If you intend to work in layers,
it’s important that they are
orchestrated together
ABOVE Martin
Kinnear,
Regeneration,
oil on canvas,
91x91cm
OPPOSITE PAGE
El Greco, Saint
Jerome as Scholar,
c.1610, oil on
canvas, 108x89cm
“Indirect brushwork
adds depth and
texture to Saint
Jerome’s beard
and cape”
E
ver been stopped in your
tracks by a painting and
wondered: how was that done?
Over the next four issues I’ll be
letting you in on a few of the amazing
things that only paintings and paint
can do in the hands of the old (and
not so old) masters. If you think that
learning technique is old-fashioned,
then think again.
The entry requirements for the
John Moores Painting Prize, perhaps
the most prestigious contemporary
award for painters, emphasises that
artists’ entries should, above all,
demonstrate what paint and painting
alone can do. A stroll around the Tate
Modern will also show you that the
best ideas are the ones that are
powerfully presented and forcefully
brought to life by strong visual art.
The craft of painting is necessary tothe art of it, so while the means are
not the end, you really ought to have
them to hand if you want to succeed.
As were talking about ideas, it’s
important to decide where to begin.
Picasso understood that there is no
progression in art as did Grayson
Perry when he noted that “everything
was contemporary once”. Ideas are
timeless, but to explore some of the
best ideas in visual art, you’ll need a
bit of craft to articulate them. This
series on the craft of painting is
designed to help you become a
better, more creative artist.With that caveat, I’d like to invite
you to think about your painting and
reflect on whether or not you’re
missing out on some powerful ideas
and techniques that could help you
better realise your creative vision.
Let’s start at the very beginning:
how you apply paint. One habit of
successful creative people is to
question assumptions, so why do
most artists apply pre-prepared tube
paints onto white canvases and
spread them with brushes or knives?
If that sounds the obvious route
to you, thenjustthinkofallthe
Artists & Illustrators 49