An Instructor of mine at the Art Students League told me, "If you can learn one new thing a day, you'll advance in your art." Fortunately, It does not always have to be a monumental discovery. Even simple little "Hot Tips" can help improve your painting.
Here is one such idea.

Duct Tape Your Painting Tubes
They say one can get through anything in life as long as you have duct tape and baling wire...

If you paint outdoors and use large tubes of oils, your paint tubes will eventually get punctured. Whether hiking to remote painting spots or dealing with the rigors of air travel, your paints will be tossed and bumped. This often results in tiny punctures caused by the sharp, crimped ends of the paint tubes. These slow leaks cause the paint to dry within the tube, make a huge mess, and are almost impossible to seal. I have found wrapping my tubes in---you guessed it---Duct Tape, not only protects them from punctures, but also dulls the sharp crimped ends. Give it a try!

Charles Muench
www.charlesmuench.com

Master Outdoor Painters

Willard L. Metcalf
By Armand Cabrera

Willard L. Metcalf was born in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1858. He began his art studies at the Lowell Institute and apprenticed to the painter, George Loring Brown. For the next few years, Metcalf illustrated articles on the Zuni and the Southwest for Century Magazine.

In 1883, with enough money earned from his illustration assignments, Metcalf traveled to France to study at the Julian Academie under Gustave Boulanger and Jules Lefebvre. After a few years in France, Metcalf slowly moved away from the painting style being taught in the Academie. He now embraced the Impressionist ideal that revered painting from life as the core of good painting. In 1888, Metcalf returned to America and prepared to mount a one-man show of 44 paintings---mostly studies executed in the open air style he adopted in Europe. While the show was praised critically, sales were low and Metcalf decided to leave Boston for New York.
Learn more ....

Quote of the Month

“Go out and paint what you see and forget your theories.”

- Willard Metcalf

Helpful Tip

Thanks to Linda F. Harris from Sunnyvale, California for sending us this helpful tip!

To Reshape a brush:
Wash your brush in lukewarm water using a bar soap, such as Ivory. Be sure your soap does not contain extras, such as moisturizing cream. After rinsing your brush, re-soap it.
Do not rinse.
With your brush full of soap, shape it carefully, and lay it flat to dry for at least a few hours. Rinse, shape, and lay the brush flat to dry again before using it to paint.

Armand Cabrera will teach an Outdoor Painting workshop at Art in the Aspens, Pueblo, Colorado.
June 6 - 9, 2005. Take your painting to the next level. Oils and Pastels. Register early.
Information:
(719) 545-2795

Click here for more info

Discover the secrets of outdoor painting and learn from plein air masters, Stefan Baumann and Armand Cabrera, on location.

The techniques acquired in these dynamic classes will broaden your skill and teach you timeless secrets of the craft. Learn More...

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