Planning

I have been prepping my yard and garden to plant the last few weeks. Could have a lot to do with the fact my parents will be visiting soon and I am surely my father's child because he does the same before they have visitors. I pulled out an old sketchbook to draw out my plans and saw all my old sketches. Preparing is so important when it comes to many things but with art, it is extremely important.

My order in telling you these things is clearly off but, I need to tell you the importance of sketching out an idea. Starting just on the canvas you will get frustrated trying to work out problems on your final product. Then, it will not look the way you want in too. You saw that happen when I was trying to paint the orange slice in my video. I didn't prepare and tried to work out the problem and it was a huge mess. So, always start with a sketch even if you feel silly doing so, the problem will not seem as big later when you work it out there.

I have many sketchbooks all over the place. My sister just told me she found some of my old ones when cleaning out her old bedroom closet. How they got there I have no clue but, that just goes to show you they are everywhere. Its funny the memories they hold from different projects I have done. Currently, I am using one that has my plans from my senior show I did in college. Even then I planned out my layout of where to put things. That same sketchbook has sketches I did in a class with one of my favorite professors who died not too long after I graduated. It is sad to be reminded of his passing but, nice to remember how much I learned in his class.

Anyways....I wanted to remind you to pull out your sketchbooks and sketch out those ideas you have swimming in your head so, you can see if they are worth pursuing. Even work out the problems they may have in accomplishing on a larger scale and how to do so. Have fun and maybe even go out and sketch outside. Maybe just maybe those sketches might be worth something one day when you are famous!

I will leave you with one of my old sketches

Also please visit my Etsy Shop and Twitter @BrennaDaileyArt

Orlan

Today, I want to share with you an artist that I did research on in college for a class that was about the body and how it was represented throughout art history.  I will do my best to keep my opinions to myself as I present her work to you.  For those of you who know me personally probably know what my true opinion is on this sort of artwork.  Which I guess a lot of people could debate whether this is art at all.  I just want you to know what is out there in terms of art and how people choose to create it.  If you would like, you can leave your opinions in the comments below or talk to me directly.  I did a lot of research on this artist and know a bit about her work.  Also, I want to start this too by saying graphic images and content are ahead so please use caution in your reading in case you have a weak stomach.

Orlan,  She is what some might call an extreme performing artist.  She has taken her views on feminism, body modification, and performing art to the next level.  In the 1990's she hit the scene big by re-defining her image....literally by changing it through plastic surgery.  She wanted to take parts of famous artworks and combine them onto her own body.  While she was getting this done, she let you watch and donate to help pay for the process. "Each of Orlan's operations is designed to alter a specific feature. Supplying surgeons with computer- generated images of the nose of a famous, unattributed School of Fontainebleau sculpture of Diana, the mouth of Boucher's Europa, the forehead of Leonardo's Mona Lisa, the chin of Botticelli's Venus and the eyes of Gerome's Pysche as guides to her transformation," (source article 2)   Like many artists have chosen different surfaces to create work, Orlan has chosen her own body to do so by reconstructing it to create the ultimate, permanent work of art.

Orlan used her plastic surgeries to make a statement on feminism and the female form throughout art history by showing how men have created this idealistic image of women.  She wanted to transform herself into what men have created in artwork to show how different it is from the norm.  Like the Greek artist, Zeuxis, who took different parts of the body from multiple models to create the "ideal" woman, so did Orlan....literally not in a painting like Zeuxis did.  (source article 2).

Currently, Orlan works in digital prints and mixed media.  She is in her 60's and still practices art in Los Angeles, New York and France (where she is from).  She has a very post-modern view of the world of art and uses art to commentate on it.

Below are images of the paintings and artwork she has taken from to create her image.

Diane

Mona Lisa

Birth of Venus

The Rape of Europa

Orlan as the Bride of Frankstein

Orlan currently

I find myself thinking of Orlan everytime I see Lady Gaga.  Maybe because both kind of look alike and have used extreme public examples of their opinions on life.  The two articles listed below are the articles I used as references for this post.

Article 1

Article 2

I wanted to share Orlan with you so you can see what art is out there.  It is not just beautiful paintings and unique works of art but commentary on life and done in different ways that some might agree with or not, it is what is being done in the world of art.  Please share your comments below or you can discuss with me in person what you think of this artist.  Again, I might warn you that in the articles I have listed are more "R" rated content that I chose not to share in my blog.  Please proceed with caution.  

St. Patrick's Day

Being very Irish and having a family that is VERY Irish how could I not celebrate today!?  My maiden name is "Kelly" which as you know...is Irish.  I used to think I could get away with not wearing green on St. Patrick's Day because well...their is a green called "Kelly Green" so I used to say "I have a green named after me, so I do not need to wear green".  A little conceded I know but hey, I'm Irish and today is the day my family celebrates for being Irish.  Now that I am no longer a "Kelly" (only by name, my family is still my family) I need to wear green.  So as I type this, I have on my green shirt for the day and my son is crawling under my feet wearing his green shirt as well.

I almost forgot today was Tuesday, I kept thinking about it's St. Patrick's Day! But alas...it is Tuesday and I owe you a post.  But being the day that it is, lets talk about GREEN!

Green as you know now is a secondary color and it's complement is red.  It hangs out with the cool colors, blue and violet.  If you have ever painted with green, you know that the actual paint is a strong pigment and can stain EVERYTHING!  According to Wikipedia (the most reliable internet source....NOT but who doesn't look up things on it just the same) the word "green" comes from the Middle English and Anglo-Saxon word "grene", from the same Germanic root as the words "grass" and "grow".  Spring is just around the corner...literally its this Friday, we will start to see a lot of green outside.  Green is a symbol of life so use a little more in your art to show plants coming alive and new growth beginning.

So, go have some Corned Beef and Cabbage with a side of potatoes to celebrate today (mine is cooking as I type) and enjoy the green that is coming back into our lives this time of year!

Finger Painting

After one of the worst drives home yesterday, I nearly forgot today was Tuesday and I needed to write a blog.  We drove for 10 hours and 9 hours of that was in the rain.  I can not tell you how much I am enjoying a sunny warm day today after 9 hours of rain and cold weather.  On top of that my poor little boy got sick while we drove, which I am pretty sure was from the drive.  I am glad to be home and not going anywhere for awhile.  Today is going to be filled with laundry and recharging from a drive like that!

On my twitter I have been seeing some really neat articles on different things in the art world that I have been re-posting so be sure to check that out.(@BrennaDaileyArt)  But today, what I was going to share with you is an artist I stumbled across on my "suggested things" on Pintrest.  A woman who took finger painting to a whole new level.  When we were little finger painting was just a fun summer activity that always resulted in a mess but a lot of fun.  Even now I love the idea of getting paint between my fingers while I play with it and create art.  This artist, Judith Braun, has taken it to that next step and made what used to be a mess into something beautiful.

Can you imagine the time and effort it would take to create something this large?  Just gorgeous.  Recently I have been trying to get footprints of my son and we have had to do this while he is in the bath and both my husband and I have to work quickly so he doesn't try to eat the paint.  I will boldly make the assumption that Judith Braun does not have that problem when she does pieces like this.  

Here is the website you can see more of this mural: Judith Braun Finger Painting

It is amazing to see the work other artists are creating out there.  Make sure to keep an eye out for new and unique art.  Learning about other artists is the best way to better yourself and keep ideas freshly coming at all times.  I hope I have helped you today be the best artist you can be with introducing you to a new one.  Have a great week and enjoy this spring weather we are finally getting!

Pointillism

So no painting video this week...but still a blog post!  I did a painting this week but I will post a picture later.  It is a gift so I need to wait until I give it before I can share with the world what it looks like. The weather looks like it is finally getting warmer and the days will stay lighter longer so I can finally climb out of my home to see the sun.  I feel like I have been hibernating these last few months, trying to keep my little cub warm.  We are going to visit family this coming weekend and go to one of my high school friend's weddings.  Most of my friends have been married so I am finally coming to the end of going to weddings and soon my friends can have some babies and join me in my lack of sleep but complete mommy bliss.  I can't wait!

As usual I was trying to find what I would write about this week.  I thought I can write again about Art Therapy because I read a great article about it this week but thought nah...y'all need something new.  So my chromcast gave me my answer as it scrolls through its random pictures it displays on my television.  George Seurat and pointillism.  Pointillism defined by Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary is:

Pointillism: a style of painting in which a picture is formed from small dots of color.

Artists who use this technique are well educated in the art of color theory.  They use certain colors side by side to enhance another color.  And they also let the eye mix the color instead of doing it with the paint.  So putting yellow and red next to each other will let the eye mix it into orange instead of pre-mixing it on the palette. Here is one of George Seurat, a famous artist who used pointillism, more well known works:

Sunday in the Park Grande-Jatte by George Seurat

You might know this famous painting from one of two places....The musical "Sunday in the Park with George" which is a great musical where at the end all the characters line up to create this painting OR the iconic scene in the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" here is the scene:

Ferris Bueller's Museum Scene

Pointillism is one of my favorite styles of painting because of the use of color theory and softness it creates to the image.  Also I have a lot of respect for anyone that works with this technique because the amount of patience it must take...I just do not have that patience.  

I hope everyone is enjoying their week.  Do not forget to change your clocks this weekend.  Remember Fall-you fall back an hour, Spring-you spring forward an hour.  So we will loose one hour of sleep...so try to go to bed early.  But if you are anything like me....you'll stay up trying to finish watching the newest season of House of Cards.  

Also do not forget to check out my Etsy shop:Brenna Dailey Art Shop

and my twitter: @BrennaDaileyArt  I posted that article about Art Therapy if you want to read it.

Have a great week and remember I am here to help you be the best artist you can be and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask in the comments below.