This Christmas week, your editor sits at his keyboard pecking out a living.  I am driven to write.

Some days, I write computer code that becomes software that, hopefully, artists and others find useful…other days, like today, instead of functions and variables, words and sentences flow forth and become newsletters, journal entries and blog posts.  Again, hopefully a few people find it useful.  It’s still quite humbling to think that anyone actually reads these missives of mine.

The Hunger

Quite frankly, I would probably do these things anyway, even if nobody used the software and nobody suffered through the missives.  Writing computer code and writing down my thoughts on art, marketing, inspiration and success…well…those things are just something that I do.  It’s who I am.  It’s the way that I create.

You see, you and I are the same, dear artist.  We have the same drive.  There is  a voice inside of each us yelling “I MUST create!”  You’ve heard that voice.  That voice is why you paint, sculpt, draw, take photographs, draw cartoons, make jewelry, etc, etc, etc.

We may work in different mediums, but we’re all heeding the same call. Your medium may be paint, while mine is computer code, algorithms and functions…sentences, paragraphs and ideas.

Artist and cartoonist, Hugh MacLeod, calls this feeling “The Hunger.”  That’s a good way to put it.  I HUNGER to create.

Here’s what Hugh says about “The Hunger”:

Interestingly, this Christmas season, I find myself asking, “WHERE does ‘The Hunger’ come from?”

The Void

To answer that, I have to back up a few years and share some very personal information.  I hope you don’t mind.  Several years ago, I found myself experiencing an deep emptiness inside.  I called this emptiness “The Void.”  (Interestingly, Hugh MacLeod’s blog is called ‘Gaping Void’.  I don’t really know why he named it Gaping Void, but for me that term has always represented “The Void” I felt many years ago.  That’s the great thing about art, the meaning can sometimes be different to the viewer than it is to its creator.)

At some point in their lives, a lot of people experience a similar sort of emptiness.  We all try to fill it in different ways.  Sometimes in positive ways: a relationship, exercise, travel.  Sometimes in negative ways: overeating, alcohol addiction, gambling.  But, you see, I’ve come to believe that there is only one “thing” that properly fills “The Void.”

I believe this, because I had a supernatural encounter with that one “thing” that has filled my emptiness.

Now please bear with me.  I haven’t gone crazy.  This is not an attempt to push any religious or other beliefs on you.  I’m just opening up my heart and ideas and sharing with you.

Different people have different views on what this void-filling “thing” is.  Some names people use are:  The Universe, the Creator, Life-Force, and God.

The Logos

The ancient Greeks called this “force” Logos.  Heraclitus (ca. 535–475 BC) established the term in Western philosophy as meaning both the source and fundamental order of the cosmos [source]. Philo (20 BC – 50 AD) used the term logos to mean the creative principle [source].

You see, I believe that this “force” . . . this Logos is the only thing that can fill “The Void.”

Now, I’m certainly not wise enough or knowledgeable enough to know all of the forms and faces that Logos takes.  In my case, I had a direct and supernatural encounter with Logos where it . . . He … chose to reveal himself to me in the traditional Christian manner.  For me, at least, “Logos” is Jesus.  But it could be that Logos very well may reveal itself in a different manner to other people.  Perhaps Logos connects with each person in the most-appropriate and effective way to reach that person.  I don’t know.  I only know that “The Void” that I had experienced was instantly filled after that direct encounter with the logos.

The Gifts

Now here’s where it gets really interesting.  “The Void” was filled, but “The Hunger” intensified.  I’m both satisfied and joyful, but also intensely driven…intensely HUNGRY… to create. Hence, as I started this letter:  your editor sits at his keyboard pecking out a living.

You see, the Creator is, well, a Creator.  We are created in His image.  Logically, if we are created in the Creator’s “image”, then we are creators too. Thus, just like the Logos of the universe, we have a “hunger” to create.

Your creator has given you a remarkable gift with this Hunger…and you have also been given the talents you need to feed your Hunger.

Your artistic, creative talents are a direct gift from the universe. But the gift does not come without responsibilities.  You are expected to use your gift and that is why you feel “The Hunger.”  It keeps you from getting complacent and squandering the gifts.

That is why, as Hugh MacLeod said, “The Hunger…will cost you your life…It will never go away.”

Whatever/whoever gave you this hunger to create expects you to use it.  But Why?

For all the rest of us, of course.  Your talents and your drive are gifts to you from the Creator.  In turn, the fruit of your talents, your art, is your gift back to the Creator…and also to all of the rest of us.

Art affects people deeply.  I’ve seen grown men weep in front of paintings and grown women brought to sheer joy from art.  Perhaps people are so deeply affected because they are connecting with the logos via the hand of the artist.  Don’t ever minimize the importance of your art, your gift, to the rest of the world. You see, art really does change the world.

So this Christmas as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the Logos, think about the blessings that have been given to you.  And think about the blessings you can bestow on others through the gift of your artwork.

As for me, I will thank God for our encounter, I will thank Him for you and your art …. and for the beauty that the Logos has brought into the world via your hands.

Have a very Merry Christmas!

Sincerely,
Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic

PS – Now, go change the world.

PPS – We will not be sending a FineArtViews letter tomorrow, Christmas Day.  We’ll resume our normal schedule on Sunday.  Have a great Holiday.

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a free email newsletter about art, marketing, inspiration and fine living for artists,
collectors and galleries (and anyone else who loves art).

This article originally appeared at:
http://clintwatson.net/blog/15768/The-Hunger-The-Void-The-Logos-and-The-Ultimate-Gifts

For a complimentary subscription, visit: http://www.fineartviews.com
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It can sometimes be difficult to sort through all the advice we receive about marketing art.  Some of the information seems contradictory – even when offered by the same person.  I have probably given such contradictory information.  Personally, there is a topic which has been causing me some frustration for a while.  I am referring to writing your bios, artist statements, blogs, newsletter articles, press releases, etc. – really any written statement about you and/or your work.  Perhaps some of you are also a bit bewildered about them.

Here is where I find contradictions in what everyone is saying:

Tell Your Story

Firstly, you are told to tell your story.  Why do you create what you create?  Why do you use your chosen media?  Why do you paint your chosen subject matter?  Why do you use certain techniques?  What is your motivation?  What do you want to say with your art?  Etc.

Also Tell Anecdotal Stories

Every work of art has a story.  Some of these stories may emerge when answering the above questions.  But often there are additional anecdotal stories that add even more to the work of art.  Perhaps while painting en plein air, a gust of wind blew your easel over and carried your painting away.  You finally retrieved it 100 yards down the hill.  Click here for other examples of this type of story.  You’re told to share your stories.

What’s In It for Me (WIIFM)?

This is where I find the contradiction.  We are advised to write from the collector’s point of view.  Put yourself in the collectors’ shoes and ask “What is in it for me?”

I recently read an article on the topic.  Unfortunately I can’t remember who wrote it right now.  The point was made that every landscape artist is inspired by the landscape.  Every figurative artist is inspired by the figure.  Don’t write a statement that simply states, “I am passionate about the landscape.”  I am guilty of doing this.

So, What Do I Write?

So, how do you write your story and make it unique and interesting when it is the same as everyone else’s story?  Or how do you tell your story, share your inspiration, and even add interesting anecdotes, but do it all while addressing WIIFM?  This is the challenge.  I am slowly figuring it out.  Maybe you are quicker than me and have it all figured out already.

I think that there are different levels or classifications of written material for marketing.

Formal

The more formal written material is where I think the more carefully crafted writing is found.  I include Bios, Artist Statements, and Press Releases here.  Make them interesting.  Write them in a way that makes the viewer want to look at more of your work.  Make them compelling.  Consider the WIIFM (What’s in it for me?) question.  If you are careful and creative, you can write a statement that includes your story and addresses the collectors’ perspective.  Take enough time to write and rewrite these.  Revisit them from time to time and update or change them as you grow as an artist.

Less Formal

These may include your blog or newsletter.  You don’t always need to craft these as carefully.  There are times when it is important to address the WIIFM, but there are also times when you simply can’t share your story in that way.  If you write enough blog posts, you have the freedom to move back and forth.  Some blogs focus more on you, some more on the viewer.  Don’t neglect the audience’s perspective.  Give them reason to come back.  But you can insert a bit more of yourself here.

What about Twitter?  Alyson Stanfield recently wrote a great blog about using Twitter.  She suggests that only 5% of your tweets should be self promotional.  If you want to compel your followers to visit your website, these 5% need to consider WIIFM.  Don’t simply write, “Visit my website to see my latest work.”  This isn’t compelling enough.

So, To Summarize

You need to write your story, but wherever possible consider the WIIFM.  If you are creative enough, maybe you can add it into almost every written statement.  At the minimum, the most important statements need to address the WIIFM.  The less formal statements should include it wherever possible, but don’t force them into areas where they simply don’t work (such as anecdotal stories).

Happy writing,

Keith Bond
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This article appears courtesy of FineArtViews by Canvoo,
a free email newsletter about art, marketing, inspiration and fine living for artists,
collectors and galleries (and anyone else who loves art).

This article originally appeared at:
http://clintwatson.net/blog/15546/Written-Statements

For a complimentary subscription, visit: http://www.fineartviews.com
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The problem:
Too cool overall. I lost that wonderful orange color that made this piece interesting at an earlier stage. Contrast is what makes a painting interesting—contrast of size, color, shape, texture, value, or temperature. The missing ingredient was temperature and color contrast!

The solution:
So I decided to take a small chance and add a very bright orange, sunlit sky. My light source is from the right (see the tree shadows). So I made up a time of day scenario that was different from what I initially intended. Instead of late afternoon, I decided on light from moments before sunset. That meant not only creating the lush orange sky, but decreasing the intensity of the foreground by pushing down the chroma on the river banks.

So now, rather than the viewer focusing on the foreground, the first point of interest is is in the far distance. The eye travels away toward the back of the picture plane. Or in other words, the focus is the top of the painting and the illusion of distance. The viewer feels more as if they are shooting over the tops of the trees to the distant bluffs at the horizon, reinforcing my title.

Whew! Now I can relax… There is nothing worse to me than a paining left unresolved (failed). Thank you for taking the time to go through these lessons with me. I hope you learned as much as I did!

I am very happy with the way the trees reflect against the dark shadow. I used a very dull green painted directly over the blue of the water. Then I simply added a bit of lighter value green to give the illusion of highlights from the tree leaves. This is somewhat new territory for me. The only other painting I have done with reflection in water is “Landscape #2.”

At this point I should have been done with this painting. But after leaving it in the studio overnight I came back and was dissatisfied. Something was wrong. The painting overall lacked dynamism. It felt wet and dead and cold. Leaving it over the weekend didn’t help. When I came back to the studio it still wasn’t ‘working.’

So back in I went to add a higher chroma green in the foreground. My thinking was that there wasn’t enough contrast overall. And I went further, adding bright highlights to the foreground trees. But still it was a failure in my mind.

Find out how I solved the problem in the last lesson!

The burnt sienna wash is screaming through the complementary green in a way that is very pleasing. Problem is, the plan I have includes covering most of the sienna with opaque greens. We shall see how well this works out. I nearly want to leave it as is.

There is a drawing problem that is driving me a bit batty. The center island has trees that appear much taller than they should be relative to all the others. I missed that until now. Grrrr. What to do. Come back again to find out!

Starting at the back (top) I work my way forward with very muddy green colors with a light value, creating atmospheric perspective. I got a little impatient and decided to rough in some of the green of the foreground river banks. I have all this paint on the palette mixed in order to get to the background greens. So I decided to use them because they were kind of close to what I am after.

I’m really happy with the pattern of the river in the foreground. I’m always amazed when something comes up “correct” the first time around. Usually it takes a lot of reworking to arrive at the perfect solution. Well, at least I think it’s a perfect solution now. As the painting progresses things will probably change. Every stroke has an effect on every other stroke. It’s a fine balance that is easily destroyed. In other words, just because I like something in the painting doesn’t mean it will survive to make the final cut. Each color and shape and value has to play well with it’s neighbors.

Tune in again to find out what happens!

The underpainting is serving me well as a map at this stage. I’m painting the trees a mixture of ultramarine, white and a bit of raw umber to give it a more organic flavor, which will become the shadows behind the trees once they are completed. Remember, in this piece I am working from dark shadows under the trees and later will add the lighter values on top. Also just blocked in a neutral green for the open areas along the banks.

Labor day, I spent the day with my wife and our dog driving down highway 35 (which follows the river) in Wisconsin and then hiking the Iowa side of the Mississippi. It was a perfect day for some photography, so I shot a few pics from an observatory. Really great, awe inspiring views!! So of course, I have to paint some of what I saw using my photos as reference.

I am probably going to title this piece “Landscape #5 (your magic arrow flies with precision).” Titles are always subject to change as the piece progresses. It depends on what the painting is saying to me by the end. Is this how it would feel to be an arrow shot from the bluff? Makes me wonder. I listen to music a lot when painting. And sometimes a lyric is just the right title for my painting. Sometimes titles just pop into my head spontaneously, or from something I heard spoken, or from something written. Inspiration comes from everywhere!

The first step, always, aside from building the stretcher and stretching the canvas and drawing, is underpainting with burnt sienna. It warms everything up nicely. Underpainting color has a huge impact on the overall unity of the painting; even if you can’t see the underpainting color. I use this to make sure I have the values correct. First I draw with pencil directly on the canvas. Then I use my brush to enhance the sketch and begin blocking in values.

As you can see, I am already into the finish layers of the bluff and sky.

The sky is just dioxazine purple and titanium white, with just a touch of raw umber to dull the chroma a bit and warm it up. Remember, start darker at the top of the sky and then gradually move to lighter at the bottom. This is what gives the illusion of receding space.

Next, I mixed ultramarine, raw umber, and titanium white to get the deep blue shadowy color of the bluff. I thinned the blue with turpenoid so it would dry pretty fast. But I still wanted it to be a bit wet to mix color into it. The blue was also used for the bluffs farthest back. I added just a small amount of blue to titanium white. I also used a bit of stand oil mixed into it. Stand oil keeps the colors vibrant and makes the paint look wet, even if it is dry.

Next, I added a bit of cadmium yellow to the blue mixture along with some titanium white to get the trees covering the bluff. This gives the trees the cool, greenish blue. In this painting, illusion of space is accomplished by using cooler, duller colors on parts that I want to move back visually. This is called atmospheric perspective.

I’ll be posting more as I move along. Please check back!