Meeting Notes, June 30, 2016

At today’s meeting Dianne, Tim, Tracie, Kay, Jeanie, Sue Berg (new)!, Mike, Jeanne, Ward, Loretta L, Marty D, Kristina, Genie, Tom, Annie, Tedd, Jerry, Elo, Joanne T, Anna, and me Celeste.

Today’s suggested table topic: Painting big or painting small.. tell us about your experiences.

Celeste: I have painted big paintings -- it allows me to try different things and to use my whole arm when I am putting down paint.  I found a quote by Henry Moore that seems a lot about scale (below). I brought in recent paintings --a couple are small.

Tedd: I like to paint big. I have brought in a painting that is on the wall over there. It took me about three hours. It was done in a subtractive manner. It is all done with a paper.towel and by adding and wiping out.

Annie: I did a commercial mural for a Taco restuarant. The directive was to “make fun” of Taco Time and Taco Bell. I have this photo that was taken of the mural and you can see how I handled the "make fun" aspect. I have been thinking of value and color and how I want to orchestrate colors. I study combinations of color that I like and think it over. Here I have settled on a gray and yellow combination. Matisse used gray and yellow for a particular painting. I study these things,  make decisions and apply the colors I’ve selected. I painted this painting all in one value with different colors. I painted these studies on top of glass.

Tom: I have settled into a format that I like.. 14 x 18. I may paint bigger in the future if I decide just what it is that I would paint. I simply can’t paint little paintings. I did not bring anything today.

Jeanie: My one rule is that I cannot buy a canvas that will not fit in my car (laughter)!
(Note: Jeanie won a recent ribbon for a painting at the Lake Oswego show, Applause!).

Kristina: I work mostly with small panels because of plein air. However, recently I painted a large painting that was experimental ..it was based on a fresco I saw in Italy. It sold at the lake Oswego show! (Congratulations, Kristina!) Sometimes I think I avoid big because I know the bigger it is the bigger failure it is if it fails! (laughter)! I am showing two palette knife small paintings.

Marty D: I do have a 4' x 4' canvas that is now serving as a headboard for my bed (laughter)! Last Thursday and Friday I took Anton Pavlenko's coastal workshop. I have painted mostly in acrylic so I am showing you an acrylic painting. I am also showing you the two paintings that I did in oil in Anton’s class.

Loretta: As we speak right now my husband is priming the garage ---because I am going to do a mural on it! (Laughter! Applause!) I went painting with Joanne T yesterday. I am showing a painting I did in a class.

Jerry: The largest size I work in for oil is 40 x 30. I like 22 x 30 for watercolor. I love that size. I am showing some cards with my art on it ---(these are Moo cards). This is the smallest my paintings have ever been represented (laughter)! I am showing you a painting that I did for the lavender festival at Mountainside Lavender. My frame is just a quarter of an inch over the accepted size. I will find a different frame to put the painting in.! I do recommend painting at the Red Ridge Farm.

Elo: I am a Mom and most of my art that I have done recently has had to do with my kids projects in school. I was enlisted to do a backdrop onto a huge surface for a school project. It was architecture so I used a gridding system and it was a huge undertaking. I had to paint on the floor of the stage,  it took a long time and I had a lot of onlookers. I had no idea it was going to work or not. I can show you a picture of it on my phone. I am also showing a smaller painting that I did.

Joanne T: I like to go to garage sales and Goodwill and places like that to get frames. Recently I came across a garage sale and I got a ton of oil paint! the lady had stopped painting so it was all for sale. I really scored with a great price. She had big canvases for sale too but I did not purchase them because I don’t paint that big. I am showing some small paintings. I did this painitng of palms “after” Thomas Kitts.

Ward: There are few things more intimidating than a huge white piece of paper. It is like looking at acres and acres of white. I was in a show and the curator asked me if I could make some smaller paintings so that I could have a range of prices. What I found was I spent just as much time on a small painting as I do as a large painting. . I am showing my recent painting that I have called "The Memoryist". This cat seems to remind so many people of a cat they owned or a cat they knew.

Jeanne: No one remembers this and why would they…but I actually went to art school. (Laughter)! When I was in art school we “built” a canvas. That was required. Then we can spent weeks and weeks and  months and months painting large canvases. Our paint was in gallon cans,  pints and quarts. Our brushes were big. Those paintings ended up wound up/rolled up. Eventually, after years, my husband put them back on tstretcher bars and hung them in our house. In my heart I want to paint really big like that again. I love the power of a full-scale painting. When I visited Spain I saw so many huge paintings. There is just nothing else like them.  I painted in the park recently and also I painted from a model. I have returned from Crooked River. More paintings to show from there in the future.

Mike: This topic reminds me  of a play I saw. The name of the play was “ART”. It was about critics and critiques. There was a big white canvas in the center of this play and the actors talked to it and about it. I’d like to use a mop brush on a big white surface. I look for the big shapes and try to avoid any type of detail. A half size sheet is about as big as I want to paint.

Sue: It is my first time here! (Welcome, Sue)!. I bought a canvas that is 22 x 28. I like the size. I am painting a floral for my daughter. I will show you a picture of it that is on my iPhone.

Genie: The smallest I have painted  is 8" x 8". I did do a 36 x 36, but it was not a success in my view. I do like the 20x20 size. I am painting for the lavender festival. I am showing a painting that I will submit.

Tim: “Does size matter”? (Laughter)! It does not matter for me. I paint both large and very small. I recently painted two big plein air paintings. Bigger than anything I have done outdoors before.  I am showing a recent plein air painting and also a small gouache painting.

Anna: I was trained in the traditional classical style. It was not uncommon for me to paint a painting for a year! I am back from the Richmond plein air event. Everyone there knew the Portland artists. The asked me: “Do you know Za Vue”? (Laughter!) I recommend if you do a plein air event lead with your strong suit. Paint something that first day that you feel confident painting. Try to find the subject matter that you know you’ll do well with. I'll take my own advice next time! I am showing a painting I did for the Lavender festival.

Diane: Years ago I did a project (that had to do with the news and Peter Jennings)! I had to produce a 25’ x 25’ map. It was a tight deadline and I had to paint accurate rivers onto it. It was pure hell!  (Laughter)! The smallest I’ve ever worked on is 2” x 2”. I would like paint in a very big way someday. I am showing a piece from my archives.

Kay:  Before I was in this group I went to Spain for an art residency. I wanted to paint plein air but I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I bought a clam shell thing from Office Depot to use for plein air---it was just stupid (laughter)! While I was there I copied a Joaquin Mir painting. I am showing it to you....because it is so big. I don’t know exactly what to do with this. I keep it because of the experience of having done it. I have also brought what is probably the last painting from the Troy. I loved this Frederix support that I used.

Tracie: I like to paint big. 48 x 60 is the right size for me because it is the largest size that will fit into a Honda Odyssey (laughter)! I once set up a “community abstract”  --- I just set up a big canvas and everyone who went by it would paint on it. Another time I painted such a large outdoor wall mural I had to use a lift! When you paint outdoors with acrylic it’s wise to put the acrylic into jars with lids.
I am showing a recent painting that I did in St. John.




Announcements:

Lavender Festival July 9 and July 10

Lake Oswego was a big success! Congratulations to all for the awards and sales

First Friday at Art on the Boulevard (Mitch Baird)

First Thursday Portland:

Erik Sandgren Coastal paint out begins July 11

Aimee Erickson has reception on Wednesday, July 6. 5-8 This is at the University Club 1225 SW 6th

Ward Stroud: a workshop about composition and how to edit your work. It is on July 14 and 15th at Oregon society of artists.

OSA call to artists:

Gallery Nine at the blue sky has a reception July 7 (First Thursday) for the eyes project:
122 NW 8th


Next Meeting, Thursday, July 7 suggested table topic: Revisited topic, back by popular demand. "Feedback"---Most unusual/memorable thing ever said to you while you were painting or about your painting. Positive or negative, off-the-wall or complimentary. Let’s discuss!

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