Philip De Lazlo Mrs Claude MullinsI had hoped to get the next Encyclopedia of Dumb Design ideas written for tonight. Those posts take a lot of time as the scholarship is so demanding. Hopefully I will finish it tomorrow. I am actually putting in about twice as much time on the blog and I can't get out one of those a day. I am having a great time writing them, but I have had to space my posts out a bit. Here is a post to last until then.
I get lots of e-mail and I try to respond to most of it. Sometimes people have questions that I can answer, others send me an image for comment. I wish I had the time to crit them, but I don't. Sorry. I will do some crits on the blog again sometime.
Here is an e-mail;
Hi Stape, I was at your Lyme Art Association workshop this last weekend. We never got to talk about the nuts and bolts of making a living at art works. I would like to read some feedback on your blog relating to that subject if there is any other interest about it! Great workshop. ps. I now have a Stapleton Kearns Signature Easel. An awesome piece of furniture. thanks.
........................Basil Strathmore
There are a couple of things here, first I have written a lot of posts on the business of art, but it was a while ago. Here is one; and two also three and four followed by five. There are many more but there are a few. If you want to read more of those look in my sidebar on the right and there are two archives labeled business. Don't ask why, it is just to hard to undo that.There are so many posts back there now that even I don't know whats in the blog anymore. There are 892 separate posts.
The Stapleton Kearns Signature model easel is now available from Take-it-Easel.This is their newest style easel with a couple of important tweaks and custom accessories, so it is set up like mine. I don't make anything on these easels. I just want to see this small company do well, they make a fine product and I depend on them . Get one at Take-it-Easel Tel: 802.999.7123.
OK lets see if I can throw out something educational. How's this:
At my workshop I had two people wearing sunglasses. One had lost her real glasses and was wearing prescription sunglasses, and the other was afraid of exposing her eyes to all of the UV sunlight for fear of damaging them. I have heard people say that it is OK to work in sunglasses as you see nature, your palette and painting through the same lenses and it therefore won't change your color. I doubt that, I think it has to throw some kind of a color bias into your painting. But there is no reason to wear sunglasses. A pair of ordinary clear eyeglasses should protect your eyes from the harmful UV light. With a brimmed hat you should be able to see fine.
Hopefully tomorrow night I can get the next installment of The Encyclopedia up, see you then.
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16 comments:
Sunglasses: They have found that younger generations lose eyesight faster than older ones for lack of natural sunlight due to screen time/less outdoor time etc. Even more mature eyes need the exercise of adjusting to drastic natural lights of various daylight and evening shades. Unless you are painting 8 hours every single day in the blazing sun, or staring right at it, you are probably helping the old eyeballs by ditching the shades for a few hours here and there.
I doubt that ordinary clear glasses will protect you from anything, but you can get sunglasses that are not tinted, and they do provide UV protection. They are made for the sporting crowd--maybe water skiers, motorcyclists? Some are made to cut down on those bright spots of sunlight reflecting off water. Expensive at retail, but I got some very reasonably on eBay.
alotter - there are a great many clear, uv blocking glasses available.
Stapelton:
I don't advocate wearing sunglasses out in the field either because like you, I also think they reduce the chromatic range a painter can see. Even if the sunglasses are "neutral" in tint.
However, sunglasses can be useful to the novice because they will simplify and mass values, much like the Claude (Lorraine) glass which was in wide use in the late 18th century.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_glass
In fact, smoked mirrors and 'black glass' became so predominate during that era that they became mocked by studio painters.You can learn more about them here.
http://thomaskitts.blogspot.com/2010/02/through-glass-darkly.html
Of course, once a painter becomes more experienced, all it takes is a little squinting to check the values. Easy-peasy, and nothing to carry, unless you do Botox. (Ha!)
Excellent post, Stapelton. Another fine read!
Thomas Jefferson Kitts
http://www.thomaskitts.com
http://www.thomaskitts.blogspot.com
I think the best thing to do is to paint in the morning or late afternoon. During the time when the sun is highest in the sky I paint interiors or something completely in shadow. I have a deep sea fishing cap which has a very long peak and the added benefit of material that covers your neck. Great for keeping sun and bugs off your neck. I highly recommend one and they come in this gray khaki color.
Nix the sunglasses. If your extra sensitive to sunlight I would say maybe one should stick to being a studio painter. Plenty of things one can paint in a studio.
I've been painting outdoors for 40 years, I have very sensitive eyes and wear sunglasses, but I also check values as I go along and just put them up on my head when I am working. It's just plain silly to tell people to stay in the studio, work with it, nothing is better than days out in the weather experiencing nature.
Folks might try eskimo sunglasses - just a slit in a piece of wood. Here's a link:
http://wrymouth.com/2007/02/26/eskimo-sunglasses.aspx
That's a beautiful portrait and I've never even heard of Lazlo.
I have heard of sunglasses, but never wear 'em. A cowboy hat is now my painter's hat of choice. (when in Rome, and all that......)
My3Starz;
Kids don't play outside much anymore do they?
...........Stape
alotter ;
You are paying for polarized lenses. Prescription glasses from the optician will give your eyes adequate protection.Or so I have been told. So far so good.
.................Stape
Spreggo;
yep.
.................Stape
Thomas Kitts;
No one believes me, they will still wear sunglasses. I just know it.
................Stape
jeff;
I like the late afternoon and evening shift the best.
................Stape
Diane;
Why would you need to check your values without the glasses if they didn't effect your vision?
................Stape
Michael Chesley Johnson;
I look weird enough already.
..................Stape
Deb;
I have a new book on De Lazlo and am studying him.
.............Stape
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