Category Archives for "archived"

0 Illustrator Draws Cakes for TV Competition

Hovey started work on The Great British Bake Off television show by chance. He had experience working on broadcast television and got hired to help in post-production on the program. When his bosses mentioned they were looking for illustrations, they didn’t realize that Hovey was also a talented illustrator. They began using his illustrations during the show.

“The look we were going for was something homely and nostalgic,” Hovey said. “We wanted it to look like the bakers had sketched out ideas for the cake in their baking sketchbook at home.”

The pictures are bright and simple, perfect for conveying the color and shape of each cake.

“The secret I guess is to not get too involved in drawing every detail as they won’t be seen anyway,” Hove said. “The images are only on screen for about six seconds, so the details need to be exaggerated sometimes to get the essence of the bake – rather than a photo-realistic drawing.”

Tap into your skills as an illustrator by taking a drawing class. Experienced teachers will instruct students on everything from sketching using pencils, charcoal, pens, and markers to exploring the use of color in drawing. Once students gain a basic understanding of all of the unique mediums available in drawing, they can select which tool works best for their ideas. This could be anything from colored pencils to traditional pens and inks.

0 Cancer Survivor Expresses Story Through Paintings

The bright painting, which featured a girl splashing through a puddle filled with all the colors of the rainbow, won an art contest sponsored by Lilly Oncology for cancer survivors and their families. The colorful painting, which Griffin created using acrylic paints, will tour hospitals across the United States.

“I wanted it to be something happy,” Griffin said. “She’s moving forward.” The girl is skipping, her back to the viewer, through a vivid puddle, symbolizing Griffin moving forward with her own life. Griffin created the painting to celebrate beating her cancer after long, grueling treatments that left her physically weak. Despite not feeling well, she continued having a positive outlook on life. Her painting reflects her optimism.

“You can kind of lose yourself in” the process of painting, Griffin said. “Sometimes that’s good. It’s fulfilling.”

Enroll in a painting program today to start losing yourself in the creative process. Training can be adapted to artists of all abilities and will focus on the development of artistic skills no matter if students are beginners or more advanced. Expert teachers will help students explore their abilities through painting. Students can expect to learn how to use artistic features from a variety of periods of art, like the Impressionistic aspects of Griffin’s painting. Students will also be able to tailor their instruction to what they’re interested in. Teachers will be able to adapt their lessons to explore everything from realistic to abstract paintings.

 

0 91-Year-Old Continues Journey Through Paintings

Though Leonard Giknis doesn’t think too much of his own art, it has been a constant companion throughout his life.

In fact, one painting in particular helped him through the grieving process after he lost his wife, Jean.

“I miss her voice,” he said. “She was a real lady.” After his wife died, Giknis devoted himself to researching and creating a large painting on wood depicting a historical bridge, along with the surrounding landscape and animals and figures crossing it. Focusing on the painting helped him cope with his loss, and the 91-year-old won a competition he entered the painting in.

Giknis’ children attribute their own love of art to their father. “He experiments, which you should do,” said Lorann Jacobs, Giknis’ daughter, on her father’s interest in trying out different artistic techniques. “He makes a lot of his own picture frames out of old barn wood.” Giknis uses everything from paint to markers in his artwork, and once enjoyed splicing together photos as a part of his masterpieces.

Hobbies can be a great comfort to anyone and painting is no different. Sign up for an acrylic painting class today. Once students learn the basic skills necessary to succeed in the medium, they can use their creativity to explore different themes and projects for their artwork. Informative sessions will focus on perspectives, mixing colors for realistic hues and shades, and exploring painting different subject matters, including still life, landscape, portrait, and more. Instruction can be easily adapted to beginning students or advanced pupils.

0 Artist Unveils Mural for Elementary School

McGowan actually painted over a mural he had done for the school five years ago to reflect the changes in direction the campus is looking to implement. The mural features an explorer bursting out of a map, complete with a compass and school colors.

“I felt like it’s a new step forward and a new start, so I felt good about it,” McGowan said. “I was really excited about his one because the initial ideas came from the kids, which I think is really important.” Students also came up with the school’s new mascot, the Explorers.

Everyone from the parents on up were excited about the new artwork.

“When we had our PTO meeting last week, our parents came in and they were thrilled,” Principal Beth Gaffney said. “They were amazed — it’s just an incredible representation of who we are and that we’re breaking through and trying to blaze some new trails.”

Getting involved with a mural project is a great way to show pride in your community or school. Take a class in mural painting first to build your expertise before tackling an enormous blank canvas. Classes are taught by experts with firsthand knowledge about the challenges of painting murals who will provide valuable advice on completing the projects. Sessions will focus on the process of painting a mural from start to finish, including how to translate preliminary sketches to a full-sized wall. Students will also explore how to convey a theme, tying the different elements of the mural into one strong message.

0 Artist Lets the Medium Take the Reins

“I like that it has a mind of its own,” Merrill said, talking about the nature of watercolor. “Mixing with other colors, it comes to life. It’s sort of an alive medium.”

With her first husband, Merrill would spend about a month at a time at the Sea of Cortez, painting the vivid landscapes and sights present there. “Painting that flat sea and the sunrise and sunset with the mountains behind, the little round houses, that was what made me really want to do watercolor,” she said.

After her divorce, Merrill began working for Patagonia, eventually traveling up the ranks until she was being sent around the world to buy paintings. Her sketchbook was her constant companion at that time. Today, though, Merrill is back doing what she loves, painting watercolor, and sharing that passion with her own class of painting students.

Discover your own passion for the art of watercolor painting by taking a class on the genre. Students will be able to choose their own area of focus, including painting landscapes, seascapes, buildings, city scenes, people, still life, and more. Some of the skills and techniques pupils may expect to become familiar with are how to work with the movements of the thin paint, how to mix colors and control the brightness of each

0 Sewing Class Looks to Breathe New Life into Traditional Form

Sealaska Heritage Institute President Rosita Worl says the program has hosted four workshops so far.

“The idea here is to reintroduce traditional arts that were in danger, it looked like they may be lost,” Worl said. “A lot of our people forgot the skills associated with the use of seal skin and sea otter, and that’s why we have to be teaching that.”

Only natives can use the seal skins for the class since the seals are a protected species. Non-natives use imitation fur. Worl also said that teaching the skills will provide a source of income for some of the women so they can sell the moccasins they make.

“I thought maybe I should learn because nobody else will make them in the family anymore,” said Emily Arne, a 34-year-old woman taking the class. Arne added that she’d like to teach the techniques to her daughter one day.

Make your own clothing and moccasins by taking a class on sewing. With the proper education, students will learn how to effectively use the correct techniques to design and make their own fashions. Advantages of sewing your own wardrobe include having beautiful clothing that no one else has, saving money on expensive fashion items, and being able to tailor your items to your own body size. Sessions will focus on the development of all the skills required for sewing, including measuring, cutting fabric, using a sewing machine, using a needle and thread, sizing, and more.

0 Painter Recreates World through Artwork

Nijhawan’s bright masterpieces, including one of colorful parrots perched on and flying to a large tree, convey a playfulness and curiosity about the world. Painted panels in varying hues create an almost rainbow effect with the birds in contrasting colors standing out in sharp relief on the canvas. Her love for her hometown inspires her greatly throughout her creative process.

“I observe things with an open mind and try to express these on my canvas artistically,” Nijhawan said. “Thinking process is very important for me while painting a work. I can make a painting in ten minutes. But I love the evolving process which plays an important role in my painting.”

In addition to her paintings, Nijhawan has opened an art house that helps to give experience to young artists in showing their paintings. “Maharaja Arts” helps budding painters get more exposure in a world that, for some, is hard to break into.

Celebrate the world around you by signing up for a class on painting. Even if you have no artistic background whatsoever, you can gain the knowledge and experience necessary to create beautiful artwork. If you do already understand the basics of paintings, more advanced instructional sessions are available to help take your expertise to the next level. Expect to explore different themes and subjects in painting as well as the mechanics, such as color mixing and color theory.

 

0 Cartoonist Gets Giggles from Work

Tim Lockley first began cartooning as a schoolboy. “It was to relieve my aggression,” Lockley said. However, the cartoons sometimes caused more trouble than they relieved. “I was sent to the principal’s office for drawing a cartoon of the teacher,” he said

Source: http://www.sunherald.com

Lockley didn’t let that setback deter him from cartooning. He created cartoons at every step of his life. This included a stint in Vietnam, jobs as an expert on spiders, and more.

“Cartooning has always been a side thing,” he said. “I used it in a presentation at a meeting in Montreal.” Lockley employed his skills as a cartoonist to draw amusing but meaningful illustrations of spiders for his job. So many people enjoyed his artwork that some of his cartoons went missing. Other people, however, thought he was wasting his time with the art.

Now, Lockley has enough cartoons stocked up for several books. He’s already come out with two, but his stockpile of cartoons contains as many as 5,000. He is always looking to daily life for ideas to improve his cartoons.

If you have a sense of humor, drawing cartoons may be right up your alley. Consider signing up for a cartooning class to help boost your abilities. Sessions will center around what makes a cartoon effective, including experimenting with the use of panels, colors and shading, figure drawing, typography, and more. Practicing drawing cartoons will help kick start your imagination. Increased training will lead to more ideas for creative cartoons with professional execution.

0 Lawmaker Leads With 3-D Paintings

At first glance, Gidge’s paintings are bright and cheerful. However, when the viewer puts on polarized glasses, the paintings pop off the canvas, richly detailed and 3-D. Gidge keeps his exact techniques a secret. “It’s just paint and nothing more,” he said. “My technique is all about painting with mixtures that compel the naked eye to search for the depth, the 3-D element.”

Many of Gidge’s paintings can be described as abstract. Each one is made with bright, swirling colors. Gidge experiments with different sized canvasses to create the effects he wants. “My paintings are a purposeful merger of color,” he says. “Just color. With the glasses and the brain’s own interpretation, they may look different to different people. But the depth, the 3-D quality remains.”

http://bostonglobe.com/arts/theater-art/2013/01/04/legislator-and-man-many-pursuits-turns-painting/2nWY6ck7y4XURmmi6QcLLO/story.html

Gidge has always made room in his schedule to embrace the unusual and creative. As a young man, he was a department store Santa. He also writes poetry in addition to his career as a lawmaker and hobby of painting. “I guess my life’s philosophy has been that there’s room in our lives for everything we love, simple and complex,” Gidge said.

Embrace the idea that there is always time available to pursue topics that interest you. Learn how to develop your own special artistic techniques by taking a class on acrylic painting. If you already have a background or experience with painting, sessions can take your skills to the next level. Classes will give students the instruction necessary to explore different projects, styles, and artwork.

0 Woman Uses Sewing to Express Spirituality

Goldgaber has spent her life sewing her own clothes. But it wasn’t until she developed an interest in quilting that her sewing really took off. She decided to express her spirituality through sewing Judaic fabric art. “I experimented with some patterns so that I could make the Star of David, and little by little I started creating my own designs,” Goldgaber said. “Some of my pieces are made to be hung from a wall, and they look like paintings.”

 

Goldgaber uses imported cotton batik in different colors and patterns to complete her work. She makes everything from quilted tote bags and pillow cases to table runners and challah covers. However, she’s always looking to broaden the appeal of her fabric art. “I am looking to develop more designs in my fabric workshop,” Goldgaber said. “I would like to make community quilts, and I’ve started creating chuppahs (wedding canopies) for Jewish weddings.”

Transform your basic sewing skills into a whole new type of art by signing up for a sewing art class. This class will help students in the development of their fundamental sewing techniques. Soon, you will be able to complete advanced projects previously unavailable to you. Sessions are designed to appeal to students of all levels of sewing. Advanced pupils will focus on higher-level skills while beginners will get the background knowledge necessary to succeed in the long run.