Letting Paint Be Paint
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
1M ago
This Moment by Diane Eugster The longer I paint, the more I realize that the really exciting things that happen are when I let go, intentionally lose control. What do I mean by intentionally loosing control? Not forcing the paint to look like a literal thing; like a door, a flower, an arm. This is where drawing skills are very important. When suggesting “things” and not painfully rendering them, bits of truth need to be sprinkled around (accurate drawing). Getting emotionally involved with your painting helps to initially discover a direction. No, just throwing paint on the canvas isn’t a dire ..read more
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Recent Painting, Shop Girl
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
1M ago
Thought I would write about a recent painting “Shop Girl” I just completed. When John and I lived in Scottsdale we met a lovely lady who owned an eclectically beautiful little gift shop in Old Town Scottsdale. She was kind enough to let me use her store as a richly textured backdrop for a vintage photo shoot. There were so many chandeliers, tapestries and ceramic vessels I didn’t know where to start. I chose this particular scene because of the gesture, interesting shapes and open ended story it told. Below is a video link to some excerpts along the way ..read more
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End of 2023 ..Beginning of 2024
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
3M ago
Below is a video reviewing some of my paintings from 2023. I’ve never been big on New Year’s resolutions, but I think it is a good thing to stop at some point and look at what you’ve done, where you are and where you’d like to be. I guess the beginning of a new calendar year is as good a time as any. The past year I have worked to simplify all the parts of putting together a painting, so I can focus on really digging into the subject. As you may know for years I’ve been using a limited palette of Ultramarine blue, Permanent Alizarin, Hansa Yellow and Titanium White. Doing this has forced me to ..read more
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That was Then
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
9M ago
This is a subject I find myself revisiting many times over the years. Why? That is the million dollar question that the success of the entire painting hinges on. Reflecting on the right answer is definitely worth the time. Some of the wrong answers might be; Because it’s a “pretty” subject I heard that western art is selling right now My friends think this would be a good subject for me I like the colors My answers; (this is a person thing, it could go in many directions) This reminds me of the wide open, arid landscape of the southwest Honesty and integrity Relaxed, sans-tension A simpler ..read more
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When December Comes Around
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
1y ago
When December comes around I find it’s a good time to look back on what I’ve painted the past year, where I’ve been, where I’m going. This is an important exercise for any serious artist if you want to progress. In the 50 something years I’ve been painting, just about every type of subject has crossed my easel: Landscapes; like the possibility for textures, openness and nature, but need a person for the emotional impact Cityscapes: not so much, too many hard lines closing in Still life: another opportunity for texture, but can’t get too excited about painting things Seascapes: love the paintin ..read more
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Reality to Fantasy and scattered thoughts
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
1y ago
Lately I’ve been working on some paintings that bridge reality and fantasy. Thought I would share some of the process that gets me from point A to point B. It begins with photos I’ve taken of one person in various, but similar poses. Something about them has to have a definitive mood. Keying in on the mood. . . the theme. . . the brain storming (or scattered thoughts) begin. These are a sampling of the 10-15 images I looked through, what I saw was ; High Fashion Photography Tall Black, Grey, Pink, Flesh tones, Strutting High cheek bones Dramatic lighting Going back to the above images I pul ..read more
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The Heart of the Painting
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
1y ago
People ask me why I spend the extra time making a drawing before I start a painting, here’s the answer; The drawing really is the heart of the painting. When I choose a subject to paint I’ve learned that there are some important questions to ask and get answered before investing time and energy into a subject. Keeping disappointments, (failed paintings), to a minimum, is important to my productivity. The more successes, the more excitement to create something else new. The magic of; a piece of paper, a stick of charcoal and, yes, the trusty eraser have a way of exposing potential problem areas ..read more
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What if
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
1y ago
Many times when I am “finished” with a painting I ask “what if?” Even before the what if comes the original intent of the painting, the emotional investment, what was the appeal of this image in the first place? Answer: The motion and movement The feeling of a transition from one place to a better one So did that happen in the finished painting? No The original “finished painting” In the above image see how the pattern in the cape moves upward to the right, so does the leg. But the outstretched arm stops this movement dead. What if I continue the movement up past the arm, using the same colo ..read more
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When a Painting Goes Off Track
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
2y ago
How do you know when a painting gets off track? It’s a good thing to stop at the end of every day and critically take a look at what’s going on. I choose a spot on an empty wall, free of distractions to set the painting. With a note pad and pen in hand the questions start: What is happening here that’s successful? What’s happening here that is not working? The basic laying for A Certain Time of Day In the early stages of “A Certain Time of Day” my answer to the first question was hard to come up with. It’s not that there was anything “awful”, just nothing successful either. So going back to th ..read more
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New Art Studio Space- Lighting
Diane's Painting Blog
by Diane Eugster
2y ago
A very important consideration is studio lighting. There needs to be enough of it to see your subject, painting and palette without eye strain. Light temperature is something to think about. The coolness or warmth can be plotted on a Kelvin scale: An incandescent bulb is 2600K on the scale, with almost an amber tone, while a daylight bulb is 5250K, much cooler. I like to keep my lighting at the daylight level, with a little bit of warmth mixed in. A good way to do this is with LED bulbs. They come in a wide range of temperatures, they don’t get hot like incandescent and they last a lot longer ..read more
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