I've started a new series of short instructional videos that I'm calling, "Art Basics." In essentials, it's skills and techniques that every artist should know. The first skill is scoring paper: why and how? If you make a greeting card... ...a box... ...a book... ...a paper lamp... ...or any number of artful paper projects... ...you're going to want to score your paper, before you fold, for best results. In this video I take you through tools, methodologies, and even paper grain. Enjoy! Bone Folder: https://amzn.to/3O9tMyG Scor-It Score Board: https://amzn.to/3tqf9Px Let me know what basic techniques YOU think every artist should... Read more →

I'm a sucker for a formula. It makes art making fast and fun! I used the same basic formula to make all six of these mixed media collages: Can you see it? It's amazing how you can use the same basic formula over and over again with very different results! It's all about the little details, but the basic underlying design remains the same. If you'd like to learn the method to my madness, I'm teaching a live online Zoom class all about it on Friday, July 22 at 7pm EST. Space is limited. I'll be sharing four design formulas... Read more →

We're back and on schedule (amazingly) with another new podcast. Yay! You can watch the video HERE or listen below. I'm a little under the weather with a scratchy voice, but hopefully it won't bother you. We chat about a topic that has come up several times - particularly during Book Club: why having a broad range of inspiration matters. In other words, why you should look to fashion or architecture or quilting if what you do is collage. I share one of my favorite quotes during the podcast and I took some time to track down its origins. It... Read more →

Yesterday we had another fantastic Book Club meeting! We discussed Irene Roderick's book, "Improv Quilting: Dancing with the Wall." If you didn't catch the livestream, you can watch the replay below: If you watch the video/"mini art class," you'll see that I put together a slide presentation for this Book Club meeting. My favorite slides are the ones looking at many of the artists who were inspirational to Irene. Several of them were new-to-me. In particular, I was struck by the paintings of Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Here are a few of my faves: You can also watch this short video about... Read more →

Something I've become very interested in lately is contemporary still life. I have tried my hand at a few practice sketches in my studio notebook, with mixed results. I need to practice more and spend some time setting up some compelling still life images to draw. Like I've said before: art is a practice. As part of my interest in contemporary still life images, I've been collecting work that I like on a Pinterest board. Here's a peek at that board: The images I'm drawn to are busy and full of pattern and color and movement. I find that this... Read more →

Art is a practice. Like most artists, I have been through many different learning phases. For instance, I wanted to master faces. I did a ton of figure and portrait drawing over many years -- both trying to master how to render a face/body as well as find my style within portraiture. And don't let the 2010 start fool you. That's just how far back my digital photography goes. There were faces before 2010. Here's a small sampling of faces through the years: This is 2010: This is 2011: This is 2012: This is 2013: This is 2014: This is... Read more →

After a year-long hiatus, the podcast is back! Hooray! I managed to traumatize my Mom by turning the video on. (You can watch the video HERE or listen below.) The good news is that she has forgiven me and we had a great conversation. There are a few glitchy sound and video problems at the beginning of the recording. But, like I said, the conversation is a good one and I hope you'll chime in with your own thoughts on the subject. Today's topic is "critique" and how it's different from criticism. We also take a deep dive into the... Read more →

If you're new to Art Journal Every Day, the concept is simple: It's a commitment to take ten minutes each day to do something in your art journal. No need to finish anything or even like it. It's about making the time to nourish your creativity every day! If you have the time to flip through your phone, you have the time to Art Journal Every Day. If you'd like to share what you make, use the hashtag #artjournaleveryday so that we can all take a peek. Check the blog archives for posts going back to the first Art Journal... Read more →

If you're a long time blog reader, you know that I used to live just a few blocks away from the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City and was a frequent visitor to its galleries. MoMA has an outstanding collection of pieces by Henri Matisse -- one of my all time favorite artists. (Be sure to check out the Book Club video about the book, Matisse on Art.) Currently, MoMA has an exhibit all about his painting, "The Red Studio." It wasn't a painting that I was immediately drawn to. In a room full of Matisse paintings,... Read more →

Hey friends! I'm a day late and a dollar short, as they say. But here's the round-up for May 2022: What's happening at home? Our house is being painted! Yay! The painter thinks we're crazy with our colors -- purple and yellow. But, it's a Victorian house and I think it can take a little bit of crazy. What's on your desk right now? Um...is everything a possible answer? Here's a quick run down of the more interesting items on my desk: Stencils: The one you can see is from the February 2022 release. But there are new stencils coming... Read more →