FineArtStudioOnline Recommended Links

Robert Genn: "Thriving artists remain curious, experimental, joyful, self-critical and driven by a state of perpetual studenthood. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn's thoughts on growing as an artist.

Alyson Stanfield: "Don't think of competition as a bad thing. Instead, consider it a challenge. Competition can get you up in the morning and motivated. Competition can drive you to do better work and become more focused on your career and where you want it to go." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Does competition motivate you? Or make you anxious?

Stapleton Kearns: "Restraint is often the key to pulling off subjects that would be cloyingly sentimental if painted in a more naturalistic fashion. Note this well, as it is mastery and very applicable to painting still, and little appreciated." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape talks about the artist Abbott Thayer.

Sue Smith: "There are artists who become successful because they are able to "get their work out there." There are probably just as many, if not more, who become successful because they don't. Instead of working on the external, they turn their attention to the internal - improving their skill at producing work people want. " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Sometimes, if you want success, you need to look inward

Charlie Gilkey: "If you're serious about your art, it's unlikely that you'll see your big hit coming; if your craft was that formulaic, it wouldn't be art. All you can do is show up and get your stuff to good enough. You might not ever have a big hit, but if you don't keep at it, you never will." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: I love this post about how you just don't know what your big hit will be.

Tags: success | mastery | All Quotes by Charlie Gilkey

Robert Genn: "Painting is a matter of thinking of one thing while you're thinking of something else. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: What do you think about when you're creating?

Stapleton Kearns: "Do you know what type of paintings sell best? Good paintings. Take care of your art and it will take care of you." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Lots of great advice in this post from Stape.

Stapleton Kearns: "Keying a painting is setting the range of light to dark, and where the different elements will be placed on that value scale" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape explains what it means to "key" a painting.

Tags: learning | mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "You cannot observe good color into a painting. Good color is poetic and creative, it has to be installed." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape talks about color in paintings.

Keith Bond: "It is common for us artists to get so caught up with either the technique, the content, or the abstract that we lose sight of how they need to be used in conjunction." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Keith asks if your work has the "Triple Impact" - if it looks good from far away, from normal viewing distance and up close.

Tags: learning | mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Keith Bond

Stapleton Kearns: "An artist sells integrity, that is your most important product." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape talks about repeating paintings, and whether it's acceptable or not. Great discussion in the comments too!

Armand Cabrera: "Simplify, simplify, simplify as much as possible without losing the essential of what is sought " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some wonderful excerpts from Frederick Waugh's unpublished notes.

Tags: mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Armand Cabrera

Stapleton Kearns: "A GOOD PAINTING IS A POEM ABOUT ITS SUBJECT, AND NOT A VERBATIM DESCRIPTION! Its not what you paint, but how you paint it that matters." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape critiques a painting and talks about how every painting needs a "raison d'etre".

Ted Seth Jacobs: "I am not your teacher: nature is your teacher. But you have to have knowledge of the principles of form to understand what nature is showing you. These principles are helpful only as far as they help us see nature. If nature disagrees with a principle, nature is right, the principle is wrong. Nature is our teacher always." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: So much wisdom here from master artist Ted Seth Jacobs.

Robert Genn: "It always surprises me when beginning artists do not make a rugged effort to search out their masters. Fear of "bothering" and shaky feelings of intimidation may be a couple of the reasons. Most masters I've known have been more than generous with their time and encouragement. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn talks about the merits of the master-apprentice relationship.

Stapleton Kearns: "Value is more important than color, as it is a part of drawing., Color is a decoration you hang on your drawing. Since it is so important to get the value right." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some great advice on how to "key" a painting

Stapleton Kearns: "Stay back on that brush. Holding it like a pencil, up at the ferule ( the shiny part) makes crabbed and "short" stingy looking strokes. This will absolutely destroy your brushwork!" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: A great demo on how to hold your brushes.

Tags: | mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Robert Genn: "Before starting in with the "busyness" of working, stop to think of the simplest and freshest way a passage might be conceived and executed. Very often a move up to a larger brush, together with a careful mixing of the desired colour, and an elegant, well-contemplated stroke or two can carry the day." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: How to keep from overworking your paintings.

Tags: | mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Jeff Hein: "If you have a simple yellow, red, and blue, you can pretty much mix any color. The palette is important, from an individual standpoint, but... it's not critical. The important thing is that you see and interpret the colors accurately, and make smart decisions." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Thoughts on artist's palettes.

Stapleton Kearns: "Try to learn how to say just enough to make your picture work and no more. Contrast detailed passages with simpler passages, and your work will have more sophistication and poetry. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some thoughts on mystery in your paintings.

Sue Smith: "Learning in the face of imminent failure, where there seems to be little purpose in what you are doing other than your deep need and love for the action - this is what the recession has to offer. Suddenly you must reexamine why you are doing this - becoming an artist." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some great thoughts on continuing to learn inspired by Clint Watson.

Stapleton Kearns: "What you don't want to do is try to shove the paint around on your canvas until it is right. The more times you touch a stroke, the weaker it becomes.There is a beauty in the look of a painting that has been fearlessly executed." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: If you struggle with "licking" your paintings, Stape explains the technique you should use to avoid it.

Tags: | mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Joseph Rodefer DeCamp: "Don't draw eyes, noses and mouths but put on a splotch of paint the size and shape of the light or shadow. Don't let your mind do the seeing, it tells you too much... draw the shadow shapes." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some advice from Joseph Rodefer DeCamp and John Singer Sargent.

Stapleton Kearns: "Licking is the opposite of putting a brushstroke on the canvas and leaving it alone. Instead the painter repeatedly smooths out and worries the brushstroke after it is made. Its a bad habit and if you have it you need to break it." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape talks about more precise brushwork.

Tags: mastery | technique | skill | artists | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Shawn Sullivan: "You cannot become great by association. If I rubbed my hand across a Rembrandt a thousand times that would not allow me to suddenly declare myself a master." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Shawn Sullivan explores the trend of artists who write books but are not accomplished themselves.

Stapleton Kearns: "It is evocation and not description that takes a picture to the level of greatness. I don't mean to dismiss technique, only that it is expected as a tool, but is not in itself the end. Just as having a command of vocabulary and grammar is essential to being a writer, it is more important to have something extraordinary to say." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape gives his opinions on what makes a painting great art.

Robert Genn: "His back is straight, his eyes attend to his business, his long fingers are full of wisdom. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn discusses the Japanese painting style, Nihonga.

Tags: | artists | style | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Miranda Aschenbrenner: "The trick to developing a body of work is that you need to provide yourself with interesting challenges. You need to keep each piece fresh and new, all the while working within your selected theme." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some ideas for developing a body of work.

Stapleton Kearns: "The real thing that makes good painters is how they think about what they are doing. I have seen wonderful paintings made from ordinary paints.While it is difficult to make a good painting with the best of materials the secret is not in the paint. You can't buy a tube of better art." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: There's no magic tube of paint - it's what's in your head that counts

Robert Genn: "Like natural selection in the evolution of species, artistic influence is a semi-voluntary device that ensures art never stands still. Further, in a state of flux, if not progress, derivation from others can lead to derivation from the self. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn's thoughts on artistic influence.

Tags: influence | copying | mastery | | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Lisa Call: "Want to make masterpieces? How much artwork are you producing?" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Lisa Call expands on the idea that to produce great art, you need to produce lots of it.

Clint Watson: "The one thing you actually can't afford not to do: ship great art." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Creating great art should be your #1 priority.

Abigail Gutting: "The power of a visual masterpiece is as moving as a great composition in music or a profound literary work." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Yes, it is.

Mark McGuinness: "The truly great composers produce more masterpieces than the others, mainly because they produced more work overall." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Producing lots of work is the key to producing those masterpieces.

John Ruskin: "If the colour is wrong, everything is wrong: just as, if you are singing, and sing false notes, it does not matter how true your words are." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn examines the palettes of historical painters.

Amy Harrison: "Creative success rarely stems from one big thing in isolation. They may appear to happen overnight, but they have usually emerged from years of hard work across many different projects, with some outright flops in there for good measure. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Do you let perfectionism get in the way of actually completing a piece?

Tags: perfectionism | quality | mastery | success | All Quotes by Amy Harrison

Clint Watson: "As you create your art, make sure you're trying to learn from each work. Strive to improve. Learn from the masters." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Feeling embarrassed by your older works? That might be a really good sign.

Lori Woodward Simons: "It is my hope that artists everywhere will develop their unique voice - while based on academic knowledge. Yes, sometimes we do need to copy other's work, especially in the beginning - that's how we humans learn - by observation and mimicking. But there should come a time when we chart and follow our own path, break away from the fold " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Advice is wonderful, but at the end of the day you have to follow the path that's true for you.

Stapleton Kearns: "The world is full of average paintings. It doesn't need any more. You need to look for ways to make each one special." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape offers some tips on designing paintings when you're "en plein air".

John Singer Sargent: "Cultivate an ever-continuous power of observation. Wherever you are, be always ready to make slight notes of postures, groups and incidents. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some inspirational quotes from Sargent.

Tags: | inspiration | mastery | skill | All Quotes by John Singer Sargent

Robert Genn: "The outdoor workstation is a place of invention as well as toil. The eternal puzzle draws us back. It was ever thus. We are not donut machines. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn gives his thoughts on plein air painting.

Stapleton Kearns: "It isn't what you paint but how you paint it that matters." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape examines some more Winslow Homer paintings.

James Gurney: "Mastery, he said, comes from steady practice, the willingness to embrace failure, and a positive attitude. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Debunking the "talent" myth.

Miranda Aschenbrenner: "Your job as an artist is not to produce good art, it's to produce lots of art. By producing lots of art, you will thereby produce good art!" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some thoughts from Miranda on perfectionism in art and how it can hold you back.

Tags: quality | perfectionism | mastery | mistakes | All Quotes by Miranda Aschenbrenner

Robert Genn: "A great deal of painting is noticing the occasional things that you do right. Time and contemplation allows this. Lucky happenstance can be expanded upon in the next painting or savoured in the present." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert talks about painting at a mountain retreat.

Robert Genn: ""If you're lucky you will fall in love with some interesting processes and begin to think you own them." " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn offers some advice to recently graduated art students.

Lori Woodward Simons: "You can't please everyone anyway, so ignore all the worrisome thoughts that push you this way and that, and concentrate on what delights you. When you're sure of what that is, pursue it with all the energy you've got." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: It doesn't matter what style of art you love, just find your passion and pursue it.

Tags: style | passion | mastery | vision | All Quotes by Lori Woodward Simons

Clint Watson: "Guts, Authenticity, being a "real person" who tells "real stories" ... that's what your followers are looking for. Do you have the guts to do it though? " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Do you have the guts to show your real self to your followers?

Tags: | mastery | authenticity | collectors | All Quotes by Clint Watson

Margaret Sarantis: "I think that for most [artists], creating is in their blood. They can't NOT write, paint or compose. " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Creators MUST create

Clint Watson: "If you're not looking back over past works and feeling a slight twinge of embarrassment, at least about some of them,....... then how far have you really come?" Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: To my present eye and skill level, some of my past work is embarrassingly bad.

Robert Genn: "The production of art is a curious combination of childlike intuition and practical, often hard won, know-how." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Why great art is so difficult - you have to be a child and a master at the same time.

Armand Cabrera: "When I do use photos I limit them to the things I know they are good for and use them in conjunction with color sketches and drawings. They are never a substitute for painting from life but in their proper place they can be another effective tool for your art. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: An excellent post on what photographs are good for and how they differ from painting from life.

Bill Weaver: "Now, more than any other time artists wanting to support themselves by their art will need to do more than just make their work. They will need to work harder at standing out, being visible, and building a strong network of buyers." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Bill discusses the mindset and attitudes necessary to success.

Stapleton Kearns: "Amateurs look at nature and say "what does it look like?" Pros look at nature and say "what can I do to it?" " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape talks about changing the color temperature of a painting.

Tags: | mastery | skill | technique | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Robert Genn: "Art is a never-ending maze where wrong turns can hinder for decades." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn talks about seeing your work and the world with fresh eyes.

Stapleton Kearns: "Art comes from decision making, things like handling and design." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape shares his thoughts on projectors.

Tags: | mastery | mediocrity | skill | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "Many , if not all the problems you will face in painting were solved by generations of painters who built upon knowledge handed down to them. You won't live long enough to figure it all out." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape explains why knowing art history is important.

Ken Robert: "If you practice your craft day after day, you won't necessarily get better every day, but you will get better over time, and, while you're patiently waiting to improve, you'll maintain the skills you've gained thus far." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Sometimes it's frustrating when we don't see improvement straight away.

Robert Genn: "Contrary to popular belief, all evolving artists are in a full time battle with mediocrity. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn's thoughts on living life with no regrets.

Stapleton Kearns: "Each days painting is a rehearsal for tomorrow's." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape lets us behind the scenes of his studio painting process.

Tags: mastery | discipline | action | passion | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Marian Dioguardi: "Students think they are learning painting so that it will become easier to paint as they get better. Little do they realize is that what they are learning is the persistence to struggle the rest of their painting lives." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Marian makes a brilliant comment on Stape's blog.

Lisa Gloria: "The last few times I've been to the Art Institute of Chicago I've looked again at the technique of some famous paintings to realize: they only used enough technique to get the job done. No more, no less. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Learning technique is important, but it's never more important than the meaning behind the work.

Hazel Dooney: "Imagination without skill amounts to very little. Acquiring, developing - and keeping - that skill is a matter of discipline and routine." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Develop discipline and habits

Dian McCray: "The Most Direct Path To Success: GO BACK TO THE STUDIO! The only real failure is failure to get started. Simple. Direct. Effective." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Creating Art is Job Number 1

Stapleton Kearns: "The viewer finds hidden geometry pleasing in a painting. I think that is because they are vaguely aware that there is sense or order there, even if they don't know exactly why." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: More design and compositions tips from Stape.

Tags: | mastery | design | composition | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Robert Genn: "Rather than proscribing a recipe, think of your art as a dynamic event. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn discusses improvisation versus planning in art.

Hazel Dooney: "Imagination without skill amounts to very little. Acquiring, developing - and keeping - that skill is a matter of discipline and routine." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Practice makes perfect.

Ken Robert: "Practice Makes Perfect, but Play Makes Practice Purposeful." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Practice is important but don't let it stop you from creating the art you want to.

Tags: creativity | practice | mastery | All Quotes by Ken Robert

Steven Pressfield: "Few things in life are sprints. Almost everything that's worthwhile is a marathon. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: A beautiful, inspiring story.

Stapleton Kearns: "Making a living with your art is not necessarily incompatible with making good art. In fact I think the process has made me a far better painter." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: More thoughts on working with galleries from Stape.

Armand Cabrera: "The arrangement and design of your values are the underlying strength for most successful pictorial compositions. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Advice on designing your compositions with value.

Tags: design | composition | mastery | All Quotes by Armand Cabrera

Seth Godin: "The artists are different. They took a leap. They weren't pushed. They jumped." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Seth talks about mentoring and what it is that causes someone to fulfill their potential.

Gregory Peters: "Dare to be different, address the needs and wants of your buying public and you'll make art sales a reality you can take to the bank. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: How do you make sure that your art stands out?

Hugh MacLeod: "Choosing an easy life rarely ends up with much of either" Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Choosing an easy life rarely ends up with much of either - right on

Stapleton Kearns: "The root of design is simplification. The first and most important idea in design is seizing on the essential and eliminating the extraneous." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape talks about design in paintings.

Tags: | mastery | design | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Mark McGuinness: "the harder I work, the more inspiration I get." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Persevere

Bill Weaver: "...being a pro is really about Mastery. Not a fixed mastery, but a continually growing and improving mastery of every thing related to her life from work, home, family and community. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some more interesting thoughts on how to develop a professional attitude towards your art.

Seth Godin: "The ability to choose who judges your work--the people who will make it better, use it and reward you--is the key building block in becoming an artist in whatever you do." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: It's important to learn to listen to critics who can help you grow, but not all critics

Armand Cabrera: "A thoughtful approach trumps a formula any day of the week." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some thoughts on how to create beautiful greens in your landscapes.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Armand Cabrera

Aletta de Wal: "Successful artists never stop learning. There are learning opportunities out there for every type of learning style, every budget and every topic." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Artist's residencies are a great way to get some secluded time and hone your art.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Aletta de Wal

Derain: "True style . . . is set forth so skillfully and effectively as to become invisible . . . Greco makes a show of style . . . VelÃ¡squez has no style." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Andre Derain offers some thoughts on style.

Tags: | style | mastery | All Quotes by Derain

Tom Lovell: "Look for movement in color - warm to cool, light to dark. It is all around us: sky, earth, grass, walls, etc. Areas will go back in space if slight amounts of complement are added." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Advice about color from illustrator Tom Lovell.

Tags: | mastery | color | All Quotes by Tom Lovell

Bertrad Russell: "In the modern world the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: This is why the moment of hope is when you realize that you suck

Stapleton Kearns: "Taste lives in the color, the proportions , the design and every aspect of a painting. It is never sentimental, sensational or cloyingly sweet. It is quiet, restrained and understated." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Another wonderful post from Stape on tasteful art.

Tags: taste | style | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "Taste is what often separates the good from the great, The best artists almost always have it and the also rans usually fail because of its lack." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: What separates the good from the great?

Mark Tobey: "You don't want to help the young too much,it will just weaken them and they'll only resent it." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Sometimes people have to struggle through things for themselves.

Stapleton Kearns: "Be yourself, everyone else is already taken. You are selling yourself when you go into the art market, if you aren't being yourself, your product won't perform as expected. Your paintings need to be individual and unique to yourself." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Timeless, wonderful advice from Stapleton Kearns. This whole post is a must-read.

Tags: | mastery | success | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Sue Smith: "...we automatically make judgments based upon an incorrect understanding of relativity: is it better than Sorolla, instead of is it better than paintings I did last week, which is also the only real measure that matters." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: As artists, we compare our work to masters instead of our own progress.

Tags: | criticism | mastery | All Quotes by Sue Smith

Robert Genn: "Practice in bite-sized chunks works to this end and builds what is called "cognitive reserve." By putting complex skills into your pocket, you can take them out at will. The result is better product." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Practicing certain techniques and skills will help you to create better work.

Tags: | mastery | discipline | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Stapleton Kearns: "Breadth has to be installed rather than observed into a painting. It is a way of thinking, not a way of seeing." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some great pointers on using your brushstrokes to create form and breadth.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "Learn to simplify. If the detail is smaller than your brush can render, leave it out!" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape gives advice on how to improve your brushwork.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Hugh MacLeod: "My advice to [aspiring artists] is always the same: "Make Art Every Day"." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: If you want to be an artist, it's simple - make art continuously

Randall Gutting: "Art should reveal the mind of the artist and the hand of the Creator" Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: the Creator is an artist, so our creations should reflect that

Hazel Dooney: "The best sex - and the best art - is expelled from the subconscious and leaves one with nowhere to hide." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Awesome Quote

Sarah Marie Lacy: "I don't care about goals. I care about vision, and intention." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: I feel the same way - specific goals aren't necessary most of the time

Robert Genn: "Looking for little moves that count? Make small paintings, make lots of 'em, make 'em often, and you'll be in the winning circle when you come to make the big ones. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: New neuroscience research helps artists find the most efficient ways to improve their skills.

Tags: | quality | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Ken Robert: "What we call mistakes are really just deviations from the plans we've made. And when it's our plan to get better, we can get pretty rigid about what that would look like. Anything different than what we've planned and predicted is then deemed a failure. That's too bad, because our so called blunders can be the seeds of wonder if we let them be." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Unfortunately creative progress is not a linear process.

Tags: mistakes | mastery | All Quotes by Ken Robert

David Billings: "What can't be taught so easily is how to take all those seemingly trivial observations of the world and turn them into something that communicates without words." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: While technique is important, knowing what you want to say with that technique is vital.

Tags: | mastery | inspiration | All Quotes by David Billings

Ariane Goodwin: "Authentic style is a combination of communicating an emotional truth and mastery of your chosen materials." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy:

Tags: style | mastery | All Quotes by Ariane Goodwin

Robert Genn: "Paintings can languish for a year or more before the light of desire turns green. Sometimes the needed epiphany is right in your face. Faith in your own procedures and abhorrence of overworking are keys. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Sometimes old paintings just need a good reworking.

Tags: | mastery | criticism | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Keith Bond: "Sometimes you need to recognize when things aren't working. Sometimes you need to be willing to wipe it off and start over. Recognize your failures and learn from them. Don't be afraid to admit it when it isn't working." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: It's okay to make mistakes, but learning hen something isn't working is important.

Tags: mistakes | mastery | All Quotes by Keith Bond

Sue Smith: "Artists do not work in a vacuum. We have an artistic heritage, a visual language that continues a conversation started centuries ago. And like children learning to talk, we start to communicate through a limited means, slowing gaining the ability to understand nuance and personal expression." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: What influences your artistic philosophies?

Tags: | mastery | conversations | All Quotes by Sue Smith

Alyson Stanfield: "Your style is a combination of the mediums, technique, and subject matter you choose. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Your style is what makes you stand out from other artists. It's how people recognize you.

Tags: style | mastery | All Quotes by Alyson Stanfield

Stapleton Kearns: "COLOR IS A DECORATION YOU HANG ON YOUR DRAWING!" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape warns artists not to confuse color and value.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Dave Rowley: "It's easy to get discouraged when we think that for all our creative efforts we haven't learned anything, or grown. All the hours spent sketching, writing, practicing scales can seem wasted. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: A beautiful description of artistic growth.

Tags: creativity | mastery | All Quotes by Dave Rowley

Dan Schultz: "We should make choices in our working methods that will bring us greater satisfaction, but be careful to be faithful to our unique personal tendencies. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Some thoughts on developing a personal style

Tags: style | mastery | All Quotes by Dan Schultz

Stapleton Kearns: "If you are not making decisions you are not making art. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Th decisions you make in your paintings are what makes your art unique.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "Learning to paint landscapes from a photo is like learning to swim at home on the sofa." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: To really understand your subject, you need to work from life.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "A PAINTING HAS NO REASON TO EXIST OTHER THAN THAT IT BE WELL MADE!" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape shares his checklist for ensuring his paintings are of the highest quality.

Tags: | mastery | discipline | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "If you think everything you do is good, you aren't reaching to be better. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Constantly striving to be better is vital to being an artist.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Stapleton Kearns: "You can continue to work on a painting as long as you can continue to make good decisions about what to do to it." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Learning when to stop working on a painting is vital.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Lori Woodward Simons: "A signature style can't be forced; it develops naturally over time. This development, however, usually begins with knowledge, followed by practice, and finally, experimentation." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: If you haven't found your own unique style yet, don't worry - it's just a matter of time.

Tags: | mastery | style | All Quotes by Lori Woodward Simons

Clint Watson: "your first explorations into art marketing are likely, to your future self, going to look like pathetic little messes." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: At some point, you have to actually do things to learn

Robert Genn: "Artists of quality have little to fear. " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Everything starts with the quality of your art

Robert Genn: "For visual artists, directing the torch of our imagination is our main art. Art happens when alchemy is found." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: It is our imagination and our own unique vision which is important in our work.

Tags: | mastery | imagination | vision | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Stapleton Kearns: "I wouldn't look for success in luck, instead better to put your faith in knowledge and skill, practice, experience and persistence." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Luck isn't reliable - take success into your own hands.

Tags: | mastery | discipline | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

: "Chasing after subject matter or technique to master a popular style perhaps has value for some artists. But perhaps it is just as important to chase after something through the force of your own need, a desire to discover what it is that reaches into your soul and hangs on tight. Especially in art." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Do you know what it is that drives your art, your desire to create?

Tags: mastery | inspiration | All Quotes by

Liz Emmett-Mattox: "How many things do you not do, not try, not start, because you're worried about looking stupid? Because you're worried what 'they' (the great mythical they who watches over your every move!) will think?" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Making mistakes is a vital part of learning new things - don't let looking stupid get it in the way!

Tags: | mastery | mistakes | All Quotes by Liz Emmett-Mattox

Steve Doherty: "Finally, it is important to remember that critics will love something one day and hate it the next. Artists must lead and critics must follow, not the other way around, because artists search for a truth while critics deal with a reflection of that truth." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Don't pay attention to the critics - their opinions change from era to era.

Tags: | criticism | mastery | All Quotes by Steve Doherty

Stapleton Kearns: "YOU CANNOT OBSERVE DESIGN INTO A PAINTING!" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Good design doesn't happen by accident - you have to create yourself.

Tags: | mastery | composition | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Robert Genn: "A painting requires conscious strategy as well as subconscious action and reaction." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn shows us that painting and chess have more in common than we thought.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Robert Genn: "An artist "[...] must come to know that his best teacher is himself, and perennial studenthood, with the help of books and passions, bring true creative happiness and often success. Artists of character know all this. That's how they fly."" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: By constantly learning and exploring our creativity, we become better and better artists.

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Jennifer King: "I feel that this tool and the ways I'm using it actually contribute to the content and message of my paintings. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: By using your techniques consciously, you avoid creating artwork that seems "gimmicky".

Tags: technique | mastery | All Quotes by Jennifer King

Stapleton Kearns: "First you draw what you know, then you learn to draw what you see, finally you learn to see what you know " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Timeless advice from Stapleton Kearns.

Tags: | artists | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Nancy Reyner: "To create personal work, something unique, an artist embarks on a journey, which according to Gladwell is a lot of hours. This should not discourage us. We all want to get to our final destination, but the real meat of the journey is to enjoy each step - not to find a quick trick to get to the finish. It's the enjoyment of each phase of the journey that creates the final result. " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10 000 hours to become a master, but that shouldn't discourage you!

Tags: | mastery | All Quotes by Nancy Reyner

Robert Genn: "[...] many artists work in standard formats, standard sizes and standard paint. Their work may abdicate in-your-face differentness for some other way of getting noticed. It may be simply taking aim at that illusive thing called quality." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: There are many ways to get your art noticed, but maybe the best way is to just focus on quality.

Tags: | quality | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Sue Smith: "It became a question of demanding poetry instead of competent description." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: It's not just about reproducing what's in front of you - it's about painting with feeling.

Tags: | mastery | quality | All Quotes by Sue Smith

Ken Robert: "Far too often, you and I think the thing we lack is the proper tool. If we just had a tricked-out laptop or a quality set of paint brushes, we could finally build our web empire or create our masterpiece." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: It's not the tools that make the artist - it's how you use them that counts.

Tags: mastery | skill | All Quotes by Ken Robert

Robert Genn: "In our struggle to say things right, we overlook the value of understatement. "The secret of being a bore," said Voltaire, "is to tell everything."" Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Paucity is often the key to a captivating painting.

Tags: | mastery | skill | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Keith Bond: "Do you say so much with each passage, that more is revealed each time your work is viewed? Are the works felt? " Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: What kind of artist are you? A police reporter or a poet?

Tags: | quality | mastery | All Quotes by Keith Bond

Lori Woodward Simons: "Once an artist, always a student." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Lori Woodward Simons reminds us that being an excellent artist means constantly learning.

Tags: | mastery | learning | quality | All Quotes by Lori Woodward Simons

Jonathan Mead: "Sucking is absolutely necessary. There's no way around it. In order to get better at anything, at some point or another you're going to have to suck. That's just the way it is...So, here's the secret to sucking at anything...Start." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: The moment you realize you suck at art...there's hope

Ken Roberts: "Starting over is not a sign of failure; it's just part of the process. You should be proud that you've come this far. You should be even prouder that you're willing to head back to the beginning in order to do it better this time." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Ken Roberts reminds us that to master something, you need to keep the mind of a student.

Tags: | mastery | quality | All Quotes by Ken Roberts

Robert Genn: "Painting, as I've said a few times before, is a matter of cooperating with the needs of the painting." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Robert Genn reminds us that capturing the spirit of your subject is more important than it's exact rendition.

Tags: | subjectmatter | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Sue Smith: "I think about all the Impressionist painters who could see the colors of the rainbow in their shadows. They must not have been sitting in the Starbucks drive thru." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Anyone who has studied the effects of light in art can appreciate this post by Sue Smith.

Tags: light | mastery | passion | All Quotes by Sue Smith

Clint Watson: "if you...have that insatiable hunger to create . . . . then it is only a matter of time until you succeed." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Like a diamond cutter, it takes hard work and practice to change raw material into beautiful art.

Ira Glass: "Even if you're not happy with what you're putting out, even if your ability to execute doesn't quite match up to your vision yet, don't quit. This is normal. Do a lot more work and you'll find the gap close." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Ira Glass on perseverance

Gary Vaynerchuk: "A lot of people can play the piano, but not everyone can be Billy Joel." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson:

Danielle Laporte: " what I stop doing is just as important as what I start and continue to do....stopping, I've learned, is the stuff of mastery." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: It's not just focusing on the important stuff...it's learning to stop focusing on the unimportant stuff.

Robert Genn: "The unexamined painting is not worth painting." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: "The unexamined painting is not worth painting." Robert Genn

Tags: | discipline | mastery | skill | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Lori Woodward Simons: "No dream ever comes true without concerted effort." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: "No dream ever comes true without concerted effort." Lori Woodward Simons

Tags: mastery | accomplishment | success | talent | All Quotes by Lori Woodward Simons

Steve Jobs: ""People think focus means saying yes to the thing you've got to focus on. But that's not what it means at all. It means saying no to the 100 other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I'm actually as proud of the many things we haven't done as the things we have done."" Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: "Focus means saying no to the 100 other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully" Steve Jobs

Kathleen Dunphy: "the last 10% of a painting usually takes 90% of the time...it's [that last 10%] that can take a painting from being good to being something that really grabs the viewer " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: "the last 10% of a painting usually takes 90% of the time." Kathleen Dunphy

Tags: application | mastery | finishing | | All Quotes by Kathleen Dunphy

Pablo Picasso: "Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into the sun" Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: "Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot, others transform a yellow spot into the sun" Pablo Picasso

Tags: application | inspiration | mastery | All Quotes by Pablo Picasso

Stapleton Kearns: "The greatest enemy of advancement as an artist is, in my opinion being solitary. I think that you need to learn from other artists, both living and dead." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Stape warns us that the greatest enemy to advancing as an artist is to try and go it alone.

Tags: mastery | learning | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Robert Genn: "It's never too late to get good, and it's never too late to get accepted." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: It's never too late to get good, and it's never too late to get accepted.

Tags: acceptance | skill | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Oscar Ortiz: "I recommend all artists take regular photos of the drawing or painting they're working on in order to spot flaws or possible areas to improve." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Oscar Ortiz on how digital photos can make your artwork better

Tags: mastery | All Quotes by Oscar Ortiz

Ken Roberts: "Devote as much attention to the drawing of an earlobe as you do to your desire to draw a full portrait." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: It's important to give the details as much passion as you do the big picture.

Tags: skill | mastery | All Quotes by Ken Roberts

Robert Genn: "Even third-generation work can take on a power and presence that initial efforts don't have." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Robert Genn on revisiting subjects.

Tags: mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Ken Roberts: "When you can't see the point of what you're doing, try a pointless exercise. You could be surprised to find it's not so pointless after all." Visit this link >>

Sarah Lacy: Creative exercises, while they may seem pointless, are necessary for strengthening your creative muscles.

Tags: learning | skill | mastery | discipline | All Quotes by Ken Roberts

Robert Genn: "Any amount of actuarial income-projection does not stand a chance against the singular development of a uniquely creative style" Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Robert Genn discusses why you should focus on your art and not your income

Tags: skill | marketing | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Stapleton Kearns: "How do you make gray with complementary colors?" Visit this link >>

Woodward Simons: Today's "Ask Stape" mixing complimentary colors

Tags: skill | mastery | learning | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Lori Woodward: "I learned very little of what I now know while at college. My professors did not understand or teach..light, color, drawing, or edges." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Lori Woodward Explains what is missing in some college art departments

Tags: skill | learning | mastery | All Quotes by Lori Woodward

Keith Bond: "strong compositions are limited to 3 or 4 main values of varying dominance." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Keith Bond talks about the value of color

Tags: mastery | skill | composition | All Quotes by Keith Bond

Robert Genn: "Form floating on formlessness takes on more form. " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Form floating on formlessness takes on more form - Robert Genn

Tags: mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Stapleton Kearns: "I have known a few good painters who were not terribly bright, I have known none who didn't work obsessively. " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: I have known a few good painters who were not terribly bright, I have known none who didn't work obsessively.

Tags: discipline | skill | mastery | All Quotes by Stapleton Kearns

Loriwords: "Every once in a while, and for no known reason, we artists produce a masterpiece." Visit this link >>

Woodward Simons: Invest in Yourself By Saving Your Best Works

Tags: mastery | skill | learning | inspiration | All Quotes by Loriwords

Lori Woodward Simons: "if you want to be a professional painter, it's going to take concerted effort for the rest of your..life." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: To be a pro - you've got to pay the price

Tags: discipline | success | mastery | skill | All Quotes by Lori Woodward Simons

Clint Watson: "If David Leffel and Richard Schmid say something regarding art.....you'd be advised to take heed." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Gladwell was right, Talent is Overrated

Tags: mastery | All Quotes by Clint Watson

Robert Genn: "Quality is always in style. There's no such thing as an undiscovered genius. " Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: The Best Sales Strategy is to Create Exceptional Art

Tags: quality | mastery | marketing | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Robert Genn: "There is really good distortion and there is really bad distortion, and less is often more." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Robert Genn explores the question of distorting the figure in your work

Tags: skill | mastery | learning | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Lori Woodward Simons: "If you're winning, don't change a thing.. but if you're losing, try new things until you begin to win." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Art IS selling - you might just have to change your game

Tags: learning | skill | mastery | winning | All Quotes by Lori Woodward Simons

Barney Davey: "We might root for the underdogs, but we buy the winners." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Have confidence in yourself and your artwork

Tags: mastery | All Quotes by Barney Davey

Robert Genn: "artists working at the dawn of oil painting quickly grasped the idea of selective focus. The illusion is still freely available." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Oil Painting Techniques

Tags: skill | learning | mastery | All Quotes by Robert Genn

Keith Bond: "to successfully break the rules, you must first have a solid understanding of the rules." Visit this link >>

Clint Watson: Knowledge is Key

Tags: mastery | skill | learning | All Quotes by Keith Bond

Links and Quotes Tagged Under "mastery"