Art Blog - What Makes A Painting Work

The current popularity of artist cards may be a part of a culture that is seeing smaller as better after a ___super-size me___ in everything from foods to cars to houses. Or it may simply be a continuing love of things miniature which goes back to ancient times and perhaps to prehistoric times. Think tiny golden Celtic horses, animals scratched on walls, images on pots, even before the invention of paper. Illuminated manuscripts featured gorgeous miniature scenes surrounding those brilliant letters that lead into a reading. Samuel F. B. Morse is famous in this internet age for his invention of the telegraph, the first worldwide near-instantaneous communication. In his own time he was also known as a painter of miniature portraits. Small works clearly have a past and a continuing appeal… Continue reading… 1 comment

Tiny paintings that work well may combine great color and value choice with simple forms. They punch you between the eyes from across the room. Other outstanding miniatures are complex and draw you in with detail, luring you to discover their secret heart. ___Electric City___, which sold last weekend at a local gallery on its first trip out of the studio, mostly falls into the second category. It doesn__™t punch you between the eyes from across the room, but it does invite you in from 20+ feet away. While the eyes pick up an overall colorful quality, it is the forms created by areas of lighter and darker values that are most noticeable from a distance… Continue reading… 0 comments