Links to art relevant web sites
ART ON THE NET
Robert Genn
Robert Genn is a Canadian artist who writes a free biweekly newsletter full of his musings on art and artists.
A very successful landscape artist he paints and sells about 250 paintings a year, all at premium prices.
His jottings are wide and varied, from the materials he prefers to the solutions for painters block as well as advice on how to further your career as an artist.
The newsletters attract a range of interesting responses which are all available on his website.
An index allows you to find past newsletters about your topic of interest.
What you will not find is “How to Paint” but you will find hints and pointers about composition, colour, holding the viewers attention, the art market, art history, current trends and many other topics.
His writing style is excellent, easy to read while challenging to think about.
In addition you can register, including a sample of your work and receive free promotion with over 100,000 readers in about 115 countries.
Find him at http://painterskeys.com/ and go to clickbacks on the title line.
Subscribe, its free!
Wetcanvas.com
Looking for a website with a large and varied content?
Wetcanvas.com with about 250000 members is the largest bulletin board for artists.
The content is amazing, covering all forms of painting plus much more.
Lessons, discussion about technique, critical review of materials, competitions and forums on every aspect of art or where you can have your paintings critically reviewed.
Worried about getting good photos – there is a forum to help you with that as well.
This is not an exclusive location for professionals – it caters for beginners as well.
Members come from all over the world including Australia and New Zealand.
It was run as an amateur organization but became so big that it needed the support of a large business and now is operated by Northern Light, an online media store which provides plenty of learning material, both print and digital.
Find it at http://www.wetcanvas.com/ Membership is free.
Tone, Chroma, Brightness
What is meant by Tone, Chroma, Brightness?
Confused?
Have a look at this paper provided by Golden Paints USA.
Focusing on the use of grey scales, the authors have set out to show how to solve the problem of creating greyed versions while retaining the original colour.
The subject is treated in depth and you may wish to take from it the detail you can use or it may open your eyes to that different approach you have been looking for.
You don’t need to buy their paints, mix your own greys.
Works with oil too.
Just remember the advice given applies to all paints, not just their brand.
Find them at:
http://www.goldenpaints.com/technicaldata/neutgray.php
Handprint
Probably the most technically detailed site in the painter’s world, Handprint provides detailed analysis of the merits of different manufacturers and colours.
Focusing primarily on watercolour, the author looks at colourfastness, purity, toxicity and other attributes of paint from the major manufacturers.
He explores the difference in naming and why the same colour from different suppliers can differ.
Mixing and the colour wheel is discussed at length.
A complex and thorough site, worth a visit, and applicable even if you use oil or acrylic.
Find it at: http://www.handprint.com/HP/WCL/water.html
A detailed discussion of colour and the human eye can be found at:
http://www.handprint.com/LS/CVS/color.html
Forster Institute of Contemporary Art