President's Message
APRIL 21 2024
\\
11 March 2024
18 February 2024
11 February 2024
4 February 2024
28 January 2024
More from my favorites list. This time it's Colorado artist Jill Soukup.
Biography
Jill Soukup was born in Buffalo, New York. Shortly thereafter, her family moved to Colorado, where she still resides. Jill’s affinity for horses as a young girl resulted in countless drawings and studies of them, which made for a strong drawing foundation. As a teen, she started a pet portrait business, acquired jobs painting murals, and designed logos for local organizations. She graduated from Colorado State University in 1991 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. There, she received awards for illustration and design, working in those fields for the university. She initially pursued a career in graphic design while continuing to paint part-time. After 11 years as a designer, she made the switch to full-time painting. Her work continues to gain recognition as she receives awards, appears in national publications, and shows in important juried and one-woman exhibitions.
~ Jini's Corner ~
𝙀𝙨𝙠𝙞𝙢𝙤 𝙆𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨 by Leah Hossler Wiedemer
~ Jini's Corner ~
------------------
==================================
I have been on the hunt for contemporary artists this week and came across Svetlana Tartakovska, a Ukrainian woman now living in Amsterdam. I found this portrait she completed in her studio very compelling, so much so that I had to do a Google search. A YouTube video popped up, professionally made, that tells the artist's story much better than I ever could. Take a moment to watch.
https://youtu.be/MxrGoR4UTrE?si=cYU55CAo9uSpCQ-3
~ Jini's Corner ~
https://youtu.be/MxrGoR4UTrE?si=cYU55CAo9uSpCQ-3
~ Jini's Corner ~
============================
One of my favorite things to do each day involves adding to my knowledge of artists.
Meet Carl Rungius (1869-1959)
"Carl Clemens Moritz Rungius was born near Berlin, Germany. Carl Rungius became one of America's most noted wildlife artists, usually working in plein air or directly from nature. His grandfather was a taxidermist and animal hunter, which gave him early exposure to this subject matter. He was also a hunter of big game from childhood, and eventually his lifestyle merged with his art. He fell in love with the Northwest and West, and much of his painting and hunting career of over fifty years was spent packing into the forests and high country of Montana, Wyoming, Arizona, the Yukon, and the Canadian Rockies. His Academic style used heavy, rich color and tight detailing - much in contrast to the prevailing impressionism."
These Western Artists are the real deal. They saw. They painted. They found time to write books. They had museum exhibits. They created a path and followed it. When I first saw this painting I was completely transported and saw every nuance. Enjoy!
~ Jini's Corner ~
Émile Friant (16 April 1863 – 9 June 1932)
French artist
French artist
I am in awe of another pastel painter, this time a man, whose past has stories of supporters who stepped up and made a path for art in his life. I would love to know the paper he used and the colors he chose to make this not look like a sketch. It's so important to study the masters.
~ Jini's Corner ~
============================
Dorothea Sharp (British artist) 1874 - 1955
Three Sisters, s.d.
oil on panel
38 x 46 cm. (15 x 18 in.)
signed DOROTHEA SHARP. lower left
private collection
© photo Sotheby's
Catalogue Note Sotheby's
‘One of England’s greatest living woman painters’ wrote Harold Sawkins in The Artist in April 1935 before going on to explain the enduring appeal of her work; ‘No other woman artist gives us such joyful paintings as she. Full of sunshine and luscious colour, her work is always lively, harmonious and tremendously exhilarating… the chief attractions of Miss Sharp’s delightful pictures are the happy choice of subjects, and her beautiful colour schemes. Rollicking children bathed in strong sunlight, playing in delightful surroundings, her subjects appeal because they are based on the joy of life. And she presents them equally happily, with a powerful technique which enables her to make the most of her wonderful sense of colour’. (Harold Sawkins, ‘Dorothea Sharp, ROI, RBA’, in The Artist, April 1935)
~ Jini's Corner ~
===========================
Some of you have heard me say how much better I feel after picking up a pencil (or most any other medium) and producing a finished product at the Guild. It doesn't have to be perfect as much as I would like it to be. Interesting is good enough.
Enjoying watching others create and grow is pretty good too. Listening to the stories at break time is just as delicious as a peanut butter cracker. I am glad that so many of you are fans of ACORN TV and the BBC.
I am delighted to see Jon Houghton transform a blank sheet of paper into something so inspiring that is not to be believed. I am so grateful for having the opportunity to see this up close and personal. There are others that have been in my life, even for workshops, who have given me advice and support and I wish I could have the chance to see them again.
All of you are my tribe today and I thank you for that!
Jini's Corner
Today, I want to talk about regrets. Fresh from graduate school and acting like an obnoxious know it all, I had a chance opportunity to meet James Michener when he arrived in Maryland to write Chesapeake. I had loved earlier books like Tales of the South Pacific but found him to be a hard read. Since I would be seeing a fair amount of him that summer I started to read his most current saga, Centennial. I suffered with the first chapters and saw no need to bring up the dinosaurs.
I was reading the book when he asked me if I would like to have him autograph my copy. I should have been gracious and smiling. Instead, I just chirped "No Thanks." That's up there with telling an artist you really don't care for their work.
Long after, I made a point to never do that again. Geez, I blew off a Pulitzer Prize author and shut down any further communication with those two words.
Today, just as a reminder, I'm going to order one of his books from Amazon. There are many to choose from.
 |
| Photo taken by Robert Wilson at the 50th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. |
Jini's Corner
==============================================
Over the past year I have been following the career of California artist Glen Maxion. He is a soft spoken man with gray hair who was part of a family of painters. I looted a copy of his video from a pastel organization that was unedited so it lacks a lot of pizzazz. (See link)
He was brave to have attempted it! He was also brave to have started entering juried shows in 2012 to advance his career and to allow other people to connect with him. That process too requires tremendous effort.
Having said that, the best part of finding a contemporary artist to follow is to learn about their start-to-finish processes to see how they fit with what you are looking for in your own work. You can see from this example why I am excited about seeing more.
e.
Jini's Corner
=============================
I once visited a Gallery/Frame Shop in Beaufort, South Carolina. It had a wonderful collection of Low Country Art on the first floor along with a counter for framing services.
The owner told the story of a customer who had recently brought in a collection of his brother's work for framing. The brother had created the pieces while serving as a missionary in the Amazon. It was so impressive that the Gallery offered an exhibit and a win-win compensation for all the framing.
I ventured upstairs to have a look. Marvelous was an understatement. Each of the 50 pieces had the rewarding "red dot."
I witnessed the results of a process that is time honored:
1. Learn your craft.
2. Have your materials with you.
3. Paint what pleases you.
4. Share your work, even if the sharing is just to a family member.
5. One of the shares may lead to something bigger, or not.
At the very least, the folks in Beaufort, South Carolina, even if for just a season, had an artist's view of the Amazon's beauty.
Jini's Corner
"red dot" denotes SOLD
Lunch and Learn sessions for May and June will start with a talk and a demo and conclude with some practice in color mixing.
On May 27th, Ingrid Egeli presented her palette and did a color mixing demonstration for about 17 Guild members. She supplied a comprehensive list of colors she uses (linked here). Additionally, a PDF version of her presentation is available HERE.
If you would like to experiment, I suggest you try her colors!
This is a photo of my friend, and Ingrid's Aunt, Mary. It was taken before my official retirement as a nurse educator and transition into full time artist. The palette information Ingrid provided was introduced to me by Mary. I hope everyone had a chance to look at it in the newsletter.
This palette had me seeing colors much differently; purples and lavenders and pinks where before was a sea of burnt sienna and raw umber. Pure color was exciting. Using photographs as reference became complicated as they became essential for line and mass only.
So, when Ingrid makes reference to "making color notes" start making that a task for each and every painting you start. The finish will be better. I guarantee it .
Jini's Corner