The Painter's Choice

(Happy Mother's Day)

You have to make choices as an artist. Why? Because in the end you have to decide which door to open, which path to take, how you want to paint.

You have read. You have studied. You have learned. You have been tutored. You have practiced. You have tried out. You have completed. You have persevered.

But with all the advice and all the practice you have to decide.

There are at least two opposing views, and sometimes more, on just about everything you do, every choice you make as a painter. And these are the various opinions of the professional painters, the art teachers, the well-respected in art circles and societies.

Should you paint loosely, impressionistically or realistically, figuratively, even photo-realistically?

Should you use big brushes or small brushes? Do you like using hakes and squirrel mops or hate them,  or would you rather use rounds or filberts or even scrubbers?

Should you use student quality or artist quality paints? Most say to go with the more expensive artist quality, but at least one well-known watercolorist says to buy the cheaper student quality tubes in large sizes so you won’t be afraid to use enough paint--he even says to keep several tubes stacked in plain sight so you can see how much you have.

Should you use hot-pressed, cold-pressed (aka Not), rough paper or try Yupo or clayboard?

Should you stretch your watercolor paper. Some say absolutely you must and others absolutely not—they’d rather be painting.

Should you build your frames or buy them? Should you stretch your own canvases? Some pros say of course for quality and authenticity. Others say forget about it.

How many colors should you have in your palette and which ones should they be? Most painters say a limited palette is best, but what would you rather do?

You can dread or embrace these choices; that is, you can say you either have to make a choice or you have the privilege of making a choice.

In the end it’s ultimately your decision about your way of painting. Lucky you.

Keep On Painting