REMEMBER: In Art there is no such thing as a mistake only experiments! We learn by exploring and don't have to share our efforts with anyone. Do not be fooled into thinking I have not made many a mess along the way, but I only share what I feel I'm comfortable with.
TIP: NEVER throw an artwork away if it is less than 6 months old. The reason for this is that no matter how disgusted or disappointed you may be with it at the time, you may find that if you put it away for a while and then look at it after a long break, you will not only be able to see where and how it didn't seem to work for you more clearly, but also where it went right! That record of your development is invaluable. Besides which what you may dismiss as rubbish, another person may adore and think of as a masterpiece.
Each of the following mediums (materials you use) has it's own range of techniques, but it is only ever by experimenting that you learn what works for you.
Here are five conventional colourful reminders...
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| Colour Pencils |
There are two types of colour pencils, ordinary ones and watercolour pencils. Here I've used the ordinary ones and even without sharpening the points produced this. There are so many techniques you can use with pencils that I will eventually do a posting devoted to just that.
Remember that a pencil can be sharp or blunt, pressed hard or be just gently stroke the paper. By varying all these things you will discover you are capable of much more than you thought possible.
Watercolour pencils, as the name suggests are pencils which you can then apply water to with a brush to blend the pencil marks together.
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| Watercolour |
Watercolour Paints
When we talk of paints in Art there are so many types to choose from it can make your head spin. I've included watercolour paints in this blog because I use them as a sketching tool to quickly note down ideas in colour. The main two things to remember with watercolour painting is that you must keep your colours clean by always washing out your brush between each different colour. The second thing to remember is to work from you lightest colours through to your darkest ones.
I'm an untidy sort of artist most of the time, who likes sloshing paint making a mess and who is not good at keeping her brushes clean, so Am a long way off becoming a master at watercolour which is something else you need to bear in mind. If one medium isn't working for you, there's bound to be another that will. Equally if one techniques of working doesn't work for you, try another.
As a general rule of thumb watercolour tends to suit the tidier artist, but there are always exceptions in Art to any rule. See if you can find some!
NOTE: People who take degrees in art start with a foundation course to explore as many disciplines as possible before specialising, so do the same!
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| Soft Pastels |
These are not chalks as their composition is far softer than harsh chalks and the reason I've chosen them above chalks is because of the wonderful range of colours you can get in pastels. Soft pastels lend themselves to blending; in fact it's a challenge to avoid smudging them, but try the same experiments with them as you would a pencil i.e. hard, soft, fine and broad marks.
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| Oil Pastels |
Bold colours and broad marks are what I tend to associate with Oil Pastels. The colour range is not as broad as you get with Soft Pastels and they don't blend as easily. I've personally not come across work with fine detailed marks... which automatically sets me a challenge of seeing if it is possible.
The other thing you can do is a technique called Scraffito, which entails scratching into the wax... I'm definitely going to be doing some of that!
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| Collage |
Collage
Collage can be anything you like, here I've used tissue papers but you can use bits of material, magazines and even objects e.g. paperclips and safety pins. Your only restriction is how strong your glue is. This is a different
discipline entirely and forces you to do are to look for shapes within each object. Light and shade become a series of flat surfaces for you to look for. I find I enjoy the random accidents it throws up, particularly with tissue paper and the vibrancy of colour is gorgeous.
From doing some collage work I was inspired to have a go at painting in blocks in an almost cubist way. That is what all these techniques should ultimately lead to... inspiring you to explore further and trigger more ideas.
From doing some collage work I was inspired to have a go at painting in blocks in an almost cubist way. That is what all these techniques should ultimately lead to... inspiring you to explore further and trigger more ideas.
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