Common Problems suffered by artists
These problems occur very easily in an artist's work. They're problematic because they limit the effect of the painting for the viewer, they limit the artist's ability to express what they are capable of, and they will crucify an artist's professional career before it can begin. Even if you do not want to live off your art, solving these problems will lift your satisfaction into undreamed of levels.
The main thing is your satisfaction as an artist, so we include these problems here so you can check your work to see where your technique is failing you. There are many other problems, of course, yet these are a good starting point. We're not including them to be critical - as mentioned, these are very common and easily occur - in fact, many art teachers teach these very techniques!
Don't worry. They're just as easy to remedy. Advanced technique is also easy to learn, but unfortunately it's rarely taught.
See if you can recognise any of these limiting effects happening in your work.
Audio Commentary - Listen as you browse.
Introduction:
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People commonly think of the sky as being "behind" their subject. Amateur painters thereby paint the sky first, and put everything else on top of it. In reality the "sky" is all around us. It is the atmosphere in a painting, and an equal part of the whole image. With advanced technique, artists have an entirely different approach, and develop the sky along with other elements of the painting.
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Here are three different types of paintings using advanced technique where the sky is included in the creation of the overall image:
  
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In attempting to get detail, thicker paint is painted over thin. The eye feels unsatisfied by the flat blue here.
Viewers are left with the feeling the artist didn't much care for the artistic qualities of the sky, in this example.
The thicker paint has energy, the thinner paint has none. This creates a dissonance, and leaves the viewer feeling uneasy.
Same problem, using the knife
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It's extremely easy to suffer thick and thin problems when using the knife.
Disproportionate texture like this is a sure sign of amateur technique.
Over-use of the knife
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It's very easy to whip up an image with the knife. The canvas is covered quickly, and all that paint looks luscious - and presto! there's a painting.
As with all of these examples, sometimes these applications are entirely justified.
It becomes problematic if the artist wants to achieve anything more than just this.
Over-blending
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That gorgeous soft blending is irresistible, isn't it. It's such a lovely thing to do, feels just wonderful, that we keep on doing and doing it.
And there goes the quality in the painting. The viewer feels let down - what could this painting have been? They ask. Where did the image go?
And it can be like eating too much chocolate. A little is exciting, too much can make the viewer feel ill.
Paint too thin
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That thick paint is hard to handle, isn't it? Hard to control? Gets out of hand easily?
When the paint is too thin, it's a sure sign the artist was frightened of the very material they're using!
The viewer is left craving more.
Trying to paint in detail
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Ah..detail. The world is full of detail, and we want to capture it. So we use smaller and smaller brushes, right? Or we dab the paint on with the pointy ends of the bristles?
This is a sure sign of amateur technique.
You'll see how to get intricate and amazing detail with advanced technique - using huge brushes!
Flat or lifeless reflections
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The art teacher said you just drag the brush downwards, vertically, and you have reflections? So easy, isn't it.
Reflections are extremely complex, and very magical.
You need advanced technique to capture the myriad of things going on, when light hits the surface of water. You need to be able to see into the water, too. And you may need to see the bottom of the pond or stream or beach. Lots more - you get it with advanced technique, and it's a whole lot more fun.
Dead spots
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This painting is full of technical problems, actually. But can you see the dreaded dead spot? A dead spot is where the paint has been devolved of its energy - it's no different from the paint that covers the walls of your home.
Artists can create whole paintings using dead spots next to each other, and while an image might come about, that artist is surely feeling very unsatisfied.
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There it is. That's a dead spot.
There is no life, no art, no magic, no uniqueness, no spirit, no need for a viewer to look at that - they can see much the same on their walls at home.
Advanced technique is the antithesis of the dreaded dead spot!
Stiff and lifeless sea
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Ok, it need not be a sea - it could be a waterfall or foliage in the wind... . But when something is so incredibly moving, and moves incredibly, to render it stiff and lifeless serves what purpose?
Artists particularly have problems with the sea. Only advanced technique can capture its magic - or, at times, more than in real life.
That stiff, dull, lifelessness, is a sure sign the artist is not going to keep painting - frustration will get the better.
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The solutions?
These two DVD Triple Packs products provide far more than the solutions to the above common problems. Please click on "More information" to see a full list of what the Packs provide you. Below are some Frequently Asked Questions about our world-wide bestseller - click on the question to reveal the answer.
Fine Art Techniques DVD Triple Pack
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This DVD is expensive. Why?
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You will discover techniques here that NO OTHER teacher or DVD can give you.
You won't be able to get the information in this DVD Pack anywhere else. This is the only place where you can see EVERY one of the Fine Art techniques explained for you in comprehensive detail.
You will need to see these if you are to create the paintings you are properly capable of.
This particular DVD Pack has taken nearly ten years to develop, and a full nine months in production. We used three cameras, filmed in TV broadcast quality, and left absolutely nothing out.
Get this DVD Pack and you will have more information about CREATING paintings the WAY YOU WANT to than you'd get in a three year University Course. How do we know? Because third year University art students have come to Robert pleading "Teach me to Paint !"
Yes, it's expensive compared with other DVD prices. However, there is absolutely no comparison with what you get.
The information in this DVD Pack will save you money, save you time, save you effort and save you frustrations.
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There aren't any subjects to paint, why is this?
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This DVD Pack is a very specialised tool to give you the
techniques of advanced painting.
You'll see in the DVDs there are bits and pieces of subjects
but no complete picture. This is because we don't want you
to get sidetracked from learning each technique.
So what we've done is given you the techniques on their own,
without distraction. This way you have the clearest
opportunity to learn each technique.
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The practise boards use parts of the landscape to
demonstrate the techniques, what if I want to do something else?
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Yes, this is something we would like to change. We were
confronted with a few problems when wanting to include
different demonstrations, mainly due to taking up too much
time in explaining the different demonstrations and also we
didn't want to create confusion.
However, we would like to add ways of using the techniques
to create things like eyes, hair and muscle, and
abstraction. One way around this is that now we have the
website devoted entirely to Fine Art Techniques, we may be
able to add these demonstrations for free as downloads.
The techniques can, of course, be applied in any combination
to create any image you wish.
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Are there any other tips to help me paint different subjects?
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The answer to this would be as varying as the number of
people in the world. It is limited only by imagination, so
we can't cover all the subjects here of course.
However, that's not the point, and not what will help you.
What will help you is to know a few simple tools. These are
ways of approaching your painting career.
Firstly, study artists that you like. Try to dissect the
combinations and layers to imagine how those paintings were
put together. This is very valuable. For example, if you
try to take apart Monet's paintings you'll find many layers
of thicker applications (and those techniques, though, yes,
he did use thinner layers too!), and if you look at
Gainsborough's work you'll see many layers of thin paint.
That's just a start. It doesn't matter who the artist is
that you like - try to get the best pictures of the work as
you can, and try to detect the different techniques and
layers used.
Next, follow the principles of the DVD in whatever you do.
This is the painting structure. Keep your colors light to
start with, use texture from Day One to your advantage,
painting in the spirit of the subject you're doing, get the
mix right for the application, don't waste strokes on the
canvas (by not thinking about the technique you should be
using), and let the images develop all by themselves over
the layers.
If you really want to get the most from your art, you'll
find that your art will give the most for your life. And
this bit is perhaps the best bit of all. Step outside, and
look around. Absolutely everything you see is a subject to
be painted. Of course, you can look around right now and
find a whole lot more. But here's the tip: try to imagine
how you would structure a painting of the subjects you see.
Even make notes if you want. Try to feel the spirit of
the elements before you, and imagine how what technique you
would use on Day One to lay the foundation for that image
developing. Remember, the image develops naturally over
time, so you have to imagine other layers on top of the
early paint. Bit by bit, try to construct in your mind how
that would develop. This will drive your work forward more
quickly than anything.
And here's where your art will give back to you - once you
start doing that, you see the world differently. You become
much more connected to the world you live in, and things
about it will amaze you beyond words (so thankfully we have
paint!). And you'll find, too, that this works itself back
into your art, and so the cycle just gets stronger and stronger.
And, of course, once your imagination takes hold of this
developed way of seeing, it lifts to new levels again.
But come back to your painting structure always. Let the
image develop over time. Really, you are applying
techniques which make the subject only look good later on,
so learn to think and imagine several layers later.
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Can you give me an example right here of how I could use the
techniques to create a different subject?
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Yes, imagine you want to paint someone's hair, in a portrait.
You have learned that we paint "in the spirit" of the subject.
Let's imagine then that the person you are painting has
curly hair. One way of painting this would be to use the
Dagger Stroke in the spirit of that curly hair, which means
applying the technique in swirly motions - keeping the
colors very light and making sure the texture you create is
curling where and how that person's hair curls.
Then, you could apply a Transparent Glaze with the brush
flat against the canvas - in the same way as taught in the
free Online Tutorials - so the glaze fills the valleys of
the texture and polishes the tops. This will begin to
create detail, and will brighten the image.
You can imagine that the mix would consist of a blend of
different transparent colors so it's not too bright. This
is commonly called "muddying" the color. Use only
Transparent Glazes at this second stage. And don't make it
too dark.
Then, when it's dry, you could use the Scumble Technique to
correct any curls, or enhance the ones you want, or add
more, or take some away, or lighten the areas you wish.
Then when that's dry, you could use the glaze again in areas
to set those scumbles into the image ("setting the scumble
in" is spoken about in the Online Tutorials). And you can
even scumble again on top of these wet glazes too.
By now there will be individual strands of hair appearing,
naturally, because of this combination of technique, and the
curly qualities of the person's hair will be very evident.
Next, when dry, you could add some darks, using the brush
flat against the canvas to mould some shadows and add real
depth.
By now you would have a full head of curly hair, and you
could go through the above process to finish shaping if you
wished, or you could add highlights here and there with the
Liner Stroke.
If you're really brave, you could gently add some Opaque
Glazes through just some of the edges of the hair so that it
gave the illusion of being 'behind'.
The techniques used here are exactly the same as used in the
"Forest Pond" tutorial, and come from your DVD. The
difference is simply in the color, and of being 'in the
spirit" with the strokes.
If the person's hair is long and straight, you'd simply make
the strokes "long and straight", being in the spirit of that
type of hair.
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So to paint different subjects I should think of the
combination of techniques?
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Yes, that's the best way to learn. This way you learn not
only the techniques, but which ones you like best for what
you want to do and how you want to do it.
But you can choose just one technique, too, if that's the
look you want for your paintings.
However, we are recommending learning the combination of
techniques so you are in a better position to make those
decisions.
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Fine Art Landscape DVD Triple Pack
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But it's just a tree, isn't? How do I benefit from painting
this?
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This subject has been carefully chosen for you. It is
designed to benefit you in these ways:
* The elements of the landscape included are diverse. You
paint sky, distant and medium hills, large and distant
trees, meadows and fine close up grass, dams, fence posts
and wire, thick branches and thin trunks, dense foliage and
the wispy leaves where the foliage touches the sky.
* While each of these elements are easy to do, the diversity
of them is designed to extend your techniques.
* Learning how to paint dense and fine foliage, for just one
example, gives you the techniques to paint the hair of a
portrait subject.
* Of course, painting these landscape elements means you
have a good basis to keep you occupied for years with
landscape subjects. These are all subjects created by
varying the formation of the elements you do in this DVD.
* A couple of examples of this would be if you added four or
five more tree trunks - doing the work in exactly the same
way as you do with the DVD - and adding more foliage and
branches to each one. What would you have then? You would
have a forest subject!
Or, you could make the hills much higher, and the dams could
be made larger so that one joins up with the other, and then
you would have a valley and river subject.
There are literally hundreds and hundreds of these
variations available for you, from just this one image. All
you have to do is paint the elements the same way as you've
learned in the DVD, and you can build a successful painting
career starting right now.
* And as mentioned, what you are really learning here is the
technical application of paint, and advanced painting
structure, which gives you the tools to create any subject
you want, from portraits through to abstracts.
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What are other ways I can use this painting to create
different subjects?
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To answer this we first need to remember that subjects are
created by a combination of techniques and layers.
Then it's important to get to know the value of the new
techniques you are learning. This is best done through
doing the painting many times.
After that, you'll know better how to use one technique
today so that in later applications it creates the effect
you want.
For example, in the "Meadow Tree" painting, the Dagger
Stroke on the first day didn't look anything like foliage,
but with later applications it develops into not only
foliage but different types of foliage: dense through to
tender leaves.
So the way to create different subjects is to think about
the techniques and their combinations which would best
achieve this. The more that you get used to thinking this
way, the more you will be able to harness your full creative
potential.
Let's imagine now that you want to paint a sunset. How would
you use "Meadow Tree" to paint a sunset? Firstly, you could
use the Dagger Stroke to apply very light yellows in some
areas, and very light blues in others. Then, you know the
Italian Pink (or Indian Yellow) added later as a Transparent
Glaze will bring that underwork to life. You could even
begin to shape clouds this way - but you don't need to,
because you know you could later when it's dry apply a blue
Opaque Glaze (with lots of medium) to areas leaving the
golden areas that you want as clouds.
In that example, we have taken the Transparent Glaze
technique which was applied in the foliage area of "Meadow
Tree" and used it in the sky.
You have already added a light pink glaze to the sky in
"Meadow Tree", doing this in some areas of your sunset will
enhance the result even more. And remember adding branches
with one stroke of the dryish darker glaze? Simply by
changing the colour to a rich red, or even another yellow,
you could use the same stroke and glance your brush across
the texture of your sunset to create rich reams of clouds
which appear to be directly hit by the setting sun.
Do you see how it's the techniques and the combinations
which create the subjects? It's important to realise how
much you've learned, by painting "Meadow Tree", because all
of this and more is available to you.
*WARNING*. For new artists, please don't get ahead of yourself with new
subjects until you've painted "Meadow Tree" following the
DVD many times. As mentioned elsewhere in the FAQ, the more
you do it the more you will learn - and it's much better for
you to do this without the distraction of attempting other
subjects.
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Why am I advised to paint the same painting in the DVD ten
times? That seems a boring waste of time to me!
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It does sound boring at first.
However, even if you start two paintings at the same time,
following the DVD, you'll see that after just the first day
each painting will be different.
This is a painting done with advanced structure. This means
the combinations of techniques, and layers, creates the
effects. Even slight variations along the way can
dramatically change the end result. It's very important,
and very empowering, to discover how such little things can
have such dramatic effects - most artists miss out on these
discoveries.
Also, once you get to the end of the painting - you've done
all four stages - you'll see then how the things you did way
back on Day One end up. You'll see how the very first
strokes you did end up looking incredibly different, and
you'll see how each stage along the way brought about those
changes. What this means is that you now have a lot more
knowledge when you go to back to your Day One painting.
It is this very thing which will advance your career more
than anything. Your final stages will inform your first stages.
This means that you become much more powerful as an artist,
much more quickly. The more you go through the process, the
better and better it is for you. And as you'll see
elsewhere in the FAQ, it's not just about painting this
subject. It's about really getting the benefit of advanced
technique and structure.
Other things happen, too. You might discover a particular
color you like, or don't like. Then, when you go to do the
painting again, you can vary it slightly. You're still
guided by the DVD, but you've made a slight change according
to who you are as an artist. So you are protected and
guided, but you are also on your way to creating with your
own vision and style.
Or you might find you can do some areas with ease - this
will be a guide for your future career, because the things
that come naturally to us give us the opportunity of doing
these for sale. If you find areas where it's difficult for
you, this might tell you to spend more time learning why
it's not coming easily, and by following the DVD closely
you'll have the answer there for you always. Once the penny
drops, you'll now have a lot more creative doors open for
you, freeing you to greater achievement.
So please take our advice. The more that you do the painting
in the DVD, the more you will learn, and the more quickly.
You'll get more things out of the DVD each time, and each
time you do it you'll be adding more and more strongly to
your knowledge. The DVD will guide you further and further
along your own path each time, while you make the
discoveries about what matters to you as a unique artist.
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Are there any other tips to help me paint different subjects?
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|
The answer to this would be as varying as the number of
people in the world. It is limited only by imagination, so
we can't cover all the subjects here of course.
However, that's not the point, and not what will help you.
What will help you is to know a few simple tools. These are
ways of approaching your painting career.
Firstly, study artists that you like. Try to dissect the
combinations and layers to imagine how those paintings were
put together. This is very valuable. For example, if you
try to take apart Monet's paintings you'll find many layers
of thicker applications (and those techniques, though, yes,
he did use thinner layers too!), and if you look at
Gainsborough's work you'll see many layers of thin paint.
That's just a start. It doesn't matter who the artist is
that you like - try to get the best pictures of the work as
you can, and try to detect the different techniques and
layers used.
Next, follow the principles of the DVD in whatever you do.
This is the painting structure. Keep your colors light to
start with, use texture from Day One to your advantage,
painting in the spirit of the subject you're doing, get the
mix right for the application, don't waste strokes on the
canvas (by not thinking about the technique you should be
using), and let the images develop all by themselves over
the layers.
If you really want to get the most from your art, you'll
find that your art will give the most for your life. And
this bit is perhaps the best bit of all. Step outside, and
look around. Absolutely everything you see is a subject to
be painted. Of course, you can look around right now and
find a whole lot more. But here's the tip: try to imagine
how you would structure a painting of the subjects you see.
Even make notes if you want. Try to feel the spirit of
the elements before you, and imagine how what technique you
would use on Day One to lay the foundation for that image
developing. Remember, the image develops naturally over
time, so you have to imagine other layers on top of the
early paint. Bit by bit, try to construct in your mind how
that would develop. This will drive your work forward more
quickly than anything.
And here's where your art will give back to you - once you
start doing that, you see the world differently. You become
much more connected to the world you live in, and things
about it will amaze you beyond words (so thankfully we have
paint!). And you'll find, too, that this works itself back
into your art, and so the cycle just gets stronger and stronger.
And, of course, once your imagination takes hold of this
developed way of seeing, it lifts to new levels again.
But come back to your painting structure always. Let the
image develop over time. Really, you are applying
techniques which make the subject only look good later on,
so learn to think and imagine several layers later.
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