"Knowing and Doing"

($40.00.....6" x 6".....mounted on a 1/8" depth clayboard panel)


"Knowing and doing are the twins of understanding." It is impossible to learn something by osmosis. There are people who still try, but it does not work. We all must put in our 10,000 hours before we truly become skilled. Get started!

Here is an exercise you might want to try. Rule up a page of squares and then divide each square into a division of black and white. It helps in understanding division of space. The shapes created by doing this exercise will give the piece a foundation to build upon.

In this case, the silver represents the white and the rest is a combination of black with a bit of gray. I did add some Brilliant Violet Gouache to this piece, but it would have been fine without it. There is something "classy" about black and white with no color added at all. Another thing to note here is the contrast of edges. The only really hard edge in this piece (besides the lettering) is the left hand edge of the silver. The top edge is a textured and broken edge which provides the needed contrast.

Keeping the main thing, the main thing, will unify a piece of artwork, but the contrasts will give the necessary subtlety and variety that keep the viewer looking. Try identifying the contrasts in other artist's artwork. That will help you to understand why a particular element in the design is holding your interest. If something can be analyzed and identified, it can be replicated. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.