Thursday, November 26, 2020

DPW Spotlight Interview: Priscilla Olson

Each week we will spotlight a different DPW artist who will give away one of their best paintings. To enter to win Priscilla's painting "Morning Light" go to Daily Paintworks and click on the link at the top of the page announcing their interview.

From Priscilla's DPW Gallery Page:

Biography

Priscilla Olson grew up in Midland, Michigan, but spent her professional life in the Chicago area as a commercial animator and plein air painter.  Since returning to Midland in 2011, she has been participating in painting evets around the state, exhibiting, selling and receiving awards for her work.  Priscilla continues to be an active plein air painter and enjoys sharing and promoting this activity throughout the Great Lakes Bay Region.

Artist's Statement

I like wondering - not so much knowing - about the subject.  It is curiosity that compels me to choose my themes.  My paintings represent the feeling of anticipation and mystery that the subject evokes in me.  I enjoy viewing art that poses open questions.  My goal is to create work that invites you to imagine.

Tell us a bit about how you first started painting:

As a little girl, I got lots of encouragement and praise for my drawings and paintings, so I kept at it!  I’ve always been involved in making art, in one way or another, but it wasn’t until I became a professional animator that I really learned to draw competently.  My real preference is for painting, and I started developing my skills in that medium while working professionally as an animator.  While I loved and valued the experience of working as part of a team (in animation) I have come to enjoy the solitary activity of painting.

Morning Light
(click to view)

Enter to win by clicking on the link at the top of the DPW home page announcing Priscilla's interview.

Did you have any stops and starts in your painting career?

Not really.  I started to dedicate my off-work hours to painting and drawing early on, when I started in the animation industry, and, now that I’ve left that profession, I get to paint more!

What mediums and genres have you experimented with?

In the animation industry, I worked with all sorts of media: modeling clays for stop motion, and a variety of drawing media for the less conventional spots that we did (before digital).

I enjoy sculpting as an exercise for understanding form.  I’ve painted in watercolor, acrylic, oil and pastel.  I can’t take pastel, because putting it to paper gives me the same feeling as when I start to bite into a peach.  I can hardly stand the texture!  My favored medium is oil paint.  I like painting people in an environment, but not so much portraits.  I like painting still lifes, but mostly for practice.  Landscape is where it’s at, for me.

Tucked Away
(click to view)

Which ones have “stuck” and which ones have fallen away?

Oil paint is by far my favorite.  I concentrate on this medium, and try not to get enchanted by other media.  There is already so very much to learn!  I have done a fair amount of research into making the particular kind of surface I want, and right now I’m in a place where I’m just concentrating on the content and technique of making compelling and interesting images.

Which ones are you looking forward to exploring?

I’m interested in doing more figurative work at some point. In oil paint.

Bird's Eye View
(click to view)

Who or what inspires you most?

All of nature, mainly.  But, in addition, I spark to the writings of John Ruskin, John Carlton, Harold Speed, and several others from long ago.

I also get much inspiration from studying the landscape drawings of the Renaissance Dutch masters and others.  I have found good reference from old museum catalogs in used book shops and, now, online.

What techniques work to ensure that you make time for your art?

I try to keep my mornings untouched by any other concerns.

At Grandpa Tiny's #2
(click to view)

How do you generally arrive at ideas for your paintings?

I paint outside frequently.  I decide on a destination, then go there to paint.  Sometimes it’s difficult to find a view that sparks my imagination, but that’s just part of it.  So I’ll focus on a spot that may not interest me, just to get going. The challenge then becomes how to make the scene work on canvas.  Other times, it seems like the painting just appears in stages as I look on!

How do you keep art “fresh”. What techniques have helped you avoid burnout and keep your work vibrant and engaging?

I stay interested by reading, doing exercises, sometimes copying a small part of someone’s painting that I admire in an attempt to find out what it is like to make this stroke, mix that color, etc.

I do studies, where the commitment is less, but the likelihood of understanding something new is greater.

Local Color
(click to view)

What do you feel you are learning about right now as an artist?

I’m currently learning what’s been studied regarding the genesis of art by early hominids.

What makes you happiest about your art?

Painting when I know I’m going in the right direction.  And to have a painting that I did resonate with a collector!

Violet and Lily
(click to view)

Thanks, Priscilla!

© 2020 Sophie Marine

Thursday, November 19, 2020

DPW Spotlight Interview: Samira Yanushkova

Each week we will spotlight a different DPW artist who will give away one of their best paintings. To enter to win Samira's painting "Still life onion with frame" go to Daily Paintworks and click on the link at the top of the page announcing their interview.

From Samira's DPW Gallery Page:

I am watercolor artist
I want to share the news. I won the international competition the "Golden Brush" in Turkey 2020. More info here 

Exhibitions:
2018 🇺🇦IWS Ukraine, international Watercolor Exhibition
2018 🇨🇿IWS Czech Republic
2019 🇲🇲Myanmar 1st International Watercolor Art Festival Myanmar “Peaceful Golden Heritage 2019”
2019 🇻🇳 Vietnam Cambodia "3ª International Watercolor Biennale 2019 “Watercolor & Peace”
2019 🇷🇴Romania Bucharest IWS Romania 1st International Watercolor Festival
2019 🇮🇹Italia Fabriano
2019 🇮🇹Italia UrbinoInAcquerello

Tell us a bit about how you first started painting.

I was born into a family of artists, so my toys were pencils and paints. I have been drawing since early childhood. During my school years, I helped my parents do their art work: I painted portraits in oils, drew cartoons, and developed street advertising.

Still life onion with frame
(click to view)

Enter to win by clicking on the link at the top of the DPW home page announcing Samira's interview.

Did you have any stops and starts in your painting career? 

There was a short stop after the baby was born.

What mediums and genres have you experimented with?

Yes, I tried to work in different techniques and genres: Sculpture, ceramics, stained glass, engraving, cartoons, glass engraving, oil, illustration, abstraction.

Meeting place
(click to view)

Which ones have "stuck" and which ones have fallen away?

Realism, watercolor, drawing. They have disappeared at the moment: oil, sculpture, but I am still interested in these materials.

Which ones are you looking forward to exploring?

Oil, sculpture.

Onions in a cauldron original watercolor painting
(click to view)

Who or what inspires you most?

Inspired by sunlight on objects and faces, inspired by nature combined with watercolors.

What does procrastination look like for you?

In my case, this is perfectionism. I want to do the job perfectly and I'm afraid to ruin it. My husband inspires and supports me and gives me confidence, so this condition rarely occurs.

Cityscape watercolor original painting
(click to view)

What techniques work to ensure that you make time for your art?

A clean workplace, new art materials, exhibitions, ideas in my head make me go to the studio and draw.

How do you generally arrive at ideas for your paintings?

Being in nature, at the sea, in the garden, I look at the forms, follow the light and imagine how it can be depicted in watercolors, make sketches, ask questions and try to find the answer.

Landscape of Forester's House
(click to view)

How do you keep art "fresh?" What techniques have helped you avoid burnout and keep your work vibrant and engaging?

Freshness of art "Positive!" I enjoy simple things like a child. I try to see only advantages in everything. I love the sun and rain alike. I have a very cheerful family, she makes me smile and see the world in bright colors. With my creativity, I want to tell the world that it is beautiful.

What do you feel you are learning about right now as an artist?

Myself, trying to understand who I am and why I am here.

Metal Milk Can original watercolor painting
(click to view)

What makes you happiest about your art?

A viewer who experiences what I wanted to convey in the picture.

Thanks, Samira!

© 2020 Sophie Marine

Thursday, November 5, 2020

DPW Spotlight Interview: Nata Shray

Each week we will spotlight a different DPW artist who will give away one of their best paintings. To enter to win Nata's painting "Vermont Fall" go to Daily Paintworks and click on the link at the top of the page announcing their interview.

From Nata's DPW Gallery Page:

Painting provides a path for me to express my emotions through a myriad of colors, textures, abstract shapes and forms. I work periodically in various techniques and like to experiment with different materials. I frequently throw paint at my canvas and let my creativity go free. Through my art I hope to move and inspire others, make them smile and encourage them to pursue their own dreams. (click to read more)

Tell us a bit about how you first started painting.

It so happened that I am an architect-designer by training, although all my life from my earliest childhood I dreamed of being an artist. I started drawing as soon as I could hold a pencil in my hand, probably at the age of one and a half. My mother kept my early works, which show a bright temperament and a penchant for impressionist style.

Did you have any stops and starts in your painting career?

I started painting constantly in 2013. Before that, I worked as an interior designer. I paint pictures every day and I'm not going to stop. My daily routine is what gives me a constant flow of energy. Besides, now I sell paintings and this is my income.

Vermont Fall
(click to view)

Enter to win by clicking on the link at the top of the DPW home page announcing Nata's interview.

What mediums and genres have you experimented with?

I experimented with oil paints, acrylics, pastels, and watercolors. I love painting landscapes. I love nature and travel. I have lived in Thailand for many years and the nature of Asia inspired me to create. And now I live in a very beautiful mountain country of Turkey. I've never been to the United States, but I want to visit beautiful national parks. For materials I like oil paints, watercolors, dry pastels, but also sometimes I paint with acrylics and oil pastels. Changing materials gives me the opportunity to experiment and not get bored.

Which ones have "stuck" and which ones have fallen away?

This is a cyclical process. Something temporarily disappears, and then sticks again. It's like the spirals of a galaxy. I love color in painting, so all the materials that give me bright colors are suitable for me.

Which ones are you looking forward to exploring?

Every time I dive into a material or story, I explore something new even in familiar things. I would like to explore pastels more deeply. Try professional brands of pastels and crayons that are made by hand. Crayons that are made by hand are very expensive, my goal is to buy them and try to paint a picture with them.

Who or what inspires you most?

Most of all, I am inspired by travel and nature. Hiking. I also have a video blog on YouTube and I am very inspired to communicate with other artists. I've been doing live broadcasts lately, we talk a lot, and it gives me inspiration for creativity.

Hawaii Beach
(click to view)

What does procrastination look like for you?

I'm a very happy person because I don't have procrastination periods. If I have forced breaks, I look forward to picking up the paint again and starting to create.

What techniques work to ensure that you make time for your art?

Since I only work as an artist, I spend my full time working on art. I draw pictures, meditate, and contemplate. My time is totally saturated with art. Painting is my main activity, so I always have enough time for it.

Birch Tree
(click to view)

How do you generally arrive at ideas for your paintings? 

I love National Geographic films very much, they inspire me to create and give me ideas for paintings.

How do you keep art "fresh?" What techniques have helped you avoid burnout and keep your work vibrant and engaging?

I meditate and do energy practices. They feed me and charge me with creative energy.

Tuscany Lavender Fields
(click to view)

What do you feel you are learning about right now as an artist?

In the last year, I switched from large formats to small picture formats. That's why I registered an account on Daily Paintworks. Now this is my study of the possibilities of miniature painting. Recently, I began to draw with a wide flat brush in the sketch technique. It turns out very quickly and effectively.

What makes you happiest about your art?

Painting for me is everything: the Meaning, and the Path and the Goal. This is my meditation, understanding Myself. This is life itself, because drawing for me, like breathing, is a necessity. This process is magical for me. At the moment, I sell only finished paintings.

Taking a brush in my hands, I plunge into a special state of consciousness - artists call it the Creative Flow. That's why I like to sell ready-made paintings more, it is in the stream that really strong paintings are born.

Red Poppies
(click to view)

Thanks, Nata!

© 2020 Sophie Marine