Meeting Notes, Thursday, July 9, 2015

At today's meeting Loretta, Dave, Tim, Lola, Bill, Jeanne, Jim, Judith, Mary, Mike, Tedd, Jerry, Eunice, Annie, Jeanie, Charlie, Stephanie, Joanne M, Lisa, Diane M, Teresa, Leslie, Brenda and me Celeste. 

Today's suggested table topic: Color mixing tips. Can you share something with us that furthered your understanding of mixing colors? 

Celeste: I read a book by Ted Goerschner. In the book he explains his grays that he always uses on his palette. He recommends that you do a chart mixing these four grays into your colors. These four grays are useful in describing distance and atmosphere. I brought in two paintings and the color chart I did with his suggestions.

Loretta: I love mixing colors! I’m experimenting with chromium green mixed with black.  

Dave: Gamblin also provides colors in tubes that are similar to Ted Goerschner's colors. Colors like radiant blue and "Portland gray". I make light tints and I use those a lot. I learned this from Scott Christensen. I use complementary colors to gray things off. I have been in Colorado and I am back now. I am bringing in two paintings. 

Tim: I am like Loretta…. I prefer to mix paint than to paint (Laughter)! I have six colors on my palette. I was frustrated with the hot weather so I painted a hot painting (Laughter)! Also, I brought in this painting commemorating the Fourth of July. 

Lola: I brought in some useful things about color mixing. Here is Richard Schmid’s book. He has a wonderful explanation of color mixing and color charts in his book. I've brought in other things too (another book and a color recipe pamphlet). I have just completed my residency in Whiskeytown. I brought back a plein air painting.

Bill: My color mixing “tip" is to add Cobalt blue to your flesh color.  I brought in paintings... one of a hipbone model and another of some petunias. I also did this doublt portrait painting from a photograph. 

Charlie: pass! :) 

Leslie:  I sometimes like to have a couple different colors on my brush when I apply it to the canvas. It's always a surprise how it comes out. This gives an interesting and unexpected result. I brought in a recent landscape. 

Annie: pass! :)

Stephanie: I took a plein air workshop with Amiee Erickson. I was painting a structure that was yellow. I asked her for advice for the shadow side of the yellow building. Amiee showed me with my paints how I could darken yellow. It seemed to me like she used several different darkening colors….just small amounts of severals colors that gave a correct darker yellow without going green. I brought in this interesting article from Artist magazine on the same subject (darkening yellow). They showed three different ways to do it. I brought in a plein air from Johnson Creek and also a “re-do" over an old canvas.

Teresa: I have had some trouble mixing colors. I will learn more!  I work mostly in portraits. I have been moving and I was able to get a hold of this portrait painting that I did before I moved here (to share with you). 

Joanne: I brought in a painting that I did recently with a live model. I used the Zorn palette. My tip is this: you need to group your values. Make sure you know what is in light and what is in shadow…and within that you need your warms and cools. Warms and cools in both light and shadow help create form and variety. The Zorn palette is black, white, cadmium red and yellow ochre. While I was painting this I really wanted more yellow but I was restricted to just ochre. I had to "make do". That is what you have to do…. just deal with it! 

Jeanie: It takes very little permanent green to go a long way (Laughter)!

Jeanne: I like to mix all of my paints together at the end of a painting session. That will serve as my grays for the next time. I especially like that if I'm returning to the same place the next day. I have brought in two plein air paintings. I have been trying to go out before 7 AM each day. I won't stay past 11 AM. That is when the light really starts to change too much and staying too late will mess up your painting!. 

Jim: I recently went to the Tilbury event. Ned Mueller got me interested in doing that event. While I was there I took hundreds of pictures. I concur the grays are very important. I am not a fan of Alizarin Crimson. It is too transparent for me. Jennifer Diehl has a different palette than mine. She doesn't use a Alizarin Crimson at all. I learned from her that she uses Quin magenta instead. She mixes it with Burnt Sienna and together it makes a color like Alizarin Crimson (but opaque). I am going to be taking her color class in October. I am trying to paint more “economically” (putting down color once and leaving it).  I brought in three paintings from Tilbury. In each painting I tried to utilize the “snowball” bush effectively next the the model. I tried to lead the eye with these flowers to the model.  I used soft brushes for finishing touches at the end…(I got that idea from Quang Ho).

Diane: Kat taught me something that she learned from Ovanes Berbarian. Kat uses really juicy colors and lots of them. What she does is she pulls her paints down onto her large palette.  She makes “stripes” of color. Once she has the color pulled down into a stripe she can add grays (or other modifications) within the long stripe. What I like about this is that you can see clearly what is happening to each color with each modification. A big palette is best to do this. (Editor’s note I found a photo of this):


Jim interjected: yes I remember that Ovanes told me that I must pull my paints down in that same way. He was very emphatic about it and….. I have to admit he was right. (Laughter)!
 It's a very effective way to mix. 

Judith: I took a workshop with Amiee Erickson. She is just divine!  When she told me to "use more paint" I just sort of went into a trance! (Laughter)! I have a hard time using enough paint. I have been working on composition. I brought in a painting. 

Mary: The weather affects me. I have to stay indoors when it is this hot. I have been working on a studio painting. I have been finding objects around my house to use in my painting. My color mixing tip is that black is okay in small doses! It came as a revelation to me that black could be used in your painting!  

Mike:  I will show you a REAL color chart! (Laughter)! I learned and continue to learn that color and value are related! I did this chart with greens on one side and neutral on one side and my full palette on the other side. It took a long time to do this, but it was worth it. I refer to it all the time. Yesterday I did a watercolor from a photograph from Cornwall. What I have learned is that I need to paint bigger! There are sizes you are most comfortable painting…I will go to a half size sheet next time.

Tedd: I painted at Smith Rock. It was so hot! I painted this and I loved how majestic the scenery is. I am also showing you this portrait that I painted with a limited palette of cadmium chartreuse, blue, and brown pink. 

Jerry: Your gray has to be the same value as what you're adding to it! If you don’t pay attention you’ll change the value and that causes trouble. I sometimes mixed up all my end-of-the-day oils into a gray. I will put them into a jar and if I am not going to use them right away I will spray it with clove oil to keep it moist. Clove oil makes any paint last a long time and there is the added bonus of how you will be reminded of your dentist office! (Laughter)!
 I am showing you my Pike water color palette I put the bottom lip like this (canted) and the water runs down to the bottom. It makes a puddle of gray that I can use in my painting. I've brought in two paintings for the lavender festival. I am taking both paintings today to be displayed. One is an oil painting and the other is a large watercolor. 

Brenda: I use a limited palette.  My favorite blue is called BICE by Vasari.  I gave a workshop in this terrible heat. It was just brutal. I did supply tents for my students.  I was so surprised how each participant rose to the occasion despite all the heat. They “brought it”! I am showing a recent plein air oil painting that I painted for the Lavender festival. 

Eunice: I brought in three paintings that I did initially for the lavender festival. It was too hot out there for me so I had to finish these paintings in my studio. They are not eligible for the plein air exhibit.   I got an American Art Review magazine the other day…. Thomas Kitts has four paintings in it and they are just fantastic! 

Announcements: 

Ria is giving a demonstration today at OSA. You can always get to any of the demonstrations at OSA when they have them... they won't conflict with this meeting. There is plenty of time to get there, because the demos always start at 11.

Lisa: I have a solo show at the NW Community Center this month: http://necommunitycenter.org

Annie: I have a suggestion! I think we should paint at a waterfall…. at the base of the waterfall. I found a good one on Cornell Road. 

Tedd: I went to the Prix de West exhibit in Oklahoma City. It was fantastic. You won’t believe the prices of some of the (sold) art! (I was floored!)


Celeste: I will have a reception at the Lane Gallery on Wednesday, July 15, 6-8pm http://www.lanegallerypdx.com

Joanne Mehl:  will have another (figure) three-day workshop late in September. Everything will be announced when it is decided. 

Brenda: I'm excited to be teaching pastel at OSA in September. Stay tuned! 

Brenda was accepted into Laguna Plein Air. (Congratulations Brenda!) 

The Lavender festival is this Saturday and Sunday:
Erik Sandgren's coastal paint out is beginning on Monday.  No fee…tons of fun!

Charlie Needles has two pieces hanging in the Keizer City Hall. Congratulations, Charlie!


Thanks to all for coming out and sharing your ideas and paintings!

Next meeting Thursday, July 16 suggested table topic: Paintings that they didn't work, what do you do with them? How do you discard old paintings? Let's discuss!

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