Understanding Value and Tone for Better Painting

A still-life painting of a pear and pomegranate on a table with grapes, illustrating value and tone in painting

Did you know that good drawing and rendering skills will help give you a solid foundation in tone, otherwise known as value? Value is how light or darkness of a color. For example: If you took a black and white photograph of your painting, the shades of grey would be the different values or tones within […]

Understanding Atmospheric Perspective In Art – sec1

A perspective drawing illustrating a single vanishing point with a bridge structure, for a lesson on atmospheric perspective in art

Like many subjects in art, landscape paintings can tell a story, taking the viewer to a different place and time. Whether the place is real or imaginary, it should be convincing, making us feel as though it perhaps could exist, even if only within our minds. Putting the rules of perspective into good use can […]

SILENCE/SHAPES

A dark rocky landscape at night with glowing green smoke, titled 'Silence/Shapes'

The Italian artist Filippo Minelli is a master of contrasts. With his photography project he started in 2009, the artist, who inspired by political demonstrations, managed to create colourful and vibrant smoke-bombs by igniting them within Romantic landscapes. Capturing the events on camera, he transforms this traditionally violent act into a vision of tranquillity. The purpose of […]

Aesthetica Art Prize Call Mansoureh Pakzad 2016

A wilting orange flower against a dark background, from the Aesthetica Art Prize entry by Mansoureh Pakzad, 2016

Attracting thousands of entries from all over the world across a range of media, the Aesthetica Art Prize is a celebration of art from across the globe, and is now open for entries. It offers both emerging and established artists the opportunity to showcase their work to a wider audience, and further their engagement with […]

EXQUISITE MACHINES OF WOOD AND PAPER

A dark sculptural assemblage of wooden gears and mechanical forms, from 'Exquisite Machines of Wood and Paper'

In an interview with This is Colossal, Agdag said, “Aesthetically, the driving force behind the creation of works I make stem from a need to see and imagine objects, machines and environments in a way I’d like to see them, to imagine how I think they work and expose their inner workings. All too often, […]

THE PULP FICTION

A classical-style painting of two reclining nude figures, titled 'The Pulp Fiction'

THE PULP FICTION OF MICHAEL CARSON With a style that reminds us a little of the Radiohead’s “Jigsaws Falling Into Place,” Michael Carson makes a night out seem like a smokey, dreamy experience. We saw these works onEK last week, and just loved the mood; a bit of darkness, still-life, club life, and late night life.

ANIMUS CHRYSALIS MORTIS

A colorful, psychedelic mural of a stylized creature with multiple eyes, titled 'Anima's Chrysalis Mortis'

For this body of work I was inspired by the surrealist and deeply symbolic films of Alejandro Jodorowsky, Jungian archetypes, and Greek mythology. I created a personal language of symbols, then made a card set and selected at random a different set for each new painting. This method taps into the elements of subconscious influence […]

ROLLING THROUGH THE SHADOWS

A black-and-white abstract image of swirling, concentric tunnel-like lines, titled 'Rolling Through the Shadows'

“I’m super honored to be a part of the Leica Gallery LA show, and excited to see my friends’ images together – multi-generations of skateboard photographers condensed into one amazing exhibit,” said Brook, who has traveled the world on skateboarding teams, Leica forever in hand. “Thomas [Campbell] and Tobin [Yelland] were big influences on me […]