More on Dan McCaws' book - A Proven Strategy for Creating Great Art...

"Happiness"
Oil on Linen  36x36x1.5"
Available at Gallerie Amsterdam

Chapter 4 - "Mastering the World of Color"

• Mastering Color Theory is important, but don't let it get in the way of using color to personalize your paintings.
• Any color has four main properties: hue, value, intensity and temperature. There are a number of reasons why you will want to know how to change or modify any of these qualities, but learning how is fairly easy since there are only one or two techniques related to each property. 
• You can mix color opaquely by combining colors on the palette before it's applied or on the canvas as it's applied. You can also layer transparent glazes of color until you've arrived at the color you desire.
• The colors appearing throughout a subject often need to be harmonized. This can be achieved by allowing the color of the light to touch all of the elements or by mixing a common color/temperature into all of the elements.

My Thoughts - I love how Dan uses color to personalize his paintings. I think the most important or one of the most important things about color theory is Color Harmony. Learn how to harmonize your paintings and you will get wonderful results.

Dan suggests that you can mix a color and/or temperature into all of the elements. Another way is to use a limited palette. But I love how Dan uses his way of allowing the color of the light to touch all of the elements. I think by elements he is talking about each shape. This will take some experimentation for sure and you will discover how this technique works.

Another thing I love about Dan's paintings is the way he mixes his color directly on the canvas. This is something that I have not done a lot of. I'll try to get in some practice time with that.

Chapter 5 - "Making It Your Own"

• By using contrast, exaggeration and proportion, you can help your viewers understand what you're trying to say.
• Communicate your point of view with one or two types of contrast, such as dark against light, bright against dull, a color against its compliment, warm against cool or hard edge against soft, just to name a few.
• Don't be limited by copying what you see in your subject. Exaggerate shapes, sizes, color and so on to emphasize your main point.
• Balance and support the main direction of a painting by simplifying less important areas.
• Never stop striving to express that tie between heart and mind. It will imbue your work and life with creativity and satisfaction.

My thoughts - I like his ideas on contrast. This is what makes a painting dynamic. There are many ways to create contrast in a painting. Make an effort to create contrast where there may otherwise be none. This will help you get out of rendering and into creating.

Exaggerating will help you as well. Try to keep the main focus or interest in the focal area. This is where you want to express your idea. Other areas are not as important and should be simplified. Simplify by keeping the shapes in less of a contrast and with softer edges.

Chapter 6 - "Putting It All Together"

• Taking the time to work through all five stages usually results in a better painting with less effort wasted on correcting mistakes.
• Thumbnails and other sketches are the ideal means to explore opinions for presenting your idea in an individual way.
• You can ensure a powerful design foundation for every painting if you do a value study before you begin painting.
• Only after you've covered your canvas in flat blocks of color, either true to your subject or exaggerated as you like - should you start to develop the forms and add detail. Stop when you feel your painting says all it needs to say.

These are the concepts I've been teaching for years, and I am committed to this way of starting a painting. I can't express enough how important it is to prepare for your painting with exploration of design, composition and value by sketching or painting a value study or studies.

Let me know your thoughts and questions. I would enjoy talking more about these ideas with you!

A Proven Strategy for Creating Great Art by Dan McCaw

"Roses for Sale", Oil on Canvas, 22x18"

A great book. I recently posted about my two favorite books that I took with me to Arizona. I have been re-reading them and have come to appreciate them even more. Especially this one.

Here are a few notable points to remember at the end of each chapter:

Chapter One, "Opening Your Heart"

• Creating expressive art demands more than just rendering. It requires you to develop and give voice to your points of view.
• Individuality comes from having plenty of options. You can increase your choices by broadening your perceptions, raising your awareness and exercising your imagination.
• You probably won't be successful in expressing your individuality in every painting, but don't let that stop you from trying. Your ongoing efforts to express yourself will keep you motivated for a lifetime. Trust in your innate ability to bring out your voice.

My thoughts - I'm surprised he put this topic at the beginning of the book. It is the last thing I learned and was confusing to me when I first read the book. Now with a lot more experience under my belt, I know what he's talking about.

At first we are doing our best to "render", but with experience comes the ability to "exercise our imaginations". 

The best thing to remember while learning this concept is to let go of the outcome and just experiment with paint. Know why you chose your topic, and try to express that concept. It will come.

Chapter Two,  "Understanding Light and Form"

• Three things in the light source -- color, strength and location -- will influence the way you perceive the forms in your subject.
• To make the forms in your paintings look three dimensional, exaggerate the planes and push the contrast between light and shadow.
• If you do want to recreate depth and dimension in your forms, visualize and break them up into planes. The planes on the light side can be categorized as lights, half tones, and highlights, also known as the properties of light: the planes on the shadow side can be categorized as reflected lights and shadows, what I call the properties of shadow.
• Remember to incorporate the color of your light source and any reflected color from nearby objects when mixing your forms' colors.

My thoughts - We all use different words at times to describe the same foundational elements in painting. When he says location of the light, he is talking about the direction of the light into the painting. 

You need to understand how light and shadows work in life and in your painting. It really does help to break your form into planes. It's like carving of the rounded parts with a knife. Each plane has it's own value, but is also either in the "light", or the "shadow". The values in the light are usually mid-tone, light-tone and highlights. The values in the shadow side of the form is mid-dark to dark, and reflected light that is slightly lighter than the shadow.

The color of your light source is either warm or cool. Ambient light is warmer than outdoor light. Use plenty of color in your reflected light, but remember to keep it "in the shadow".

Chapter Three, "Designing With Shapes"

• Value and design are the two most important tools in holding a painting together.
• Design is based on the large masses or shapes in your subject, which you can easily see when you squint. Squinting eliminates the details and show you the big areas of similar values.
• Drawing quick thumbnails and/or painting value studies will help you modify, link, crop and balance your shapes for a better design that supports your intentions.
• Unequal proportions is key to a good design. Have more dark than light or more light than dark. Play active areas against passive areas.
• You can modify several elements into one larger shape by softening the edges between them or painting them in similar values so the edges seem to disappear. Use harder edges to separate shapes. This will help you retain the flow of your design.

My thoughts - This covers a lot in painting. And we've only talked about one chapter! I've been teaching these concepts for years, and I can't believe I haven't picked up this book for at least that long. This is very good stuff.

These are the first three chapters and we still have three to go. I will cover those in the next blog that I post. Meanwhile do reply with any questions or if you'd like to talk further about any of these topics.