November 2020 Art Newsletter - Painting Loose, Not Lax

A "loose" painting looks effortless, but it's often far more difficult to achieve than a photo realistic painting, and it can add energy and excitement to your work that takes it beyond a simple rendering.

Sign up for my latest newsletter to learn more about how to loosen up your paintings:

 

http://bit.ly/PSFA-Newsletter-Sign-up

 

 

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Holiday Gift Ideas - PSFA Fine Art Prints & Cards

It's #SmallBusinessSaturday2020, and if you are struggling with gift ideas and shopping safely this year, consider making a present of art.

If you missed your chance to buy a painting of mine that you had your eye on, you can gift yourself, a friend, or a loved one with a fine art print of the piece, or a set of greeting cards.

 

You can find my gallery of available prints and cards here:

https://bit.ly/Patrick-Saunders-Prints

 

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Painting!

I want to wish each and every one of you who celebrate this holiday a happy Thanksgiving. It's been a challenging year that has made Kimberly and I realize more than ever how much we have to be thankful for.

One of the things I'm most grateful for are the artists I've gotten to know through my workshops and mentoring. You help me to be a better teacher and painter, and connecting online with members of my mentoring program has made social distancing less isolating. Talking about our art takes me away from the cares of the day.

 

Kimberly and I really appreciate your contribution to our lives, and we wish you and yours all the best. Celebrate today, and then go make some art.

 

Happy painting!

 

     "A Welcoming Table" • Oil on Linen • 18"x24" • Private Collection

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Art Review - "Old Fishing Pier, Laguna" by Nicolai Fechin - Laguna Art Museum, Laguna Beach, California

For this week's #MuseumTourTuesday, I'd like to share another favorite from the Laguna Art Museum by Nicolai Fechin. Fechin has long been one of my favorites, and this represents a rare seascape by the artist.

As always with his work, I'm knocked out by the textural quality of his paint application. His use of color is notable as well. While most early 20th century California landscapes involve the use of vibrant color, much of Fechin's painting is muted with just a hint of saturated color in the water. This mostly grayed down palette perfectly captured the feeling of an early morning beach scene.

"Old Fishing Pier, Laguna" • Nicolai Fechin • c. 1924 • Oil on Canvas

Photo by Saunders Fine Arts.

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Booth Western Art Museum 2021 Miniatures Auction - "Falling Through Flowers" Floral Painting

I just shipped this piece off to the Booth Western Art Museum for their 2021 Miniatures Auction, which will be held on February 19th, 2021.

I'm also looking forward to teaching a floral workshop at the museum this coming May. Thank you Kent Mullinax for inviting me to be a part of this event!

"Falling Through Flowers" • Oil on Linen • 6" x 8"

Painting photo by Saunders Fine Arts.

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Throwback Thursday - Portrait Study - Coppini Academy of Fine Arts, San Antonio, Texas

Due to the pandemic, I'm missing painting from live models. 

Whenever we were in San Antonio, Texas, I would attend open model sessions at the Coppini Academy of Fine Arts, one of my favorite schools in the country, with an incredibly strong group of artists.

For #ThrowBackThursday, here is one of my favorites from those sessions.

"Mariah" • 2016 • Oil on Board • 14" x 18" • Private Collection

Painting photo by Saunders Fine Arts.

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Art Review - "House in Laguna Beach" by Arthur Rider - Laguna Art Museum, Laguna Beach, California

For #MuseumTourTuesday, here is a painting by Arthur Rider that Kimberly and I were lucky enough to see on display at the Laguna Art Museum. The museum is small, but definitely worth visiting, as their collection is exquisite.

While much of Rider's work is reminiscent of Joaquin Sorolla, whom the artist painted with extensively in Valencia, Spain, this piece stands apart. The painting beautifully captures the feel of Laguna Beach, California from almost a century ago, and still maintains that sense today.

I particularly love the transition between the rectangular shapes in the house and laundry to the more organic shapes of the hillside and the palm tree.

"House in Laguna Beach" • Arthur Grover Rider • c. 1934 • Oil on Canvas

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Studio Portrait Painting - In Progress

Here's an extreme closeup of an in progress painting currently on my easel. This one will feature six portraits in one large composition. 

 • Oil on Linen • 6" x 8" detail of a 48" x 38"

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Throwback Thursday - Old Portrait Commission Sketches

Here are a few more of my favorite past sketches for #ThrowBackThursday. These were all created as rough layouts for oil portrait commissions. It's fun to revisit this way of working. 

“Untitled” • 2002 • Graphite • 12” x 16” • Private Collection

“Untitled” • 2013 • Graphite • 12” x 16” • Private Collection

 “Untitled” • 1998 • Graphite • 9” x 12” • Private Collection

 

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Art Review - "A Virgin" by Abbott Handerson Thayer - Freer Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.

One last Abbott Handerson Thayer painting for #MuseumTourTuesday. This one is on display in the Grand Staircase Corridor at the Freer Gallery of Art.

While it's not one of the artist's most refined works, it is still quite beautiful. The folds of the fabric are exceptional in their execution. What I find most interesting about it is that even though Thayer doesn't add angel wings to his female model as in many of his other paintings, he still presents the suggestion through the positioning of the clouds in the sky.

"A Virgin" • Abbott Handerson Thayer • 1892 • Oil on Canvas • 90 7/16" x 71 7/8"

Painting photo by Saunders Fine Arts.

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Honor Award - Richeson School of Art 2020 Figure/Portrait Competition

I'm pleased to announce that my painting "Of Earth & Sky" won an honor award from the Richeson School of Art & Gallery's 2020 Figure/Portrait Competition.

Now, you can vote for the People's Choice Award. 

Click here to like the Richeson post and to vote for me:

https://bit.ly/Patrick-Saunders-Richeson-Competition

 

"Of Earth And Sky" • Oil on Linen • 30"x60" • Private Collection

Painting photo by Saunders Fine Arts.

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Pet Portrait Commission Sketches

There was a time when I would create a lot of sketches of pets for my commission work. In time I found that my process was much faster with a brush than it was with a pencil, so I rarely do these preliminary sketches anymore. 

Here are a couple of my favorites from the past.

“Charlie” • 2013 • Graphite • 13” x 19” • Private Collection

 

“Bruno” • 2005 • Graphite • 11” x 14” • Private Collection

 

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Art Review - "White Flamingoes" & "The Sky" by Abbott Handerson Thayer - National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.

Last week, I posted about Abbott Handerson Thayer's famous argument with Teddy Roosevelt over Thayer's theories regarding camouflage in the animal world. Below are two of the images the artist used to support his concepts in his book, "Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom."

We were able to view both of these paintings last summer at the National Portrait Gallery. Initially, these paintings seemed strange in the context of Thayer's other works, but now knowing the story, I find them fascinating.

Thayer shows how all animals use their coloration to mimic their surroundings, and even bright pink flamingos vanish against a similar colored sky at sunset or sunrise - a crucial time to avoid predators. 

"White Flamingoes, study for book Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom"
• Abbott Handerson Thayer • ca. 1905-1909 • Oil on Wood • 10 1/8" x 9 3/8"

"The Sky Simulated by White Flamingoes study for book, Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom”
• Abbott Handerson Thayer • ca. 1905-1909 • Oil on Wood • 10 1/8" x 12"

Please forgive the cropping on and appearance of these paintings in this photo - they were in visual storage behind glass, so photographing them was tricky.

Painting photos by Saunders Fine Arts.

© Patrick and Kimberly Saunders, Patrick Saunders Fine Arts, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s authors/owners is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Patrick Saunders for painted works, or to Kimberly Saunders for photographs and/or videos, with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.