Visiting Art Museums

Today's Image
Adobe Wall
Soft Pastel on Paper
8.5 x 11 in/28 x 22 cm
Copyright 2007



"Fresh new art blog with artist tips on acrylic, pastel and oil painting, supplies, book reviews, occasional news & much more"




In the Studio

I worked in my studio over the weekend, but on organization and not art. So Today's Image is one of the pastels I first did last year.

How are things in your studio? Trying to get more organized in the studio is an ongoing task, at least for me. I do a pretty good job considering all the paraphenalia we accumulate--paper, pads, canvases, pencils, brushes, pastels, tubes of paint, and on and on. Still my stuff is spread out more than I would like.



I have a rolling cart that holds most of my drawing and painting supplies not including paper and canvases. I keep pens and pencils in the top drawer, acrylic paint in the second and third drawers, soft and semi-hard pastels in the fourth drawer, oil pastels in the fifth drawer, and the bottom drawer holds containers of varnish, acrylic mediums, fluid retarder, etc. I keep my brushes in a flat case that sits on top of the cart. I keep a small table-top easel next to the cart. It's actually pretty efficient and compact considering the amount of material it holds.



The downside is that I still have paper, drawing pads, and canvases spread around all over the place. And I haven't figured out a good way to store finished paintings and the various frames that I've been collecting.



Did I mention my oil paints and large easel are in the garage? Finding a spot for those is my next to-do.



On Visiting Museums



I'm planning on visiting a few art museums this week and am looking forward to it. I go out of my way to include these whenever I have some free time or am visiting. I haven't been very organized about it, but will try to do a better job so that I don't miss something of special significance. I still regret missing an exhibition of Edward Hopper paintings last year although it couldn't be helped.



Sometimes luck will be with you and you just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Last year I happened to be in Washington D.C. and was able to see an exhibit of Frida Kahlo artwork that was running there for a couple of months. The exhibit showcased her intense paintings and life and was great.



What I'm going to do is go online and see what's in the museums' permanent collections as well as any special exhibit that may be currently showing. You can easily find their websites by Googling 'art museum' and the name of the city you're in. Many art museums feature artwork and artists either native to or associated with the local area. I think it's always interesting to learn about the art of a particular area and why it evolved as it did.



Here's one tip I've picked up--visit the museum's gift shop (there is always a gift shop) and strike up a conversation with one of the employees. They can usually give you some inside information on what their museum is best known for and what not to miss. You may have to buy a poster or a refrigerator magnet, but it will be worth it.



Cheers!