Excellence at the Chicago OPA Show in May, 2002. She also received an Honorable Mention in the Greenhouse Gallery International Salon Show in May, 2003. Most recently, she was awarded 3rd place in the Oil Painters of America 2013 Fall Signature and Associate Online Showcase.
Her work was featured in Southwest Art Magazine’s “Artists To Watch” in April 2001.
Kathryn’s work is about the passion she feels for painting. “That someone would feel a connection to a painting that I created gratifies me.”
In addition to the paintings, Kathryn also creates frames in a style known as sgrafitto, a 15th century technique used by many of the Dutch and Italian masters of that time.
Kathryn Miller is represented by New Masters Gallery (www.newmastersgallery.com) in Carmel, California and by Jones and Terwillger Gallery (www.jones-terwilliger-galleries.com) in Palm Desert, California.
www.kathrynamiller.com

Tampa Paintout

Oil Painters of America · Mar 10, 2014 · 6 Comments

paintout1 — **Row 1** *Nathan Seay, David Kent, Kathy Baird.* **Row 2** *Elizabeth Jennis, Katie Cundiff.* **Row 3** *Susie Covert, Kerry Vosler*

Artists came from a one hundred mile radius to attend the Santaella Studios for the ARTS first OPA Paint Out, hosted by, OPA Member Kerry Vosler. This historic neighborhood is over one hundred years old and is undergoing a time of revitalization. The resident artists of the Santaella had been looking for an event which would connect the artists to the community and draw attention to its rare beauty. The artists loved painting on the streets of West Tampa and the locals loved having them there. Many of them had never seen plein air painters on location before. We caught the attention of the local West Tampa Chamber, restaurants, and even our Florida State Representative: District 62, Janet Cruz. This is a perfect example of how artists can bring whole communities of people together.
Once artists were greeted at the Santaella with fresh hot coffee, restaurant guides and maps they hit the streets. Katie and Susie camped out all day on colorful Main Street. At lunch break they had Iconic Cuban Sandwiches, Cuban coffee & flan for dessert and Katie ordered a holiday pig. Elizabeth found, one of many cool Cigar Factories, with a tower and palm trees. The Cigar Factory Foreman would climb the tower to watch for their ships coming up the Hillsborough River, flying the Cigar Factory Flag.

They would then send the horses and carriage to collect the tobacco. Kathy painted the local life of a man painting his fence and porch. David captured the lovely old colorful bungalows both morning and afternoon. Nathan painted a well known street corner in the morning and broke to teach two students from the Vosler Young Artists’ Studio, Sophia and Kate, how to draw buildings. He did a afternoon painting of the long green house. Many arts patrons came from near and far to watch our artists at work. Paintings were sold and the artists were inspired. Eddie provided live music all afternoon throughout the wine and cheese reception at the end of the day. Robert Sargent Photography took our final photo of us with our wet paintings.
Next year we have an even bigger event planned. Now that we have made friends with our local community we will do a paint out in early Spring of 2015. This event will include a live wet paint auction at the end of the day for Art Collectors at the Santaella Studios for the ARTS.

Participants

Artists
Susie Covert
Katie Cundiff
Kavid Kent
Kathy Baird
Elizabeth Jennis
Nathan Seay
Kerry Vosler
Sophia
Kate

Music
Eddie Deville

Assestants
James Vosler
Scott Vosler

Packing Paintings for Galleries & Shows

Susan Blackwood OPA · Mar 3, 2014 · 2 Comments

Packing Paintings for Galleries & Shows

By Susan Blackwood

Here is an excellent way to pack your paintings for shipping. It is reusable, relatively inexpensive and extremely sturdy. Your galleries will love it and so will OPA and other shows. No matter how you pack, please do not use “popcorn” packing material. Galleries and shows do not like it at all.

Here are the Materials that you will need:

Plastic sheet or a large plastic bag to wrap the painting.
Corrugated cardboard – can be purchased or you can use cardboard from large boxes like mattress boxes and appliance boxes ( free at stores ).
Construction Styrofoam (comes in various thicknesses from 1″ to 2½” – the larger the painting the thicker the Styrofoam (purchase from lumbar yards).
Plastic super strength packing tape.
Reinforced brown paper packing tape (optional).
Water and sponge for wetting the brown packing tape.
Knife with a thin long blade.
Measuring tape.
Long steel ruler or straight edge for marking, cutting and scoring lines.
Marker for making lines.
Screwdriver for scoring lines.

Step 1: Wrap the painting in plastic.
This protects the frame’s finish from rubbing off while it is in transit. It also keeps packing particles off of the painting.

Step 2: Measure the outer dimension of the frame.
In this example a 24″ x 30″ painting with a 4″ frame width makes the outer dimensions 32″ x 38″. Now add to that dimension the width of the Styrofoam that you are using. In this example we are using 2 inch Styrofoam. Therefore, make the bottom Styrofoam layer measurement 2 inches bigger on each side than the outside measurement of the frame. The measurement is now 36″ x 42″.
Mark your lines (36″x 42″) on the Styrofoam with a marker.
Step 3: Next using the long bladed knife cut the Styrofoam.

Step 4: Center the painting onto the Styrofoam.

Step 5: Cut strips to fit all around the frame. Be sure the strips are the depth of the frame.

Step 6: Mark and cut another piece of styrofoam to the same size as the bottom piece,
(36″ x 24″ in our example), tape the layers together. You have just created a sturdy interior package for your painting, but it needs an outside layer of cardboard before you ship it.

To encase your Styrofoam package you have the following options:
Option 1: Slide the Styrofoam package into an existing cardboard box (if you have one); cut down the box to fit or fill in the gaps with bubble wrap.

Option 2: Making a cardboard “skin” for the Styrofoam package.
Step 7: Making the bottom of the cardboard skin.
Mark the cardboard the size of the Styrofoam package adding the height of the Styrofoam package on each side.
For example our Styrofoam package measures 6 inches deep. So we added 6 inches to each side of the outside measurement making our cardboard piece 48 x 54.

Step 8: Score (denting cardboard but not cutting it) the lines with the side of a screwdriver so the cardboard folds on the lines.

Step 9: Fold the sides up.

Step 10: Using the knife cut one line only in each corner.

Step 11: Position the Styrofoam package into the center of the cardboard.
Put the name of the painting, the size and your name on the side and top of the Styrofoam for easy identification.

Step 12: Bring the sides up, folding the wings around the corner.
Tape the corners.

Step 13: Making the top of the cardboard box:
Repeat steps 7 through 10, measuring the outside of the newly constructed cardboard box. Cut the new piece of cardboard about 1/8^th inch larger on each side. Measure the height of the cardboard box and add 1/8^th inch to it. Draw lines, score, and cut one line in each corner.

Step 14: Place the cardboard box upside down in the center of the cardboard.

Step 15: Bring the sides up, folding the wings around the corner.
Tape the corners.

Step 16: Secure the sides with plastic packing tape.

Step 17: Reinforce the corners and open edges of the box with brown paper reinforced packing tape.

Step 18: Turn the cardboard box over. Put the title of the painting, size and your name on the side and the top, along with your return address. This makes it easier for a show/gallery to find your box in their storage and get your painting back to you safely in the correct box.

Once you get the hang of it, you should be able to build this packing system in an hour or less. When your gallery/show returns this box, you will be able to reuse it over and over again.

A Venetian Methods Oil Painter

Susan E Budash · Feb 25, 2014 · 1 Comment

As a visual artist I’ve created images in Silkscreen, Intaglio, Lithography, Mixed Media, Watercolor, Acrylics and Oils and in a variety of methods, primarily Direct Painting (Alla Prima) and genre, but I always felt drawn to the visual degree of depth and luminosity present within the magnificent oil painting created by Master Artisans of the Renaissance to the Romantic Periods. The knowledge in creating paintings with similar attributes always eluded me. Little did I know that in order to achieve this luminous depth I had to learn an entirely new method in oil painting and with pigments with which I’d never been familiar with. Regardless of my persistent inquiries, the answers I sought would not be forthcoming for decades and when I learned in 1999 that the key word in opening this ancient volume of knowledge would lie with the word, Indirect Oil Painting.

My first introduction to creating art began at the age of nine and with an emphasis on drawing from life, as well as copying from books featuring paintings in major museums. My instructor, the late Jack Simmerling, a Chicago watercolorist, who gained acclaim for his renderings of historical Chicago landmark architecture, stressed the importance in developing one’s drawing skills. “If you can meet the challenges in perspective, value, composition and spatial relationships, then your paintings will be successful.” His words have lived with me for all 50 plus years I’ve been painting.

In so much that I have enjoyed and successfully rendered paintings created in the painterly Direct, Alla Prima Painting Methods, I have felt this method never fully met what I have been hoping to achieve in my paintings. And unfortunately, Virgil Elliott’s book, Traditional Oil Painting, wasn’t released until 2007, so with my PC I independently researched and was introduced to Eastern and Western European Flemish oil painting artists, who generously shared their knowledge and expertise, along with links to museum conservationists, who further enlightened me to the beneficial and not so beneficial pigments and mediums available. Putting this knowledge into hands-on practice led me through some humorous and not so humorous trial and errors, one of which I will share in the course of this blog. Unbeknownst to me at the onset was that not all oil painting from Renaissance to the 19th Century was created in the Flemish Methods, but that there was a second school within Indirect Painting known as the Venetian School and their methods differed in several ways from that of Flemish artists. The Venetian Method, believed to have been initiated by Giorgione, Titian and other Venetian oil painters, introduced creating their drawings on a mid-tone ground and then followed with an opaque gray layer, known as a Grisaille, creating a gray pallet with Lead-Based White paint, also known as Stack White. When I learned about the artist’s use of Lead White in their pallet, I knew instinctively that Lead White was a key component in their achieving the luminosity within their paintings.

Without a demonstration of the Venetian Methods, initiated with the grisaille, tints and scumbles, I had ventured into uncharted territory and therein I learned by my hits and misses. One such early “miss”, which I share with all my student’s is the humorous and decidedly nonsensical approach in removing the first several excessively oily glazed layers. The pigmented glazes were collecting in patches and not forming a thin layer over the composition. My frustration peaked when I couldn’t remove the under-layers of previously dried oily pigments with a solvent. My solution, purchase Formby’s Finisher Remover. After applying a thin layer of Formby’s, to my relief it removed the upper layers of glazes, but it didn’t stop there, it continued to eat away the grisaille, the under drawing and culminated in eating a hole right through my Belgian linen! I learned the Fat Over Lean premise is one fell swoop!

Since those early self-taught days in painting in Venetian methods, I am by no means 100% spot on, but I am continuing to learn with each still-life or figurative painting I create. This process is not for those who wish to witness immediate results, as a painting can take months to complete. At any one time, I have a dozen or more paintings in various states of completion, thus allowing the natural course of glazes setting-up. Of equal importance is learning which pigments are opaque, semi opaque and scumble worthy and which are considered lean and those that are fat. What and when is critical in the application of pigments.

This educational journey has been so rewarding and while I always loved oil painting, nothing has brought me more satisfaction and joy than painting in the Venetian Methods, especially when it comes time when I can begin the color layer. I call it, “Turning on the Lights” thus witnessing the luminous glow reveal itself in the painting’s final stages.

On Growing As a Painter

M Kathryn Massey OPA · Feb 10, 2014 · 15 Comments

It’s never too late to be who you might have been.
—George Eliot

Book Cover — Excerpted from: “Beyond Paint: A Guide to Conceptual Painting,” by M Kathryn Massey, OPA, DPS, AA

By now you understand the act of painting is considered, intentional and best undertaken with a concept each time you go to the easel. Many of us were lead to believe that painting is only about such things as self-expression, lucrative portrait commissions, copying exactly what is seen on the model stand, or selling painting after painting in a gallery. These are the goals of some painters; some painters measure their success and self worth by these kinds of benchmarks. It is not my place to argue for or against these personal goals.
This final chapter will speak to maturing as a painter. It won’t address gallery sales, winning show awards, how much of your teacher’s work is seen in your final paintings; or, how accurately you copy the minutiae of a subject. To my way of thinking, these do very little for your growth as a painter.
How do we grow as painters?

First, I can say, it’s a solitary path. What do I mean? I mean, we are alone in our work as painters. It’s a private journey, that can’t escape its source from within. The source is who we are. We must be mindful to this fact. It is where we find ourselves at any given time. This is the beginning of our work to grow as painters.
Painting is undertaken in isolation–with thoughts, feelings, memories, impulses, history and present day all contributing to our response in paint. No real work of creativity is achieved in a vacuum. So in that sense, we are not unique. We all have a history that went before us. We can’t escape who we are completely.
And yet, our very growth as a person and painter depends on knowing our limits, our strengths; and perhaps, setting aside much of our subjective interests for the good of the work. This speaks to letting the art come through us as much as by us in its final form.
Are there practical habits that can help us grow?
This may be the best place to begin. What can you do to mature as a painter in a practical sense?
Practice drawing from a live model as often as you can- weekly if possible. Test out your mettle by using charcoal, pen and wash, watercolors or paint. Stretch yourself and challenge yourself to sit in front of the model — find one or two things you want to improve upon in each session. Use the session to practice, to see, to understand what is before you and then, make art from that. Don’t just do what you know. Do more. Try more. Do what you don’t know how to do. This is practicing and stretching yourself. It isn’t enough to do what you know. You must do what you don’t know but want to do.

Go back and study old drawings and paintings you have worked on. See where you went wrong and note what is still working. The hallmark of Art is that it has the past, present and future all contained within. Therefore, it is outside the context of linear time. Your work can have this feature. This means it will be viewed as vital, compelling and “good” long after you are gone. Note where this is happening in your work and internalize it rather than guess at it when you next go to the easel.
Study the Old Masters. Understand their work, like yours, was created in the context of a culture and time. This doesn’t mean you must be time bound, or culture bound. This means you can’t escape your life and all of its constraints. Learn to lean beyond those constraints to create work that is outside any pinned down moment.
Having said this……
Is it not your goal or purpose to recreate the work of the Old Masters, any one philosophy or school; or, recreate the work of your teacher. These are benchmarks in your progress. To be Original, you must be Authentic, meaning your own. This takes time. Do your own work and not the work of any one teacher or school. If a teacher expects you to paint like them, run!!! They do you a disservice to copy their work no matter how original. They rob you of your own development and exacting voice that is yours alone. Remember, you must develop your own language through paint.

This means you must hear your own voice through paint and the act of painting. You must, in being authentic, find your own way. Yes, it’s good to walk with a teacher for a while, but eventually, you walk the path alone gathering information old and new.
The act of maturing as a painter is, at times uncomfortable, and like walking a tightrope– without a net. Indeed, it must be so. If you are not discontent at some moment, you are not ready to go on. To grow, you must find moments and periods of real discontentment. These will catapult you to the next moments of discovery. It isn’t easy. It takes time.
Time. Learning to paint is not a linear process. It isn’t done by rote, by memorization of this or that. Each time you are at the easel, you must begin again. Fresh. You are different. You are new. The work will be also. Pay attention to the changes inside. These are what affect change outside. This is what your work becomes. Pay attention to your habits, your thoughts and feelings as you watch the painting unfold. Watch the painting….. It will show you what it needs and want to stretch with you. Let it be so.

Questions. These are what make us stronger in our work. It isn’t enough to have an answer. You must be thinking about the next question. Painting is an organic process. You must begin again each time you paint. What worked in one painting may be completely wrong for the next. There is no end to the beginning…….cool, huh?
Sit with painters who are farther along than you are. If you admire there work, try and paint with them. It’s always a grand idea to paint with someone who is a bit beyond where you are. This helps you stretch and grow.
Painting, like dance, singing, or playing an instrument takes practice. You can’t paint once or twice a year in a workshop and expect to become a good painter. It’s just not possible. As with other art disciplines, you must practice over and over to understand yourself and the work. It can’t only be read about. Nor can it be absorbed through only looking at artwork in museums or galleries. It must be practiced and many choices made. Remember: there are no mistakes. Only better choices. You must make some bad choices to get to the better choices. It must be so. It’s difficult work. If you look at your choices as mistakes, your mindset is limited and closed.
Choices mean and have possibilities.
There are some painters who will disagree with this next statement. Paint from life. Is it “wrong” to copy photos? I don’t know if anything is wrong. But, you won’t learn as much by copying photos if you ‘re interested in learning to paint. I would add–painting from life is a richer, more rewarding experience.

Also a limitation to learning: projecting images such as a portrait onto the wall and tracing it onto a canvas. No one understands this as learning. Can you make money? I suppose. But is it learning? I don’t think it is. You have to do the work and put in the hours to become a confident painter. This is within you and does not live outside you. Know this. Painting comes from within.
This all points to one central idea: painting is bringing forth that which is in you; and, as you develop and sensitize yourself to painting from within, you develop more and more to the person and painter you are meant to be. Painting comes from the inside, the inner world. It does not originate in the outer world. If a critic, teacher or another painter criticizes your direction, only you know in your heart and mind’s eye if you are doing the real work that is yours. You must let these comments roll off your back. They are irrelevant to your sensibilities, your authority and your own unique sense of being a painter. Said another way, the private world, your private world is subject to being criticized publicly. You must believe in yourself and look for no validation about what it is you want to say through the language you develop. When you can do this, you will be working from a place of confidence that the work is your own and your voice is being heard. You are growing as a painter.
A word about being understood by others: throughout history, we know of painters who have used such a private language, that little of the world was able to hear or access that language. This might be said of those who caste off all reference to the past to create art void of any historical reference, context or understanding. Here’s an example, not to pick on Jackson Pollock. He dripped paint on a canvas lying on the floor. House paint. This was his contribution to the world of art; to smash any reference to narrative, time, or history by excluding these features in his work. I find his language so limited it borders on incoherent and babble—for me. Of course, it is only my opinion about surface art of this kind. There are those who would disagree. Pollock’s language and efforts were so private, I am left without any real connection to him or to his work. This is the danger in developing highly subjective language— or creating work that is shocking or offensive. No one may understand the work, or if so offensive to humanity, no one will care.

Oil Painting

Packing Paintings for Galleries & Shows

By Susan Blackwood

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