why oil pant?

Oil paint came from mineral pigments, and is now made out of pigment and linseed oil. Oil painting was used in 1410 and was reinvented in 1511 in Europe. In the oldest civilizations in Egypt, Greek, or Roman, it was said that they used vegetable oils like flax, walnut, and poppy seed oils. Natural oils like olive oil were used in other places as well such as Italy. I think that artists enjoy using oil paints today because they came from a natural base, and has been used all throughout history. I think the fact that the simple and innate substances that makes up oil paint makes it special.


(http://www.arcyart.com/history.htm)

what is a portrait?

Linda Nochlin and Daisy by Alice Neel
This painting represents portrait by the woman and child sitting on the couch looking like they are posing. The artists uses a lot of highlights and shadows to accentuate the lighting in the room.
Self-Portrait by Chuck Close
This painting is made up of a lot of little pieces which brings all of the attention to the face when it is looked at from a far view. The colors in each piece create the aspect of the portrait.


Diego on my mind by Frida Kahlo
This painting brings attention to the face because of the head on her forehead. The face makes it seem like there's something more to the painting than just her. Also the textures in her face structure gives her more emotion.

The artists express the concept of portrait by representing themselves or other people how they would most want to be seen. This includes the way they are sitting, their face expressions, objects , lighting , mood, setting, and more. Artists like Chuck Close look like they are reinventing a concept of portrait instead of working within the tradition of portrait making. Alice Neel's painting looks more traditional, even though she gives it her own style.

A sense of place

Edward Hopper

Edgar Degas

The mood in the painting by Edward Hopper is very relaxing and mysterious. It looks very stress free and unwinding. The texture in the clear blue color of the ocean and sky make it seem settled and warm. The mood in the painting by Edgar Degas seems more concentrative and intelligent. The colors are little bit dull and the movements in the people look slow and steady. The artists create the illusion of mood by the setting in the painting. Also the colors and textures bring out the movement. Another thing that both the artists do is use shadows and highlights to express what time of day it is and what the weather is like, which expresses the moods of the paintings.

Mid-term reflection

What has been the most challenging aspect of the course so far?
So far, the most challenging aspect has been creating the illusion of color with all white objects like we did in the last still life. It was difficult to bring out different colors in white objects along with shading them in and adding highlights.
In what areas have you progressed the most and how have you progressed?
I think I have progressed in my color mixing and using shadows and highlights. I learned alot from it from the past two paintings, especially the fruit painting. It was hard for me to mix colors to look similar to the object, but I am now more comfortable with it.
How does looking at examples of painting from throughout history affect us as painters today?
Looking at other paintings can teach us different styles and ways of painting so that we can see other techniques. It can also teach us not to do something if it turned out a different way than you expected.

The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali

This painting is the most interesting to me because it has random objects doing weird things, but the shadows and texture make it look natural and normal. I like how you're not really sure why there are three clocks laying dead on a beach/desert. The main object in the middle looks like some sort of animal but i'm not 100% sure. The curiosity of the objects and setting in this painting makes it interesting to me. It looks more fictional and imaginative than a real life painting, which I like.