Saturday, February 28, 2015

Best Practices for Learning – The 21st Century Employee [feedly]



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Best Practices for Learning – The 21st Century Employee
// Industry Tap

The fast pace of change brings us new opportunity every day. This is especially true for the technologies that influence what we do and how we do things. The pace is accelerating, and there are those that keep pace and those that fall behind. This article covers the attributes that I look for and respect in employees […]

The post Best Practices for Learning – The 21st Century Employee appeared first on Industry Tap.


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William S. Burroughs on Creativity [feedly]



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William S. Burroughs on Creativity
// Hyperwave

William S. Burroughs on Creativity:

zumzeig:

"The word "should" should never arise — there is no such concept as "should" with regard to art… ."


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Beaux-Arts Instruction (Part 3 of 4) [feedly]



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Beaux-Arts Instruction (Part 3 of 4)
// Gurney Journey




Earl Shinn, writing in The Nation magazine in 1869, described the terms of criticism that students heard most commonly from teachers in the École des Beaux-Arts, especially from Jean-Leon Gérôme. These terms, and the concepts they represent, provide an insight into the aesthetics that were valued in an academic figure study. Quoting Shinn: 

"Too insipid, too weak and soft.
This is said of the flesh, or, as the French say, the skin."

"Inlaid. 
This condemns our anatomy, when it has the look of being patched on the surface rather than woven under from the bone."

"False sentiment.
This stricture is not necessarily applied to a Della Cruscan* elegance, but has been heard over a drawing of the Laocoön expressing too much passion and motion instead of the wonderfully caught rigidity of the original."

"You have not seized the movement.
 This is one of the commonest of our difficulties; the word may apply to the most inert things, as the sweep of a lock of hair ; the lay of a fold of drapery, or of patterns on the fold; the expression of a supine hand, etc."
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*Note: These criticisms have nothing to do with the painting above. "Della Cruscan" refers to members of a late 18th-century school of English writers of pretentious, affected, rhetorically ornate poetry.
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BOOK SIGNING TOMORROW
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The Nation, Volume 9, July 22, 1869, Page 68. "ART-STUDY IN THE IMPERIAL SCHOOL AT PARIS." by Earl Shinn
Previously in "Beaux-Arts Instruction" Series: Part 1, Part 2

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Cloth by DavidSequeira [feedly]



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Tutorial - Curves on Girls by Ai-Bee [feedly]



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Thursday, February 26, 2015

9 Nelson Mandela Quotes That Will Inspire You to Change [feedly]



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9 Nelson Mandela Quotes That Will Inspire You to Change
// Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement

Nelson Mandela Quotes That Will Inspire You to Change

I recently watched the film created about Nelson Mandela's life for the first time last week, even though it came out back in 2013, and I found it incredibly inspirational. Those type of films always inspire me because they have such a powerful way of delivering an overview of amazing true stories. Nelson Mandela was a great man, and inspired an amount of change that no man should ever have to inspire people with in the first place. The things he went through in order to change the standard of living for his people are astounding. Here are some of the greatest Nelson Mandela quotes that will inspire you to change the way you think, and how you live your life, for the better.   1. "I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." It not about having no fear to begin with, it's about being able to face your fears and get over them. We gain our strength and courage through overcoming our fears, so whenever you see someone who may not have any fear to begin with, that doesn't necessarily mean those people have a lot of courage within them. 2. "It always seems impossible until it's done." This quote more than any other, is a clear representation of Nelson Mandela. Everybody thought that his fight for equality was impossible, until he did it. People are often too scared or pessimistic to attempt things that are generally considered impossible, but the definition of impossible is ever-changing due to those who believe it can be done. So they make the impossible possible, whilst the non-believers are now telling themselves that the next level up is definitely impossible though. 3. "We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right." The time to do whatever you want is now! There are no 'ifs' or 'buts' when it comes to time. You may not a second chance at an opportunity, so always use your time wisely and take the opportunities when you get them. Just think, what would have happened if Mandela had started standing up for his people 10, maybe 20 years later. Would he have still succeeded? 4. "Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will." Success is often measured by the amount of wealth someone has amounted, but it's far from that. Everyone's entitled to their own definition of success, yet money always leaves people becoming greedy for more. You should redefine your definition of success, to more measurable and life-worthy things such as having a career you love and enjoy, being able to surround yourself by family, living freely and wherever you want to. 5. "A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination." Anyone who has a good mind and a good heart can have the power to change the world in such a positive way. Nelson Mandela had this combination of head and heart, and used it to do right by his people, rather than just think of himself as his number one priority. 6. "When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace." Mandela felt that he'd be able to rest in peace on he'd done his duty to his people. That was his priority in life, and his process of thought was that until he'd done his duty he wouldn't be able to rest peacefully. Will you be able to rest peacefully? Have you helped those closest around you? 7. "Everyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve success if they are dedicated to and passionate about what they do." When it all comes down to it, the dedication and passion you bring to what you do every day determines whether you will succeed at it or not. Anything is possible if you love what you do and you commit yourself to it entirely. This statement is backed up highly by the passion that Nelson Mandela showed and the success he managed to achieve because of it. 8. "For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others." It's in human nature to want to help others, for most of us anyway. So we should live in a way that is helping other people, in order to truly be happy with ourselves and our own lives. 9. "Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again." People are often judged purely because of their success, as that's normally the only thing that most people see. What they don't see is all the times before that someone fell down and kept getting back up again. That attitude is what should be judged, not by the final result.   Thank you for reading this great list of 9 Nelson Mandela quotes that have hopefully inspired you to change the way you think about life for the better. Nelson Mandela was a true inspiration and what he has done for others during his lifetime will never be forgotten. What's your favorite Mandela quote?   Dan Western is the Founder of Wealthy Gorilla, an ever growing community dedicated to inspiring others to live the life they've always wanted. Dan is an aspiring personal trainer, life coach and entrepreneur, who can't wait to help others fulfill their true potential. Join him on Facebook, or follow him on Twitter.

The post 9 Nelson Mandela Quotes That Will Inspire You to Change appeared first on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement.


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Beaux-Arts Instruction (Part 1 of 4) [feedly]



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Beaux-Arts Instruction (Part 1 of 4)
// Gurney Journey

What kind of instruction did the students receive at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris in the 19th century? This begins a four-part series about the concepts and criticism in the atelier of Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824-1904), based on a rare first-hand account of an American student who reported his experience in 1869.


A Visit from the Master
A visit from Jean-Léon Gérôme was a special occasion for students in the Ecole des Beaux Arts, occurring only once a week. When the master was not in attendance, the students harassed each other, dueled with mahl sticks, and joked around.

On a typical morning, they went about their normal routines, making coffee, and, according to a student who was part of the class, "arranging themselves in the tobacco-smoke, setting palettes, filling pipes, trimming crayons, moistening bits of bread, and wringing them into erasing-balls in the corners of handkerchiefs."

Gérôme arrived exactly on schedule, removed his hat, and placed it on a peg reserved just for him. The students came to attention and the Italian model perked up.

He started in one corner of the room and went systematically from student to student, standing or sitting in their place, and regarding their drawing or painting with full attention and unsparing criticism.

Gérôme, Pygmalion and Galatea
"Observe," he said, looking at a very neat drawing by a student, "Your muscles are inlaid against one another. They are carpentered. There is a something—that is not the vivacity of flesh. Go next Sunday to the Louvre and observe some of the drawings of Raphael. He does not use so much work as you, yet one feels the elasticity of his flesh, packed together of contractile fibers, based upon bone, and sheathed in satin. You tell me you will express that texture afterward. I tell you Raphael expressed it from the first stroke!"

Raphael Sanzio (1483-1520)
Study of David after Michelangelo
"Your color rages," he said to another student. "That of the model is lambent. Besides, your figure is tumbling, it is not on its legs. I will save you labor by telling you the simplest way of correcting this. Turn the canvas upside down and draw it over. The error is radical."

To another, he said: "You do not yet understand the continuity of forms in nature. You accent too highly. That is vulgarity. For instance: it appears to you that the internal and external vastus, when gathered in at the knee, cause a break in the outline, like the cap of a pillar. Similarly under the calf. You are deceived, and should use your eyes; the accent is not in the line, it is in the shading beside the line, and even there far more slightly than you think. Here again, the vein crosses the forearm. You make a hideous saliency. Nature never, absolutely never, breaks a line."
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The excerpts are from The Nation, May 6, 1869, Page 352. "ART-STUDY IN THE IMPERIAL SCHOOL AT PARIS" by Earl Shinn
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Thesis about Earl Shinn by Daniel Timothy Lenehan
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Three excellent book sources:
The Lure of Paris: Nineteenth-Century American Painters and Their French Teachers
The Studios of Paris: The Capital of Art in the Late Nineteenth Century
The Academy and French Painting in the 19th Century

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Saturday, February 21, 2015

troy-artlog:HOW TO MAKE YOUR ART LOOK NICE: Mindsets For those... [feedly]



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troy-artlog:HOW TO MAKE YOUR ART LOOK NICE: Mindsets For those...
// How to Art















troy-artlog:

HOW TO MAKE YOUR ART LOOK NICE: Mindsets

For those wanting to improve their work ethics, here are some friendly reminders that can help improve the way you view your art.

I PROMISE THE NEXT ONE WILL COVER DRAWING CONCEPTS THIS TIME!

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Reference and Style | Color Harmony | Contrast


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7 More Artists [feedly]



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7 More Artists
// Muddy Colors

-By Howard Lyon

We live in an amazing time to be an artist.  The sheer amount of imagery that we can search through and catalogue is staggering.  I, like many of you I am sure, keep a catalogue of paintings stored on my computer where I can browse for inspiration.

I have enough images that I forget some of the gems that I have downloaded.  I shared some of them in a previous post, 6 Artists.  Here are some more of the paintings that have been sitting on my desktop in the last few days that I pulled out of my image morgue.

Abraham De Vries - Portrait of a Man


For me this is among the best portraits painted.  It has the visceral surface of a Rembrandt and the life of a Sargent.  The skin looks like one could press it with a finger and feel it give way like real flesh.  I am still waiting for this portrait to speak, any moment now...

Bernardo Strozzi - Tobias Curing His Father's Blindness


I have to admit my first reaction to this painting was "Is that guy putting fish guts in that old man's eye!?"  I wasn't familiar with the story it is based upon, but once past that I took in the whole painting and loved it.  The hands, the movement, the gaping mouth of the fish with its great fins.  I can feel the anticipation of the father and son as he applies what they hope is a remedy for his blindness.

Does anyone know if that is a a real fish, or something made up?  The double pelvic fins are interesting.

Émile Villa - La Japonaise



How cool is that little guinea pig in the foreground munching on a twig?  This painting makes me happy.  Amazing texture and color with beautifully rendered details and lots of guinea pigs.

Hermann David Salomon Corrodi - The Ambush Near Giza


I love paintings that tell a good story, even if you don't know the subject.  Look at the caravan on the lower right making their way down the trail.  You see the pyramids in the background and can imagine that these are merchants making their way from Cairo with valuable goods.  The middle-ground of the painting shows the would be bandits waiting in ambush.  I wonder how many times they have used this spot to plunder a passing caravan.

I also love the great expanse of canvas filled with a beautiful and subtle gradient.  There is just a faint wisp of cloud near the horizon, but other than that, Corrodi was confident enough to fill half the painting with a slow draw of color and let it be.

Isidor Kaufmann - Portrait of a Rabbi with Prayer Shawl


Another great portrait.  There is weight and wisdom in this face with many years lived.  The static triangular shape gives it a solidity framed by the big rectangle of blue behind the rabbi's head.  He seems solid with conviction as well as contemplative.  The rendering of detail and texture here inspires.

Jules Breton - The Weeders


I have been coming back again and again to this painting.  It is powerful to me.  I don't know if it is dawn or dusk.  Are they just starting the long day of work, or wearily coming to the end?  The contrast and strong colors of the sky add richness and instill drama into the composition.

I want to know if the pregnant woman standing on the left feels hopeful with the dawn of a new day, or worried how much longer she will be able work and earn income?  She takes a moment to pause, her full bag of weeds is evidence that she has been hard at work.  I see her hands on her hips/small of her back and she leans back against the weight of her belly.  My wife has struck this same pose when she was pregnant with our children, her back sore and her body under stress.  There is honesty in this painting and it leaves me wanting to know more about the very real women depicted here.

Victor Matorin - Bobrok Volynsky


Victor Matorin is a contemporary artist from Russia.  Very impressive work.  I don't know much about the subjects in the paintings I have included here, but they are imposing!  I would follow this guy into battle.

Victor Matorin - Holy Right Believing Grand Prince Dmitri Donskoi of Moscow


Great color and design here.  It reminds me a little of Tom Lovell, but possibly a little bolder in execution.  From the clouds and light on the buildings to the colorful boats and costumes, this painting is full of beautiful details.

Victor Matorin - Khan Mamai


One last image from Matorin.  A powerful portrait.  I had been looking at this of a while before I noticed the silhouettes of the riders on horseback in the background.  I also love the quick brushwork of the clouds, but not at the expense of form.

I hope that you found some interest and inspiration here as well and maybe a new image or two.

Howard Lyon
Website
Instagram
Twitter

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Phil Hale: Life Wants to Live [feedly]



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Phil Hale: Life Wants to Live
// Muddy Colors


Award-winning Illustrator and Fine Artist, Phil Hale, has a solo show at Johnathan LeVine Gallery in NYC.

The show is titled 'Life Wants to Live', and thus far, consists of 14 large scale paintings, and 17 drawings. All of which are completely new works.

In conjunction with 'Life Wants to Live', the artist will release a new book by the same title, that will be available to purchase at the opening reception.

The show opens today, February 21, 2015 and runs to March 21, 2015.

Phil Hale : Life Wants to Live
A Solo Exhibition
Johnathan LeVine Gallery
529 West 20th Street, Gallery I

Below is a sneak peek at some of the new paintings, all of which measure 54x54 inches square, and are painted using oil on linen.











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Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Fwd: Using charcoal for figure drawing


-nate


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Kenzo at lovelifedrawing <kenzo@lovelifedrawing.com>
Date: Wed, Feb 18, 2015 at 5:00 AM
Subject: Using charcoal for figure drawing
To: greatseamonster@gmail.com


Getting started with Charcoal

Charcoal has a strength and expressive power that captures life well. However, there is certainly a learning curve when using charcoal for the first time. Below are some essentials to help you draw more effectively using this medium.

Don’t use a charcoal like a pencil

While some charcoal sticks can be similar to a pencil in shape and size, the technique for using it is quite different. For starters, the type of charcoal you’ll be working with will dictate the type of grip you’ll be using for holding it. Most work best when pinched between thumb and index finger.

Sharpen charcoal by snapping it

Sometimes you want a sharp, thin line, which you can’t achieve when your charcoal is blunt. One solution is to simply snap your charcoal in half to get plenty of nice crisp edges. After a while you will end of with a lot of stubby bits of charcoal though. An alternative is to lightly rub the charcoal against sandpaper to restore the edge.
 

by Emma Sargeant - what skill!

Smudge charcoal to achieve flat tone

You can use your fingers, a brush, or a paper stump to help you merge layers of charcoal and flatten the tone you have put down. Be careful with smudging though – it’s an addictive characteristic of charcoal that can end up taking the life and dynamism out of your tone.
 
Charcoal can be daunting for those used to pencil - it can quickly become messy and its power can be too much when not using correctly. However, it is well worth pursuing, and with some practice, you will start to tame its strength and get on top of its messiness.

For more information about charcoal and life drawing, sign up to our course which includes articles and videos covering details on the use of charcoal, plus methods for using other drawing materials and fundamental life drawing skills.
 
If you have comments and suggestions on how we can improve this newsletter, please let us know by replying to this email. We’re more than open to your suggestions!

Thanks and have a great day!

Kenzo

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Sunday, February 15, 2015

Sargent: Portraits of Artists and Friends [feedly]



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Sargent: Portraits of Artists and Friends
// Gurney Journey

Sargent, Dr. Pozzi at Home (detail), 1881. Hammer Museum, Los Angeles
A new exhibition of John Singer Sargent's paintings of friends and fellow artists just opened at the National Portrait Gallery in London, where it will continue through May 25.

Sargent, The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, Frascati, Italy, 1907,
Art Institute of Chicago
Curated by Sargent expert Richard Ormond, the show includes Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose and many other landmark paintings.

"John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) was the greatest portrait painter of his generation. Acclaimed on both sides of the Atlantic, he was closely connected to many of the other leading artists, writers, actors and musicians of the time. His portraits of these friends and contemporaries, including Auguste Rodin, Claude Monet and Robert Louis Stevenson, were rarely commissioned and allowed him to create more intimate and experimental works than was possible in his formal portraiture. 
"This major exhibition of over seventy portraits spans Sargent's time in London, Paris, Boston and New York as well as his travels in the Italian and English countryside. Important loans from galleries and private collections in Europe and America make this an unmissable opportunity to discover the artist's most daring, personal and distinctive portraits." 
Good news, Statesiders! It will expand to 90 works when it continues at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, June 30-October 4. 

And yes, there's a catalog: Sargent: Portraits of Artists and Friends
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Arm-sies by xiaoyugaara [feedly]



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veesdumpingrounds: that took awhile ! I wanted to add more... [feedly]



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veesdumpingrounds: that took awhile ! I wanted to add more...
// Art and Reference point





















veesdumpingrounds:

that took awhile ! I wanted to add more but then I wouldve needed to spend a whole two days on this haha….
btw if you ask me a qestion in anon, I will take a lot of time to answer because I always answer in a mini comic format ! however, if you ask me stuff without hiding your name I'm much faster :)
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LINKS
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-my first tutorial on hands (that is less traditional)
-in depth hand anatomy
-lots of hand model sheets
-lots of hand tutorials
-THE AMAZING WORLD OF GUMBALL hand designs (among others)
-MOTORCITY hand designs/model sheet
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-My other art tutorial


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