Jo Castillo's Art Newsletter - May 2009 Issue 2
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Jo Castillo
May 28, 2009, 12:42:26 PM5/28/09
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Hi all,
Wow, it has been a month already. I have accomplished quite a bit, not necessarily all art. Gene and I spent almost a week away from home in Oklahoma City for the Big 12 Baseball Tournament. The Longhorns won, by the way.
Traveling takes time away from making art, but not from learning and practicing. I always sketch when possible and we visited a great gallery in Oklahoma City. I wanted to see some real life pastels by Clive R. Tyler. http://clivetyler.com/ He does western scenes. I like his style of including animals and wildlife in his landscapes. He doesn’t include small details and does plein air painting. Gene says some of them don’t look finished (he likes more detail), but I found them appealing.
I found his work in a notice from Cynthia Daniel Wolf, Adelante! Gallery. http://www.cynthiadanielwolf.com/ Cynthia had a show of his work in her gallery. It was a great exhibit and Cynthia was friendly and helpful. She is a photographer and painter of miniature pastel paintings. Tyler will be at her place in the fall for a workshop. It is always inspiring to look at paintings in real life and visit with other artists.
On road trips I get to take many photos and view and learn about different parts of the country. It is interesting to see how the environment alters the way we live, the different houses, buildings, bridges, etc. It is a chance to discover how the different atmosphere affects the light and colors around us.
It takes a completely different palette (choice of colors of paint or pastels) to paint the blue open skies of the high desert in New Mexico or the humid saturated skies in this central Texas area. The skies in New Mexico and where it is dry are deep, clear blue. The sky here is usually a little more gray with all the moisture in the air. The more humid climates have much more green which is a challenge to paint. When everything is all green you have to really look to see the variations and put them together in a pleasing way.
When it is cloudy, color appears more saturated. You can see that when the grass is wet, it looks darker and richer. Look at your yard the next time you water or it rains and see for yourself. If you get a chance go to an art museum or gallery and see how different artists handle these situations. It is so much better to see art work in person, but you can surf the internet as well.
Painting out in the fresh air, plein air, is a great way to put these discoveries to the test. Artists have to work fast when outside as the light changes quickly. The Austin Pastel Society sponsored a paint out in Manchaca, South Austin, this month where I got a chance to work on those greens and overcast sky here. You can read about our day and see the painting I did on my blog here
I’m working on a commission of saguaros. Deadlines are looming for two shows with the Austin Pastel Society and of course we are getting ready to go to New Mexico for my annual show at the Old Timers in Magdalena. All the paintings there will be of the area and southwest in general. I bought frames from Mexico and ASW. Gene is framing and they will all look great.
You will find more information and see my work on my web page and blog where you can see how I work. You might find a piece there that you can’t live without! Keep in touch and I hope to see you somewhere. Send me an e-mail with questions or ideas. I love talking art .... well I just love talking!
Until next month ..
Jo :-)
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