Seth Apter's Blog, page 127

Technique & Tool: Chapter 7

Welcome to the 5th edition of The Pulse -- The State of the Art -- a survey in words and pictures of the online artist community. The Pulse is a collaborative project that aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals. More than 130 artists have answered a series of questions which make up The Pulse. Their responses will be presented in a series of online posts which will run every Sunday.
Style File was the first project posted and links to all 12 posts can be found on the sidebar of my blog. The second project, Techniques & Tools, the second project, continues now...

Participants were asked: 'The one technique or tool that you cannot live without is... ' I have added links of my own choosing to each contribution below, sometimes to products, sometimes to videos, sometimes to the artist's own work, and sometimes to something unexpected. Even the contributors do not know what I will be linking to!
----------------------------------------------
Eric Adama


Paper. No matter what technique I choose, painting or drawing etc., I always add some paper, to create a texture, scratch or cut in it.
----------------------------------------------
Judy Shea


That would be any of my texture/stencil tools/techniques (that's too many, right?). I love using molding paste to push through the stencils and push any of my texture tools into creating a 2D look that can now be enhanced even further with many colored mediums.
----------------------------------------------
Martha Marshall


I keep my extra large Liquitex No. 18 painting knife close at hand and use it often when spreading thick gels and paints. It gives me a wonderful feeling because it's exactly like a giant frosting spreader.
----------------------------------------------
Patti Edmon


Scraps, gel(s), gesso and acrylics with which to create layered, textured backgrounds.
----------------------------------------------
Natasha White


I cannot live without my paints at the moment. I would even choose them over my morning coffee.
----------------------------------------------
Kelly Kilmer

My journal! It is my favorite place for self-expression.
----------------------------------------------
Donna Joy


I guess I would have to say my miter saw since I like to use wood of all kinds as my substrate these days. Everything starts with the first cut.
----------------------------------------------
Svetlana Spasojevic


Technique: Crackle technique. I like using different products to achieve crackle effects. Tools: Definitely Dremel!!! Sanding, drilling, cutting, engraving...
----------------------------------------------
Katherine Labbe AKA Miz Katie


My palette knife and a bottle of Light Molding Paste. It covers up all those little holes on the canvas that I don't like.
----------------------------------------------
Terry Rafferty


An eraser, LOL!
----------------------------------------------
Leslie Marsh


Since making books is my first love, I thought about the tools and techniques I use in my work: waxed linen thread, needles, paper... I thought about binding techniques. But really the one tool I cannot work without is my hands.
---------------------------------------------
Next 'Techniques & Tools' will be posted on Sunday, November 6th.

APPetite

David Hayes from Clearer Reflections is sponsoring an online collaborative project aptly called 'Dave's Apps Recipe Book Project.' The brief is simple: share a photograph that was taken with and edited within an iPhone or iPad and share the recipe so others can 'cook' too. Head on over to his blog to see the links to all the participants.
My photo was edited using Grungetastic. With a name like that, it has got to be good.

RecipeTake one photograph and add:One scoop of Classic Grunge 3A heaping teaspoon of tone & color adjustmentTwo cups of borderA dash of abstract layer Grainy layer to taste
And to further whet your APPetite...

Your Blog, Your Way: Part 7

Sixth post in my series on Create Mixed Media.
Today's topic. Composition
Composition refers to the arrangement of the visual elements within a piece of art. Click here to find out how you can apply this concept to your blog.

Technique & Tool: Chapter 6

Welcome to the 5th edition of The Pulse -- The State of the Art -- a survey in words and pictures of the online artist community. The Pulse is a collaborative project that aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals. More than 130 artists have answered a series of questions which make up The Pulse. Their responses will be presented in a series of online posts which will run every Sunday.
Style File was the first project posted and links to all 12 posts can be found on the sidebar of my blog. The second project, Techniques & Tools, the second project, continues now...

Participants were asked: 'The one technique or tool that you cannot live without is... ' I have added links of my own choosing to each contribution below, sometimes to products, sometimes to videos, sometimes to the artist's own work, and sometimes to something unexpected. Even the contributors do not know what I will be linking to!--------------------------------------- Pat McNally 
My camera!--------------------------------------- Dorothy Simpson Krause
The computer.--------------------------------------- judi sidonie tillinger
The camera in my iPhone. Any camera for that matter but the iPhone has become an extension of my, well, I.--------------------------------------- Sally Turlington
I couldn't live without my computer! Having access to my art and photos and being able to change color, size, etc. on a whim -- critical. Next on my list would be COLOR: my golden acrylics, my ink pads, my oil pastels, my watercolors, etc. I rarely do anything that doesn't have lots of color.--------------------------------------- Maude May
My iPhone camera (and glue stick).--------------------------------------- Terry Garrett
There was a time when I would never have said this but it's my computer. It's both a tool for altering my photography and collages and a window on the world.--------------------------------------- Dave Dube
The camera for composition.--------------------------------------- Marsha Jorgensen
Why can I never follow the rules and have just one answer? I cannot live without my computer/Photoshop and my collection of antique ephemera/pictures.--------------------------------------- Liz Hampton-Derivan
My camera.--------------------------------------- Susan Madden
The Internet. When I start feeling smug about the work I've done ("That's perfect!") I take the time to cruise through my list of Favorite Blogs. Seeing other people's incredible artwork has the necessary effect of deflating my ego balloon and forcing me back to the studio to eat humble pie and start over again. And again. And again. A bad thing? Of course not. Being totally satisfied with your art means you don't need to keep working at it. That means you stop making art and that is a bad thing. --------------------------------------- Jacqueline Auvigne
My camera. It is my pure joy, I do it for me and my enjoyment alone. It's like a form of sketching for me, it keeps me loose, yet it keeps my eye sharp.--------------------------------------- Marie Otero
My computer (and camera - sorry, I know that is two , but they are inseparable!)--------------------------------------- Gail Pierce
A camera. Right now I'm in love with my Canon Powershot SX10is.--------------------------------------- theresa mARTin
Photoshop. I use it to scan in photos that I alter in use in artwork, and I use it to tweak and organize photos of completed art.--------------------------------------- Sarah Fishburn
At this exact moment in time, and subject to change in the future, because of the amount of digital deconstruction I find myself doing, my Mac.--------------------------------------- Corey Celaya
Too many to mention...this includes a camera.---------------------------------------
Next 'Techniques & Tools' will be posted on Sunday, October 30th.

Doodle Sketchbook

Doodle Sketchbook: Art Journaling for Boys is the newest book released by artist and author Dawn Devries Sokol. I received a signed copy from Dawn and have had so much fun looking through the pages. 


Not being a 'doodler' and not having seen Dawn's previous book Doodle Diary: Art Journaling for Girls, I did not know what to expect from this book. My first reaction was that I loved the size (approximately 7" x 5") and the cool cover (splattered and grungy). As I flipped through the pages I discovered that this was a book to play with and play in. It briefly covers tips and tools for art journaling but the bulk of its 160 pages are for journaling. Every page has a different background and a different prompt. The reader is encouraged to follow the prompts and add their own art and journaling. As such, this book is in the style of Keri Smith's Wreck This Journal[image error].

The book has a graffiti-like feel and the splatters and splashes of brightly colored, painted pages really drew me in. Examples of the journaling prompts include Doodle your Typical Day as a Comic Strip, What I Found this Week, Collaged Alphabet, and Scribble a Cityscape. The book seems to be marketed to children, and to boys specifically. Personally I think that this would appeal to both boys and girls. And, although some prompts are definitely geared toward kids (such as Fave Class Subjects), I believe that adults would also love this book as it appeals to the kid in all of us.

You can learn a lot more about Dawn by visiting her website or by listening to her podcast interview conducted by Rice Zachery-Freeman that was just released today.

--------------------------------------GIVEAWAY
One lucky reader will win a copy of Doodle Sketchbook, signed by the author. For a chance to win, all you need to do is leave a comment on this post by Wednesday 10/26. Please be sure to include your email address so I can contact the winner. I will announce the winner on my Facebook page on Thursday 10/27. Good luck!

The Monday Minute

I have converted. And there is no going back. The only thing I am wondering is what took me so long?! I am now the proud owner of a MacBook, an iPad, and an iPhone. And I am exploring the world of Apps. I would love suggestions from those in the know of favorite art and photography Apps. Feel free to name names in a comment to this post.

-----------------------------------------Thank you to everybody who signed up for my giveaway of two copies of the first issue of Stampington's newest magazine Mingle. The lucky winners are Bridgette from Contemplating the Moon and Eileen from Art Saves Lives.


-----------------------------------------
Stay tuned for a book review and a new giveaway as part of The Book Guild later this week.


-----------------------------------------
I have begun to stock my Etsy shop with some of my new mini books. Use them as a journal to collect your thoughts, remember an event, make a list, or spill the beans. Fill one with your doodles and drawings. Attach one to a gift for a personalized touch. Pop it in your pocket and record your travels.  Many more will be added in the coming days. If you see one in this image that has not yet been added to the shop, email me and it is yours.


-----------------------------------------
And of course come back next Sunday for the 6th installment of Techniques & Tools, where the favorites of 11 more artists will be revealed.


-----------------------------------------

Technique & Tool: Chapter 5

Welcome to the 5th edition of The Pulse -- The State of the Art -- a survey in words and pictures of the online artist community. The Pulse is a collaborative project that aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals. More than 130 artists have answered a series of questions which make up The Pulse. Their responses will be presented in a series of online posts which will run every Sunday.
Style File was the first project posted and links to all 12 posts can be found on the sidebar of my blog. The second project, Techniques & Tools, the second project, continues now...

Participants were asked: 'The one technique or tool that you cannot live without is... ' I have added links of my own choosing to each contribution below, sometimes to products, sometimes to videos, sometimes to the artist's own work, and sometimes to something unexpected. Even the contributors do not know what I will be linking to!
-------------------------------------
Anne M. Huskey-Lockard

Good quality chalky gesso!
-------------------------------------
Crystal Neubauer


I am and always will be a collage artist above all else. No matter what my artistic interests lead me to experiment with, I always come back to collage, or find a way to incorporate collage into other mediums, so the one thing I cannot live without is simply a jar of glue.
-------------------------------------
Tari Goerlitz


Paper and pencil. Living in Germany, I estimate that I have access to less than 30% of the mixed media products that are all over the US and UK markets. At first I was really angry and jealous about this. Years later I think this has benefited me more than I realize.
-------------------------------------
Darlene AkA HugGeR Wilkinson


I would say a credit card. I use them to create marks by cutting designs, scrape paint, and spread gesso and gel mediums. They are also great for making marks by using the edges of the card.
-------------------------------------
Amy Duncan


I love using Elmer's glue for my paper decoupage work. I use a mixture of glue diluted with a little bit of water. I like how the drying time is very long so I'm able to place pieces exactly where I want them and also have plenty of time to smooth out the paper pieces so there are no trapped air bubbles. A close second is wax crayons - the kind children use. I like the uneven texture of color you can create with rubbing the crayon across an image.
-------------------------------------
Adrienne "Dree" Berry


Gesso. Whenever I screw up I can just cover it up and start over again.
-------------------------------------
Mary Beth Shaw


Techniques and tools come and go for me and I will often be completely obsessed with a tool until I get bored and then suddenly switch to something else. So it is more a situation of the "Tool du jour." Right now I am stuck on Wood Icing, a texture medium that I use in nearly all my pieces. I haven't found any other medium that will do all the things that it does, especially the way it holds such a crisp line so that you can draw into it while it is damp or incise after it has dried. I use it throughout my painting process, in numerous layers, and also in my encaustic pieces.
-------------------------------------
Jude


A pencil. For many years that was all I used. Anything else seemed like more than enough. Now I use watercolor and acrylic and ink and other stuff. Although you might not notice it, pencil is usually still in there. Wouldn't want to live without it.
-------------------------------------
Loryn Spangler-Jones


Paint. Just the primary colors would be fine.
-------------------------------------
Tracie Lyn Huskamp


The one technique I could not live without is using acrylic paints on bleached muslin fabric. Fabric is a perfect canvas, as it is much more flexible and strong than any paper and is an excellent material to use in collage art.
-------------------------------------
Shayla Perreault Newcomb


Impasto. It's said that once an artist is successful they hire a team to do prep work and most of the painting for them. While I'd love a team to do prep work like stretching canvases and cleaning up after me, I wouldn't give up spreading that first, thick layer of white paint. While someone could do that step for me, the feel of spreading the paint on with my knife is meditative and relaxing. It prepares me mentally for the layers to follow and is a favorite ritual.
-------------------------------------

Next 'Techniques & Tools' will be posted on Sunday, October 23rd.

Studio in the Sky

Happy to share that my 'Studio in the Sky' is featured in the book Inside the Creative Studio by Cate Coulacos Prato. 

Inside the Creative Studio shares the art studio spaces of more than 30 artists and includes images, interviews, tips, and more. It is available now for pre-order on Amazon, where you can also preview the pages in the book. And if you want a preview of my studio, you can head to this post from my blog from August 2010.

Community Rules

Community rules. And by 'rules' I am not talking about regulations. By now you know how I feel about our community and the importance of the support that we all provide each other. I receive that from all of you every time I log on. But this past weekend, I experienced this in 'real life.' 

I attended Art is...You, the art retreat in Danbury, Connecticut, as a vendor at the Art Trunk. This was my first real experience at one of the big retreats. Even though I did not take or teach a workshop, I felt fully welcomed and immersed in this incredible community of ours. It was inspiring, surreal, exhausting, and invigorating...all at the same time. I had the pleasure of seeing many art bloggers that I had already met before, of meeting a new group of art bloggers that I had only known online, of getting to know many of my blog visitors, and of having the opportunity to meet many of the contributors to my upcoming book. There were too many people to list names...but you know who you all are. 
It has been said before, but get thee to an art retreat! It is an experience to remember, not the least of which is actually being able to meet all the wonderful people from all over the world we interact with everyday online. I am already making plans for next year!
-------------------------------------------
GIVEAWAY WINNER


Sending out congratulations to Andrea from Falling Ladies who is the lucky winner of Rice Freeman-Zachery's newest book Destination Creativity: The Life-Altering Journey of the Art Retreat. Rice works overtime to create and foster a community among artists, bloggers, and authors. Her book is all about her experience visiting art retreat during a year-long, cross country road trip.-------------------------------------------
NEW GIVEAWAY



The newest Publication from Stampington & Company, hot off the presses, is Mingle . Mingle celebrates the best part of community: gatherings, retreats, parties, and events. From small, intimate gatherings to large, artful retreats, Mingle invites you to join in the celebration with beautiful photography, descriptive writing, and creative tips. Stampington provided me with two copies of the debut issue which I am offering to you in a giveaway. Just leave a comment on this post by Sunday 10/16 to be eligible. Please be sure that I have your email address. The two winners will be announced on Monday 10/17.  

Technique & Tool: Chapter 4

Welcome to the 5th edition of The Pulse -- The State of the Art -- a survey in words and pictures of the online artist community. The Pulse is a collaborative project that aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals. More than 130 artists have answered a series of questions which make up The Pulse. Their responses will be presented in a series of online posts which will run every Sunday.
Style File was the first project posted and links to all 12 posts can be found on the sidebar of my blog. The second project, Techniques & Tools, the second project, continues now...

Participants were asked: 'The one technique or tool that you cannot live without is... ' I have added links of my own choosing to each contribution below, sometimes to products, sometimes to videos, sometimes to the artist's own work, and sometimes to something unexpected. Even the contributors do not know what I will be linking to!----------------------------------------- Chris Miser
A must-do technique for me a lot of the time is gesso stamping and embossing under layers of paint so that the embossing is visible and adds texture and mystery. It can be done several times on the same piece and can look amazing if done with patience.----------------------------------------- Pam McKnight
e6000 glue.----------------------------------------- Art by Canace
I could not function as an assemblage artist without my trusty Dremel EZ lock cutoff wheel. Nothing is sacred once I've got that wheel in full gear. Buzzzzzzzzzz! ----------------------------------------- Marit Barentsen
Pens. Pencils. Markers...anything that writes! My work almost always has words in it. I can't do without the writing part! I recently got the opportunity to lay my hand on a set of posterpaint Sharpies (they don't sell those in the Netherlands) and I'm completely in love!-----------------------------------------Evie Zaccardelli
Painting layers and then scraping back to reveal the hidden.----------------------------------------- Pam Carriker
A pencil, that's it. Give me a pencil and I'll be happily entertained for hours.----------------------------------------- Marcia Beckett
Watercolor paints. I love to paint translucent layers.----------------------------------------- Denise Aumick
Being a somewhat fickle artist, this answer can vary at any given time depending on the medium I am working in, but I would have to say...modeling paste.----------------------------------------- debi lynn designs
Mine is actually "materials" -- metal, crosses, turquoise, leather. Sorry, has to be these four because these are my "branding"! But, if I had to decide on a tool, as a jeweler it would have to be my beading needles, as a mixed media artist -- tar glue.----------------------------------------- Barbara Kleinhans
My assortment of painting and palette knives. I have a favorite in the group so I'd be particularly sad if I no longer had that one.----------------------------------------- Cathie Parreco 
It's called a Lil' Chizler. My first one was a gift from the technician who installed window tinting on my car and he used it to tuck and smooth the material over the glass. I use it for so many things -- spreading glue, burnishing, scraping, scoring, folding, etc. Its edges are rounded and gentle on any surface I am working on. They are inexpensive and last forever. -----------------------------------------
Next 'Techniques & Tools' will be posted on Sunday, October 16th