A New Model and Some News

Here is our most recent Friday model at Bay Arts. It's been a while since we've had a male model so I was glad for the opportunity.

Oil on Canvas Paper - 12 x 16 

The canvas paper I use is a fairly inexpensive one which comes in a pad. I've noticed that the quality of the canvas is not always consistent from pad to pad. I was not as happy with this last pad that i purchased. It's weave is too uniform. Almost as though it were embossed on paper in perfectly regular, or straight rows. This can create a problem sometimes when viewed on screen, because the weave of the canvas will create a moire pattern with the resolution of the pixels on the screen, which can be quite distracting. Computers vary so I'm not sure if others are noticing the same thing. Anyway, I can't complain too much. Like I said it's relatively cheap and it serves it's purpose. It's actually real acrylic-primed 

sheets of canvas. I also figured for these kinds of practice portraits it would make it much easier to archive and store the originals when I was done with them, rather than having stacks of stretched canvases, or even panels piling up. This way I can file 50 paintings or more in a single drawer of my taboret and it might take up about one inch or so in depth. Also, I have tried stretching some finished studies onto stretcher bars once they were dry and have never had a problem.

The news is an exciting bit for me. I'm headed back to the Scottsdale Artist's School in a few months to take another workshop. Although there are many great instructors out there, I have a pretty short list of people with whom I would really like to do a workshop. Fortunately there is one at the SAS that I believe I could benefit from and who is on that list.

Details to follow.

Another One Of Libby

At Bay Arts Libby shows up quite often. I don't mind as she is a very good model to paint.

I think I'm making some good steps forward with this one. Still some things to watch out for in retrospect, but overall a good effort, I think, towards bigger and better things.

Oil On Canvas - 16 x 20

Nifty Trick

So, I understand blogs are not just about sharing your latest work but also about sharing tips and working methods. Well here's one trick that someone once showed me and that I've since been telling people about that's been saving me lots of clean up time. 

I can't imagine I'm the only person that dislikes the chore of cleaning out your solvent container when the solvent gets too murky and dirty. In the past I could use up to about 5 or six paper towels trying to clean the sludge that remains at the bottom after you've poured off the clean solvent to re-use.

Well here's how I get around that mess. I take a ziploc sandwich bag, I line the inside of my container with it and pour my solvent into the baggie. When the solvent has gotten dirty I pour the clean solvent into another container and the junk that remains is in the baggie, ready for me to just lift out, seal with the ziploc zipper, and just throw away. All that's left is a perfectly clean container. How awesome is that? 

Take a look.

As you can see I use the traveling container that locks tight. It's great because the container has a cleaning plate with holes in it so the sediment goes right to the bottom and the clean solvent stays at the top ready to use. I've travelled with this container sealed shut with the baggie going over the lip as shown and with solvent in it and it has never leaked.

125 bags in one box will probably last me until I can't even lift a brush anymore. Try this setup. I think you'll like it.