Posted by: chris in Painting on
Nov 20, 2008
If you happened to be at the Photokina 2008 show in Cologne, Germany or the Photoplus 2008 show in New York City, you might have seen Jim Hull's paintings featured in demonstrations by Hewlett-Packard. HP was showing off their new printer technology and software marketed towards fine-art reproduction. Show attendees were seen to scratch their heads as they tried to figure out which painting was an original and which was hot off the printer.
Photographer David Saffir was on hand to explain the process and highlight the advantages of HP printers and archival quality inks and paper. All prints sold on this web site are created using HP technology and are of excellent quality with vibrant colors and accurate reproduction.
We've heard nothing but compliments from people who have our prints including one who wondered if he was sent the original painting by mistake. Get one today-we know you will be impressed.
The idea of coherence relates to an instant tuning together of all of the parts of a painting. Nature as we know is not automatically coherent. It is chaotic at the visual level. It is therefore one of the key objectives of the watercolor artist to use the concept of coherence to create a 'whole' unified painting. Therefore to create a 'forever painting' the idea of choerence must necessarily play a dominant role. Many paintings seem coherent on one level but fail to meet that standard on all levels. It is not enough to merely use technique to force coherence at the painting stage. It must be built in at the design, story and painting levels. These to me represent the three most important areas for a watercolor painter to use. It is much like the design build concepts used in the construction industry. First we design and then we build or render. To have too little thought on the front end(design/ story leaves too much to chance. While chance plays an important and much recognized role in watercolor painting it should not be the principle design strategy in an intentional painting. In a non intentional spontaneous painting one could lauch forth with 'chance' as the key strategy but in the end the artist must bring coherence into play if the painting is to succeed.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Aug 26, 2008
You can't start with nature and end up with a forever painting. You will not find that 'something more' in nature as it is only a symbol for beauty that you seek. As a symbol it can point toward the higher but does not contain it. That is why so many watercolor paintings fail to reach the 'forever painting' level. They are nice renderings but contain less and not more than nature. They become of a symbol of the symbol. They are lower and not higher because the artist started with the wrong point of view. To reach the higher level requires a differnt point of view. This is a point of view that comes from within the artist and is imposed upon the subject matter. Therefore don't look for or expect to find your 'something more' in nature, or for that matter any part of the material world. Look within and there you will find the hidden treasure that you have been seeking.
Carrying the message 'strongly' in a painting is one of the key goals of a watercolor painter. One should never struggle too long over a weak depiction. The key is to begin over if the inital attempt appears to be too weak because in painting the stage must be set early for success.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Aug 11, 2008
Rodin once said that the artist had to recognize and point out things of significance. Some think that the artist selects them, points them out and reveals the inner truth of the 'significant' to the world. Some think that the artists job is to show the significance of all things to the world. I agree with the latter and think it is a far greater challenge but more rewarding in the end.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Aug 08, 2008
As C.S. Lewis once put it, "Nature is only the sketch." It is what we see as an image of the beauty that lies behind it. It points to the far off territory beyond from whence it all arises. It is the beauty of this far off territory that the watercolorist seeks to point toward. To suggest in some poetic fashion that true beauty lies beyond the surface of nature is possible in watercolor and the painting structures utilized by the watercolorist.
Posted by: Jim in Painting Technique on
Aug 06, 2008
For an audience to believe that you have created a forever painting you have to build in complexity. This is somehting that was, not only known, but widely utilized in past centuries. When painting was a primary mode of entertainment it was imperative that the artist build in levels and depths of meaning in order to have a painting stand up to the scrutiny of repeated viewings. If the viewers always felt that there were more hidden meanings than could be comprehended in an intial viewing, they would be drawn back to the piece again and again. Today we seem to have lost the ability and desire to build such complexity into our watercolor paintings. While design and color can contribute to feeling and meaning they do not allow the viewere to continually explore and find new and different meanings hidden within the framed work. They are significance is primarily emotional. We need to begin once more to explore this idea of complexity as a part of the design process in order to create more memorable works.
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
Jun 16, 2008
The captioned could be a mantra for anyone wishing to create forever paintings. For what else can be gained from just creating ones that are 'Nice'? A question to ponder for any artist aspiring to create something new and meaningful. Will your painting stir or will it simply be used to adorn a wall?
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
May 20, 2008
C.S. Lewis once said that in order to make progress in any matter sometimes the most productive way is to begin over. I have found that once I am on a pathway and have a fundemental set of protocols (in use and that work) I have a hard time breaking out and doing anything truly creative.
Instead I continue to pursue the same methods with little change in the outcomes. I paint alot of nice pictures but nothing truly great. I find myself stuck!
A couple of dozen years ago I took some lessons and the painter I was studying with had me begin with the color wheel. I didn,t understand at the time but this was to give me a fresh start. It was to give me another chance to begin again from the start and to open new opportunties to growth and creativity.
It seems to be a painterly approach to contemplation of the art. I think now that the more times you start over the more chance you have to create something truly new that has the potential to be a Forever Painting. (I now do a new color wheel once a week!)
Posted by: Jim in Philosophy, Painting on
May 18, 2008
A painting that shows us, or makes us feel, more of what the world is like is one that can be considered forever. It is the difference between surface representation and essence.
The world is much more complex and interesting than it may appear. If we are only aware of what is represented by the obvious we will never be able to appreciate the complexity and interconnectiveness/ interdependent nature of all of existance.
A 'Forever Painting' seeks to take us below the surface and to show the richness of the relationahips and complexities of our world. This is true of abstract as well as representational painting.
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