The Arts

"The arts are lost only too easily, and it takes a long time and much effort for them to be rediscovered." 

-Albrecht Durer, The Painter's Manual pg 36

So I would like to take a minute and talk about how the great the arts are. I mean no slight to any other fields or studies but the arts give us so much and are often underrated. 

I've been reminded of the power and beauty of the arts. Recently I watched a movie that I would absolutely classify as a work of art, it was so well made and such a beautiful story. I'm reading a book right now that's again, so well crafted, it causes me to think and ponder things as much as it provides enjoyment. I have heard music in live performances that gives me goosebumps because it's so beautiful. There are pieces of visual art that I feel in my soul.

We need the arts, we need these experiences, I think we may need them to be human, or perhaps we need them because we are human. How much better the world could be if we put a little more focus towards beauty. How much war, horror and violence could be avoided by better awareness of beauty. How much better our quality of life could be. The arts and beauty matter.

Happy Birthday Albrecht!

I found out that today is/was Albrecht Durer's birthday, he's one of my favorite artists. I love both his work and his dedication to the arts, he created multiple instruction manuals for different techniques. You can learn a bit more about him here.

Hazards

So something I was taught in college that changed the way I did things and have come to be grateful for, is to be very wary of what kinds of materials I use in my art. There are a lot of toxic and harmful art supplies/materials out there, ones that are commonly used even. There's a sort of stigma about artists being crazy or unstable(Van Gogh being the prime example), things like lead poisoning will do that to you.

It is an unfortunate truth that a lot of pretty colors/pigments come from things that could kill you, heavy metals are a serious factor there (cadmiums, cobalts, etc.). I don't think enough is done to make people aware of that. I myself was blissfully unaware until I was told horror stories of things that had happened to artists my teacher knew (becoming allergic to one's hair, teeth falling out, etc.) and the same teacher was hospitalized at one point from fumes produced by a neighboring artist in his work space. This is serious business and so I want to do my part in spreading the word.

Research your materials before you buy or use them! There are books on the subject and you can usually find an MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet ex) that can tell you of any health concerns and how you might properly handle them if you do choose to use them. There's probably more I could or should say about all this but I hope that this will be of some help to someone.

Eight Fold FAQs

So last night was the opening reception for my Eight Fold exhibit. It was really fun to be able to show my work off and talk to people about it. It also gave me insight into what questions people have about my work, that was enlightening, so here for those who see the exhibit when I'm not there, are some FAQs from last night, in the order that I remember them.

Q: Why is the exhibit called Eight Fold?
A: All of the pieces in the series shown in this exhibit are based on the same underlying pattern most of the facets of this pattern and the resulting pieces are eight based.

Q: Where did you get the base pattern/what started you on all this?
A: I went to a workshop given by Dr. Lisa DeLong of the Prince's School of Traditional Arts. She showed us the base pattern.

As for the start of my interest in Islamic art/designs, I can't remember exactly how it all started. I know it was while I was at BYU, almost certainly in classes with Wulf Barsch, through an introduction to Little Wooden Books. I'm not really certain how but here I am.

Q: How do you make everything so uniform and tight?
A: With a compass and a ruler/straight edge. With the question applied to the painted parts, I use watercolor washes, I use multiple brushes in various sizes, I let sections dry before painting around them so that there's no bleeding and when I do go over the lines I do my best to clean it up with some paper towel.

Q: Do you have a favorite?
A: No, there are currently close to sixty of these designs, I have ones that I like better than others, maybe some turned out better or I like the colors better but I don't really have a favorite.

We'll start with that, maybe I'll remember some more. Comment if you've got other questions.

Master Studies

Latest.

I think I took a bit longer on this one. I think parts are better but my gosh it's hard to avoid crazy eyes.

Hagen Haltern

I just found out that Hagen Haltern died in this article. I didn't realize that he'd died. My condolences to his family. I took a class from Hagen at BYU, he was a great guy and I learned a lot from him.

Now Showing

So I've been saying that there are big things coming and it's super exciting.
May 12th through July 3rd the first fifteen paintings in my Eight Fold series will be on view at the Sprague Branch library in Salt Lake.

While that's happening my own mini gallery space is opening up at the Lamp Company. Check it out.

Pro tips and rookie mistakes

So I just delivered fifteen framed paintings for my upcoming show. I had everything ready I just needed to get the eye hooks in and the wire on the frames. I forgot how long it can take to do that by hand. Sufficed to say that I didn't listen to the advice to use a drill for pilot holes right away and wasted hours chipping away at the process when I could have been done well in advance. If you're putting in lots of screw eyes in, have a drill.
Also, I don't know why I always forget this but Michael's they're just never the place to go for anything related to art, always go to Utrecht/Blick!
That is all.

One more, remember that the post office is not open very long on Saturdays.