Have you ever noticed a shimmering off the curvature of a drop of dew on a leaf in the early morning sunlight?  Did you stop in awe to concentrate on it?  Did it change hues as you moved about?  Were you fascinated by it?  If so, chances are, you are an artist.  Artists are special people and have something unique.  They have what I like to call a third eye!  An artist’s eye can split light like a prism!

No matter what an artist sees in nature, from the moment they start placing pigment to canvas, board, paper, or whatever surface they use, the finished work will always belong to no one but them (even if it is sold to another, their name is on the work). This knowledge helps an artist create the discerning eye.

Since I do most of my work in a studio, I use both photography and color sketches from nature.  When I see a sky that has a certain blue, yellow, gray, pink, or white hue, I try to match it and make swatches of color on a 3X5 index card with notes on the back describing the weather condition, the time of day, and any other thing that creates the mood of the painting.  I usually can find a use for the card another day for another painting.

An artist has an artistic license to come up with whatever composition they wish, with colors real or not working together in their imagination. That is why they are called artists~they see the world differently…they are special.

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