It is true that some art collectors don't care about artist statements -- or details about artistic process, for that matter -- but others DO care. They WANT that information. In my opinion, it is better to have that info -- cover all the bases -- than ignore it outright. The art collectors who don't care about said info will likely avoid reading a statement if it is provided. Fair enough. That said, the collectors who WANT to read your artist statement WILL end up searching for it on your website. Imagine their disappointment when said info is not provided. They may look elsewhere... [...]

My plein air work is about responding emotionally to the moment. But, I have realized that my studio work enables me to explore other ideas, push compositional choices, or push color to create a mood. [...]

A word about unsuccessful paintings - yes they do happen, more times then I would like to admit. Artists do not allow themselves to practice. Every time we stand in front of our easels, we feel we must complete a masterpiece. If only we could. I take all those paintings of mine that just did not work, for whatever the reason, and I do not look at them as failures but just as practice, a learning experience. Artists are human and not perfect, so why do we expect our work to be perfect? [...]

Someone recently asked me for guidance on how to develop a personal style. The short answer is not to worry about it too much. It will come naturally with time. The caveat, though, is that you need to let it develop. This leads me to the long answer. [...]

Now, let’s assume you sign up for a workshop. You want to understand how to fit those remaining pieces together. But what happens instead is the instructor dumps a thousand or so more pieces right in the middle of your puzzle you are trying to put together. Now your pieces and the instructor’s pieces are all mixed up. And to top it off, the instructor removes some of the pieces you put down and replaces them with new pieces. This can cause you a lot of frustration. [...]

Since that day, I realized that so often we drum the creative spirit out of children and out of adults. When folks come into my booth at art fairs and tell me that they are not creative, I always disagree. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they are creative. They simply have not found their medium nor have they been encouraged to try different mediums until one resonates with them. The bottom line is that we are all artistic. We are all creative. None of us are "those people." We need teachers, mentors and friends who care enough about us to not categorize us, to not put us in the "those people" category. [...]

I didn’t (and still don’t) want a fish, I wanted to learn how to fish. For me, specific techniques, methods, materials, etc. are fishes. On the other hand, learning how to fish is a combination of learning the basic foundation (the fundamentals) coupled with learning how to see and respond emotionally to your subject. [...]

Simply paint what moves you to paint. What do you see and love? What moves your soul? You cannot go wrong when you see and paint something that touches your soul. Stop glancing over to the side at what others are doing. Sure, you can learn from others - take the art classes or workshops, study other art works, go to museums, art exhibits, workshops, all that kind of thing - but learn to express what is in your own heart. Learn to appreciate what you can do. [...]

So, some of you may have painted for many years. You have taken workshops in the past. You might even teach them now. But if you have reached a plateau or you simply want to understand art at a higher level, then consider attending another workshop. [...]

To enjoy art, is it really that necessary to have taken art history courses, to have visited some of the great European museums or to be or have been involved in creating something yourself? While these experiences may give you a head start, they certainly are not required to enjoy what someone else has created, today. [...]

To recap, mastery of greens only comes through careful observation and practice. Avoidance is not the answer. You may not paint a summer landscape which is nearly entirely green. But you will still need to understand green to paint a winter scene which seems devoid of green, a portrait of a woman wearing white, or a still life with teapots and eggs. You need not be a master to paint greens convincingly. [...]

How close you stay to (perceived) reality and how much you deviate and create something entirely new is completely up to you. But don’t be so tied to a literal depiction that you fail to see the possibilities of improving upon the design you see in nature. [...]

Who doesn't love the look of freshly fallen snow? A good winter storm can turn even the most mundane scene into something spectacular to paint. But the first time I bundled up and hauled my gear out in winter conditions, I learned just how challenging painting in the snow can be. It's always tempting to just take a few photos and use those as reference to paint from in my warm, comfortable studio, but one thing's for certain: you have to get cold to paint snow convincingly. Almost more than any other subject matter, snow requires direct observation to help the artist convey its subtle beauty. [...]

We all have a personal definition for what art is. I, for one, feel that art is anything made with art in mind. I feel that the intention of creating art should be present during the creation of the piece. In other words, something is art if the creator of the piece intended it to be art from the get-go. I know that some readers will agree with my position -- while others will challenge it. These are arguments that are recycled year after year, decade after decade, century after century... it will continue. [...]

Never give up on yourself, I almost did and truly, that would of been the biggest regret of my life. [...]

Art is like making love - if you're not having fun, you're doing it wrong. [...]

When you look at a work of art, you've got about three options 1. you like it 2. you don't like it 3. you are completely ambivalent, which for all effects and purposes is just the same as #2 [...]

Despite what inspired you to create your work, despite your intentions, each viewer will complete the artwork in his or her mind. It may be similar to your intentions, but it may be vastly different. [...]

Even if you don’t master each of the fundamentals, a certain awareness, understanding, and even proficiency is essential to adequately express yourself. Your strengths are more important. And cultivating them to their full potential will make your work authentic, real, unique, etc. Your strengths will define you. [...]

I would suggest that the current direction in graffiti art -- at least the institutionally critiqued version -- can be described as a selfish act. It is a thirst for fame and fortune, rather than a tool for facilitating real change... it is a market ploy rather than a tool for exposing social struggles -- a chunk of culture reduced to a mere gimmick. I refuse to defend that. I won't. [...]

Drawing is a powerful tool for the artist, but photography and direct painting have reduced drawing’s role in the lives of many artists today. This is a shame since there is much to learn by utilizing this most direct form of artistic expression. [...]

Nobody can "do" you, better than you. And that's an amazing gift. Take inspiration from your "idols" and then embrace your own magic and share it with us. [...]

We at FineArtViews (FAV) strive to offer solid insight into the world of art and art marketing -- by introducing readers to viewpoints concerning the state of the art world, and exploring a wide range of art marketing strategies. That dedication was stronger than ever in 2012. [...]

The exploration of video games as an art form has been a buzzed about topic in recent years. [...]

The truth is you cannot possibly do every idea that you come across. There are a gazillion great ideas out there (and a gazillion bad ones). [...]

When you’re working for a grade in a course, there is specific motivation to do what sometimes may seem to be mundane exercises. The truth is, though, to improve painting skills, anyone can create exercises that focus on specific areas where improvement may be needed. Singers do vocal exercises and drills to keep their voices in shape. Musicians practice difficult passages piecemeal and also in context in order to solve challenges with fingering or interpretation or timing. Painters, too, can work on specific techniques or skills through a wide range of activity that may not always result in a finished painting. The question is, what isn’t working? Next, how can that be improved? Certainly there are many options for moving forward. [...]

Regardless of your style, tight or loose, bold or delicate, put in only what communicates what you want and leave all else out. This will allow the viewer to fill in the missing information in a way that is unique and personal. [...]

I say being wrong isn't a bad thing. Being wrong is healthy and we should not ridicule anyone for being wrong. I truly believe, for most of us, we are going to be wrong about half the time in all decisions we make. If we don't allow ourselves the luxury of being wrong, I fear learning will stop. For us to get to a reasonable conclusion about anything requires us to be wrong. How else will be able to strive to be right? Without the willingness to take a risk to be wrong, our future learning will be at stake. And we will achieve nothing of value because the fear of being wrong prevented us from striving for excellence. [...]

“If you don’t shoot for the stars, you will never even reach the moon” is a saying that I said over and over again to my students. What’s the worst that can happen if I fail in my attempt to make a great painting when trying something new? Nothing... I just throw the painting away. But before I do, I need to evaluate it to figure out what is wrong. Do I figure that out right away? No! Some of these failures stay with me quite a while until I can finally figure out what is wrong. Have I wasted time when I created paintings that I consider a failure? No, not if I have tried to learn from them. [...]

The desire to be original is universal. We are unique individuals with unique personalities, likes, dislikes, etc. We want our art to reflect that individuality. But some are looking for individuality and originality in the wrong places. [...]

I’ll leave you with a parting thought. No matter how much you push the envelope, it will still be stationery. Age is just a number. You are never too old to learn new tricks. [...]

In our society, we are taught from a young age to learn from others -- it all starts with coloring within the lines at preschool -- and while the master/student paradigm is an ancient and working model, it is incomplete until we take it to its fruition, namely, the student reaching mastery himself, and using what he has learned to draw individual, and maybe divergent-from-the-accepted-norm, conclusions. For artists -- who never really do learn to color within the lines -- this is especially important. The beauty of this questioning process is that it starts inside, where no one else can see and thereby critique us, and we can do it indefinitely, quietly, before anybody notices and takes us to task. [...]

Unless we watch ourselves, we gauge the quality of our work, what we choose to paint, and most importantly, how, by what we read in magazines, pick up in workshops, absorb on websites, and internalize, via osmosis, through the "art atmosphere" we inhabit. At best, this situation results in a lot of artists who have the same loose idea -- promulgated by art establishments, publications, and associations with a vested interest in promoting their own products -- of what constitutes "good art." Along the at worst spectrum, this situation results in artists unconsciously "painting to the test," so to speak, mimicking or being overly influenced by the art of another, publicly "successful" artist, in order to get into certain shows, be noticed by particular galleries, or be accepted to societies and associations. [...]

The point is, there is no one, fail-proof, this-is-IT method to produce fine art, but until we are comfortable with realizing this and until we spend serious time thinking about what works and why and how this fits into the way we do things, we will find ourselves unduly influenced by the opinions and methods of others. [...]

The things we focus on get bigger and more important in our lives, as if they gain energy from the attention we give them. Those are the things we think about. The things we fix. The things we worry about. The things we improve. I ask again, what are you focusing on? [...]

It is interesting to note the many painters that alter their technique as they experiment with various solutions to similar problems. These painters don’t simply repeat the same technique over and over. They remain inventive and engaged with the subject at hand rather than cranking out picture after picture according to the same formulaic approach. [...]

Make time for your family, but also make a business plan, and if you need to, write it out. Make reasonable goals and figure out what you need to do to achieve them. Make a checklist if it will help you stay on track. Hold yourself to high standards. You can’t reach the stars if you don’t shoot for the moon! [...]

The questions I get from the artists I help are mostly the same; basic variations of “what can I do to improve my art” or “is my work good enough to sell?” Everyone is searching for improvement. This is where danger steps in. In desperation for help, artists fall for vanity galleries, scam ads and workshops put on by people who know little about marketing art. It’s important you look for “those who know” before you freely spend. [...]

As individuals, we learn just as much from seeing someone else's work being critiqued, as we do from critique of our own work. In a group environment, it's like receiving numerous 'little lessons' for the price of one, so to speak. Our minds register all these little nuggets of information for future use, even if we're not aware of it happening. As a result, every member of the group ends up growing as artists. [...]

There is always a reason; we may not like the answer. But we do have a choice. We can stand rigid as an oak or bend a little like the willow. Adjust our sails, modify our course and find the path to success. [...]