A Sense of Place Finished Painting

Final Reflection

I think my use of color has improved since I began this class. I now know how to mix various simpler colors to make them more unique. I also feel that I know which colors to make. For example, in the white objects painting, each of the objects in the still life were white. However, I saw that each white object had a hint of another color and wasn't just plain white. I also feel that my skills of composition has improved as well. I can now see what would fit into the painting and whether or not the subject matter is complimentary with other objects in the painting. I have also learned so many techniques to make certain things look the way they are. For example, I was able to create glass with white mixed with medium to give it more of a see-through look. I was also able to make a space look more realistic by adding lots of shadows, so the space looked more 3-D. Overall, I truly believe that I have improved as an artist and have learned a lot.

A Sense of Place Set-Up

Observations on the History of Oil Painting

The first oil painters are the major players throughout the history of oil painting because they have made the most impact. They have influenced the skills of oil painting and have introduced a variety of techniques in the skill. They have also altered and improved the multiple properties in oil painting. Many painters today probably wouldn't be painting now because of the earliest paintings. I'm not sure who seems to be missing from the history of oil painting because the artists have basically created the art and skill in this. However, the viewers could be missing from the history since not much about the viewers is mentioned in the history. Most of the oil painting took place in countries in Europe. Many of oil paintings are also displayed in museums around the world to be seen by people everywhere. The pictures and objects in the paintings bring viewers to that particular scene and can affect them. The paintings can also teach its viewers different things. Subject matter has changed drastically and hasn't at the same time. Artwork seems to be more open and creative now than it was in the past. Before, artists would usually paint realistic objects, whereas artists today paint both realistic and abstract objects.

Why Oil Paint?

Oil paint has been found in oil paintings from 650 A.D. in Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan. It was possibly made from walnut and poppy seed oil. In Mediterranean civilizations, mastic and wax were commonly used as a medium because it dried faster and did not darken or crack the paint like linseed oil did. Organic oils (made from different seeds such as linseed, walnut, poppy, hempseed, pinenut, and castor) were most commonly used in early oil paints because of its slow-drying characteristics. Olive oil could have possibly been used, but was opposed since it took much longer to dry. These oils were mostly used for varnishing and sealing paintings from water or any possible damage. Antonello da Messina added litharge to the oil paint mixture, which had a honey-like consistency, and called this new mixture ogilo cotto or cooked oil. Jan van Eyck was the first artist to use oil paint and created the modern technique of oil painting in 1410. His mixture contained mineral pigments and was boiled in linseed oil. The mixtures and techniques of oil paint have been improving continuously as time went on by various artists.

Artists choose to use oil paints because of the unique and great texture it creates. It is thicker than many other paints. Although it is a slow-drying paint, it can also be an advantage. If an artist is working on a painting and cannot begin painting it until much later, it will still be wet, so the artist will be able to continue altering it by adding various components. Using a fast-drying paint like tempera paint causes the artist to have to work on dry paint, so the artist will not be able to adjust different parts of their painting.

Critique Feedback

The use of color in both the White Objects painting and Surface and Texture painting was accurate. My brush strokes in the surface and texture painting made the objects look fuzzy instead of sharp and detailed. This is especially important for the egg shell parts of the painting since the thickness is very thin, delicate, and sharp. The fuzziness of the lines makes the painting look messy and not sharp enough. The value and depth of the paintings were accurate as well. However, the objects in the surface and texture painting don't bond and should form more of a unity with each other. The compositons that were shown in my paintings were praised. However, the background of the surface and texture painting don't seem to have much depth which makes the objects look like they're floating. I just have to add more shadows in the fabric to make objects look more realistic. There is also more contrast in the surface and texture painting than in the white objects painting.

What is a Portrait?

"Georgia O'Keeffe" by Alfred Stieglitz

The composition of this photograph is very simple and only consists of the person's face and hands. It was unique of the artist to include another part of the subjects body rather than just having her face. This small feature adds more of a story or emotion to the artwork. It seems like she is either hiding something or she's cold or that she wants to just keep to herself. It keeps the viewer's wondering what the concept of this photograph is. The fact that it is black and white also contribute to the mood of the photo, which seems like it is calm or serious. It isn't just a plain photograph of a person, there is also a story behind it, which makes it more interesting.

"Yoko Ono" by Annie Liebowitz

Annie Liebowitz's composition in this photograph is very unique because the subject that is supposed to catch the viewer's eyes seems to be unseen unless looked at more observantly. Yoko Ono seems to be camouflaged within the entire scenery. It looks like she is part of the tree. It is also unique because portraits tend to have a similar composition of having a closer shot of the person rather than having them hidden like in this one. The colors in it are also very nature-esque with different shades of greens and other natural colors. Also, the person in portraits tend to be the main subject, yet in this one, the giant tree's power looks like it overshadows Yoko Ono because it is the biggest subject matter in the photo. The fact that Yoko Ono blends in with the tree could show that she is a part of nature or vice verse. Annie Liebowitz factors in different subjects within this piece of art rather than just having the person's face or body.

"Self-Portrait" by Chuck Close

The composition is kind of ordinary and does not have much uniqueness but makes the viewer only look at the main subject, which is the man's face. The artist uses a unique way to paint the his face, by painting a small section at a time. Each square looks like there is something else inside of it. When all of the squares are combined, it creates a lifelike figure. Although each of the squares are completely different close up, it creates different shadows and highlights within the portrait. Close up, it looks like there are a variety of bright, unique colors; from far away you can see that they create neutral colors when they are combined. The artist uses simple geometric shapes, and yet creates a complicated and detailed self-portrait.

White Objects Painting

I think this painting was really difficult for me for many reasons. It was really hard trying to mix the paint to get the right colors. It was especially difficult making the correct shadow colors for the fabric. Creating the creases in the fabric was the most difficult part of this painting. Using the highlights, shadows, and mid tones creates value to the painting, which was very challenging for me. It was really hard making everything look 3-D. I think my favorite part of this painting is the pitcher, which seems to be the main subject. Although creating shadows of the objects was the most difficult, I think I did my best to make the objects look 3-D. I also think that I put the shadows in the right places of each of the objects. The shadows, mid tones, and highlights help make each object have the shape that they are.

Where I'm At

Most of the things I'm learning in this class is challenging because I have not taken intermediate drawing and painting. This is a huge setback for me because I do not know most of the basics of painting. However, I think the most challenging part of this course is creating shadows in my paintings. It is very difficult for me to make the objects in my paintings to look realistic and 3-D. It was especially difficult to make round objects look round like in my orange painting and white objects painting. I think I have progressed the most in mixing colors. Although it usually takes me a long time to create the right color I am looking for, I am eventually able to do so and it makes my paintings look more realistic. I think I have also improved a lot in general as a painter, for I haven't had much experience in this medium. Looking at examples of paintings from our history helps painters today create new concepts and techniques in their painting. Observing the differences and similarities between different paintings also help find new painting techniques and a variety of ways of painting. Many painters' ideas for their paintings usually derive from past painters, and form who they are as an artist.

A Sense of Place

Andrew Wyeth

Edward Hopper


These two paintings are very different in mood for a number of reasons. The one by Andrew Wyeth looks gloomier and darker, whereas Edward Hopper's looks brighter and happier. Unlike Hopper's painting, Wyeth has an animal as the subject. The first painting looks sadder, empty, and more enclosed. The second painting looks happier and more open because of the opened door with a wide view of the bright, calm ocean. The darker painting uses more neutral and dull colors like various shades of whites and greys. The brighter painting uses a variety of bright colors.

Surface and Texture

Water Lilies by Claude Monet

I think this is the most interesting painting because the artist uses his colors in a nice, clean way. He also uses a lot of green in this painting but also uses small hints of pink, which is the color of the flowers. The pink creates a nice contrast between the other color. Monet uses texture to make the painting look softer. The composition of the painting is nice as well because Monet spreads out the subjects throughout the painting, so there isn't much blank space in it. It also forces your eyes to look at the entire painting rather than just one specific part of it.

I think this painting represents calmness and tranquility and is very pleasing to the eye. Monet painted a series of 250 oil paintings of water lilies and this painting, which was painted in 1905, was part of this series. These water lilies were from his flower garden in Giverny, which was the focal point of his paintings for the last thirty years of his life. His paintings are being displayed in museums all over the world. This specific painting is also currently being displayed in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

Creating the Illusion of Surface and Texture

This artist created the illusion of shine using highlighting. They added white to the highlighted parts of the objects to make it look like the metal is shiny. They also added white to highlight the curves of the table cloth and created value between each curve of the table cloth.

Reflection on Studies in Smallness

On my three finished paintings, I struggled with making the fruit look 3-d because I had a difficult time shading. I felt successful about choosing the right colors because I adjusted to mixing colors. This was a difficult assignment for me because I did not take the intermediate drawing and painting class last year, so I did not know much of the basics of painting. However, I thought it was pretty successful because it was my first time painting.

White Objects Thumbnail Sketches

These are three sketches of the possible options for my white objects painting. I decided to choose the middle one because there is more going on.

Composition

Custard Cascade, by William Cotton, 2001

This painting seems to be the most interesting because there is so much going on in the painting. There are also a lot of bright colors and a variety of shapes used in the painting. Also, when I first saw this, I thought it was a photograph because the great use of depth and shadow in each of the objects. Because there is so much going on in the painting, a viewer might not notice a certain object before and later find a new one the next time they look at it. Also the biggest objects are not strictly in the middle, so it forces the viewers to look everywhere in the painting.

Studies in Smallness: Finished Paintings

These are my three finished paintings.

Studies in Smallness: Set-Ups

Color Mixing Chart

Morandi vs. Van Gogh: Color

Morandi focuses mainly on man-made objects, whereas Van Gogh's subjects consist of plants. Morandi also uses neutral colors which makes his paintings less full of life and not as "happy." However, Van Gogh uses bright colors which gives the idea that his paintings are full of life and excitement. His paintings give you feeling of happiness and brightness.

What I Know Now

The primary colors are... red, blue, and yellow

The secondary colors are... purple, green, and orange

You create secondary colors by... combining two primary colors

Complimentary colors are... opposite colors that make each color stand out. (Purple and yellow, blue and orange, red and green).

Two ways you can emphasize something in a painting... are making it bigger than everything else in the painting or adding high contrast between the subject and the background.

If I were trying to create a shadow on an object in a painting I would... take the color of the surface of where the shadow is and add black.

If I were painting an object and wanted to create the illusion of highlight I would... add white to the color of where the highlight is.

If I were trying to make an object look like it's far away I would... make the object closer bigger and the object further smaller.

These are the steps I would take to build a painting... I would first begin with a rough sketch of my idea(s). Then, I would build up the colors until I finished my painting.

A Painting I Remember

I don't really have a specific painting in my mind that I remember, but I do remember many paintings by Georgia O'Keefe. In elementary school, my art teacher taught us about Georgia O'Keefe and showed us many of her paintings. I remember her paintings of cow skulls and her many paintings of close-up flowers.

My Skills as an Artist

As an artist, I feel stronger and more comfortable sketching than painting since I have more experience with it. I have also done more sculpture work and photography. Throughout painting, I struggle with shading and making the objects in my artwork seem more realistic.

Why I'm Taking Oil Painting

I am taking this course because I wanted to learn how to paint using oil paints. I have never done it formally before, but I've always wanted to learn. I really like the textures the paint creates and I want to learn how to use them nicely. I also wanted to take an art course this year and thought that taking a new class would be fun. Since I have only taken sculpture and photography classes, I wanted to expand my horizons by taking this painting class.