The more I paint the more I realize that painting is a very isolating profession. The unspoken rule of an artists studio practice is it should be shrouded in secrecy and mystery. Paintings should just appear out of ether of inspiration and no-one should ever see the techniques used to paint them. Basically if it's not mysterious it can't be great art. This makes it near impossible to find the technically necessary knowledge needed to paint.
I lucked out with my professors in undergrad because they loved painting so much that they wanted to share their knowledge with the next generation of artists. Whether through live demos, books, museum visits these professors wanted to pass on the Painting Secrets of The Old Masters. It was through these books that I learned to paint on an advanced level.
Josep Albers Interaction of Color, Dalis Secrets of Magic Craftsmanship/Diary of a Genius and Delacroix journal guided me through painting after getting my BFA. This is when I realized that this myth of secrecy in painting doesn't exist. The artists who were most technically skilled all wrote and shared their process!! They kept the master painting secrets alive not only in their work but also in diaries, where they also shared their studio practice and thoughts on daily life.
Thats when it hit me! In 2023 a straight from the studio blog is the present day equivalent of a painters journal!! I bet if Delacroix was alive now.. he would be posting about his painting ups and downs, favorite paints, painting models, or even lunches and daily walks... and thats what I plan to do here! To pull back the curtain on a painters life and share what I have learned about oil painting in the 20 years Ive been studying it. Painting IS a very isolating career but it doesn't have to be! I love the process of painting and I just have to share it. There is so much joy in finally solving a drawing issue, coming up with a new series of work, talking about my favorite pigments, studio hacks, oil mediums, inspirations, art shows, books.... I could go on.. and on.. and on.. but I'll stop here.
Welcome to my studio journal, see you in the next entry
Happy painting!
Taissia
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