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I’m often asked by people why I am having success at an artist. They all tell me how lucky I am, that they wish they could have things work out like I have.

Here is the well kept secret to my success:

Burn the midnight oil. Take hours and hours of classes. Paint for hours every day, every week, every year. Draw for hours on end. Take endless chances. Get turned down over and over. Have one success for every thirty failures. Be told you’re not very good. Then keep going over, and over, and over, and over. After all that, you’ll just be getting started. Then keep at it . . . and keep going over and over and over and over. Then after several years, you’ll all of a sudden have a little bit of success and people will tell you how lucky you are.

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3

It is a very cold day in Indiana. The sun is shining brightly on the snow that’s piled up all over. My wife wants to run away and sit with me on a warm beach. I painted this picture for her today. I hope it will fulfill her wish.

The painting has five vertical bands – the sky, the water, the sand, the path, and the grass. This gives the painting rhythm. Notice the sailboats – some are closer than the others. The ones further away are over the horizon line, so only the tops of their sails are visible. Next, notice the two people walking on the left. The man is painted bigger than the woman to make it appear he is closer. Also the woman is painted from her waist up and the man from his ankles up. This is to give the illusion that the beach goes down an incline to the water.

If you look at the two people snuggled together, you’ll notice I have not painted them separately. They are both wearing dark clothing so their backs blend together. The sand has light and dark areas to make it look like ripples. The green area with grass and weeds helps give a feeling of depth to the painting.

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There are many reasons to paint. Some like expressionist art. It might not be something representational, but the artist’s emotions are there. Some like still life, while others like portraiture. Frida Kahlo did statement art. Picasso did everything from cubist to whatever.

I found some old treasures from when I was a little boy. I loved cars. I cut out pictures of them from magazines. I went in dealerships and took their brochures. I went to auto shows. In a zippered looseleaf I found hundreds of pictures of car ads from the late fifties and early sixties. It brought back the magic feeling of being a boy.

This is a 1957 Plymouth. The Alkire family next door had one. I always thought it looked like a shark that was going to come eat me. It must have been the massive grille that looked like teeth.

I painted this to take me back to those days . . .

“Who’s the leader of the club that’s made for you and me, M – I – C – K – E – Y . .”

“The Lone Ranger Rides Again!”

“Bucky Bucky Beaver, New Ipana Toothpaste . . .”

“Hey kids, What time is it? ” “It’s Howdy Doody Time!”

3

I’ve known a lot of accomplished musicians in my lifetime. If there is one thing that sets them apart from everybody else, it is PRACTICE.

The same is true of artists. Many people complain that they don’t have time to practice painting or drawing. I’ve found that the best thing for me is to always carry a drawing book with me wherever I go.

The past three weeks I’ve spent a lot of time away from home between Ontario and Utah. My drawing book goes with me. When I’m on an airplane, I always grab the magazines and draw the pictures from them. I try to sketch the people sitting next to me. It’s hard on the neck, but it makes good practice. I draw the people who are sitting in waiting rooms or people who are giving speeches.

These are two examples of my recent travels.

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6

Many years ago I went on a deployment with the U.S. Air Force Reserves to Hawaii. After we got checked in, they gave us free time. I went with some buddies to Waikiki. The bus let us off downtown. I had dreamed of visiting the beach there since I was a little kid, so I was especially excited. My buddies were more interested in shopping for souvenirs, especially tee shirts. I was bored out of my mind and really mad because I wanted to see the beach! Finally, I just walked away from them. They followed me. I went between some buildings. There was the beach. This was the scene I saw. They acted like it was their idea to go there. Hmmmm.

I tried to show the reflection of the sunset in the water by putting the red and orange between black lines that represent waves. Note the person. It is a silhouette. I think that is what makes the painting.

3

If you want to create a beautiful still life painting, one way to guarantee it would be to have it lit by natural light from a window. Put it on a dark table top. Have one object be clear glass, the others of shiny surface. Keep the background fairly dark.

The dark table top will reflect the object. This photo shows a goblet. If you squint at it, you’ll see white lines. Paint the lines just as you see them. Notice the stem of the glass reflects underneath the base. You’ll paint the dark tone all the way around the goblet, then inside of it where it is the same value. There are some areas with lighter value. Put them where you see them.

The apple and the figurine both have white highlights. Put them in first so you’ll know where they go. Then draw the shapes of the different values you see in both items, painting them in later with the correct colors and values.

What will really make the painting “SING” will be how you handle the reflections underneath them. The values of the reflections are not as bright. The left edge of the apple reflection is dark, so it gradually goes from very dark and almost unknown to the faint red color.

Try this technique. You’ll love it!

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4

I love doing figurative paintings. This shows a typical scene at a city park. I’ve tried to show the gesture of the people, as well as the reflected light on the platform. The background shows gently rolling hills. Hopefully you can feel the excitement.