Monday, October 22, 2012

It's Arrived!!! I'm published!!!

I just received my copies of "Health Connection" magazine. It is very cool and strange to see one of my paintings on its cover.
It is such a validation of the work I have put in to learning to paint. I also know I have so much farther I can go. It is one more event to inspire and encourage my continued growth.
If this is your first visit to my blog, thanks for stopping by. I hope you find it interesting and if you are considering painting, I hope it will inspire you to give it a try. You will love it!!

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Really? It's been that long since I blogged?

Life gets so busy and time flies by so fast. There is so much to do its hard to take time to write about. Or maybe it is that I don't really think I have enough to say that is interesting and people would actually read it. Whatever the case, I have downloaded an ap for my phone so I can blog on the go. Excuse my typing errors and autocorrects.

I'm including my most recent paintings in this post. This summer I have taken thousands of pictures, many of which inspire me. Some will drive me into action and I will have a need to paint them as soon as I can. Others linger and almost haunt me. They stir in my brain as I imagine the possibilities.

I'm not sure I will ever be able to paint every inspirational scene or object or person I encounter, but the journey and the experiences that come with it make me keep searching and experiencing .

Monday, May 7, 2012

New Opportunities-Idea Overload 

A freind of mine recently introduced me to a wonderful organization called The Art Guild of Menomonee Falls. I joined and it looks like I will be offering a Saturday Beginner Watercolor class at their downtown Menomonee Falls Gallery. I am very excited and hope to get a good turn out. When I first started painting I can tell you I had a lot of fear. I am hoping I can help beginners overcome that fear. If you have any interest in Watercolor at all, please consider signing up. Just shoot me a message and I will get you details. Or watch my Facebook page and this blog for details. 

Switching gears.Right now I have 6 paintings going at once. That's a lot, even for me. But the idea's keep coming. As my skill improves I realize that it is not my hands that create but my eyes. Seeing the way the lights and the darks work together to create the mood, interest and beauty that could never exist without the other. 
I have been making it a point to look at something that I see everyday and really take the time to see it. It could be a simple as my coffee cup. See the way the light creates hot spots on the rim. Notices an unexpected highlight on the shadow side. Understand how the computer monitor looks in the curved reflection. how the objects on the desk change the shadows and colors reflected back in the various tones on the mug. I may not ever paint the mug but I believe this act of seeing will help on every painting I work on going forward. It is this act of seeing that fuels my fire and keeps my list of "Things to Paint" growing beyond what my life allows. This act of seeing also spreads to people. I love painting people. But I want my paintings to grow and be much more than they have ever been. I want see not only the physical features and record them but see the person and spirit within. So that with just a glance the viewer can feel who that person is. So their spirit comes alive off the paper. It's a tall order. I'm not sure I have made that happen yet. But that's the cool thing about watercolor and art and painting and life; we can try to do better tomorrow. 

May you be the highlight that brings beauty to someone else's shadow. 

Lance 

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Rejected

Wow, what a negative title huh? So far 2012 hasn't been a year to stroke my artistic ego. I really debated on saying anything about the fact that my paintings have been rejected from the 2 national shows I entered. But the reality of it is that they have.

I think about it and I hear from really talented well established artists who have a whole alphabet of designations behind their name; "Don't feel bad, I still get rejected sometimes." I guess that should make a person feel better right?

I wanted to blog about it because I feel there are a lot of ways this "art thing" can drive me and my life. I have always loved young people and helping them learn. Especially young artists who I hope will not give up on their art like I had for years. I think I have come far and these rejections are just one more bump in the road. I think it is good for young people to see the bumps. For them to see that I didn't wake up one morning and I was suddenly a talented artist. I have used my formula for an artist before: Inspiration + Perspiration= Natural Talent.

I always laugh when people say I have a natural ability. If it is so natural, why is it taking so long to get good.

I have a number of Facebook friends who are very talented artists. Many of whom have recently announced their acceptance into national shows. I have to admit for a short time there is a sting. Then I look at their work. I really look and I see. I see that I have a ways to go to get that special difference. That style or unique quality to everything I do. I'm not quite sure how I will get there yet or how long it will take. But I refuse to let my artist journey end.

Blogging about rejection may seem negative on the surface. But I guess in this art world I have chosen to immerse myself in, it is part of the territory. My hope is by blogging about my rejection there may be another artist who decides to try one more painting too.

Tisch

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Painting Memories!

I talk a lot about what inspires my art. With my most recent painting I found there is a difference between inspiration and a calling to paint something.
When I grew up I was fortunate to have the best childhood a kid could ask for. Of course at the time I thought we were too poor, my parents were too strict, and we never did anything fun. But there isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about a friend or neighbor from my childhood, or silently chuckle about a memory of growing up on Schaefer Street in Appleton.
We were a tight group; the Ciskes, Vissers, Huevelmans, Marx's, Christiansons and many more. There were kids everywhere and we played and fought and cared for each other. Our parents had no problem keeping all of us out of trouble. It was a close knit group. I think is tough to find these days.
October of 2011 the father of one of my best friends passed away. At first it was a bitter reminder of losing my own father. But when I looked at the pictures at the wake and the smile in his eyes in those pictures; my childhood came flooding back to me.
And then, I was called by them to paint his portrait. My memories of Mr. Ciske range from getting yelled at for bring junk back to their house because myself, and a few of his sons, couldn't believe the neighbors were throwing something so good away; to playing sheepshead and drinking beer.
I needed to paint MY memory of Big Jim. And I wanted so bad for his family to know how much I value my life in our neighborhood and all they contributed to my awesome childhood.
Call it inspiration, but in some cases art goes beyond that. It is the way an artist expresses what is in their heart and releases a piece of their soul.
Below is my painting of Big Jim.