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ArtsyFartsy News
Our shameless, irreverent self-promotion newsletter...
September 2009


Benvenuto!

Villa Fattorio Bacia
Villa Fattorio Bacia

This newsletter comes to you from Italy! The Sedona Art Center invited me to teach a workshop in Tuscany and I jumped at the opportunity! A chance to paint in Tuscany? Are you kidding me? Today I just completed five days of painting with twenty-two American artists at Villa Fattorio Bacio - in the heart of the Tuscan countryside between Sienna, Florence and San Gimignano. The villa is the perfect blend of old world ‘rustica’ and catered comfort, surrounded on all sides by spectacular views of the meandering hills of Tuscany.

Field Trip to Certaldo Alto
Field Trip to Certaldo Alto

But first, Kate and I were tourists in Florence for a few days to do what any self-respecting artist must do sometime during their lifetime - I think this is part of my bucket list - we saw Michaelangelo’s gorgeous statue of David, Botticelli’s Birth of Venus (aka Venus on the Halfshell), Brunelleschi’s Duomo of Florence, Santa Maria del Fiore and the Duomo Museum (where rumor has it I was caught crying in front of Michaelangelo’s The Deposition (The Florentine Pieta).

Center of Florence
Center of Florence

Mode of Transportation
Mode of Transportation

Say what you want about those rascal Medici’s... we all are in their debt for putting their wealth in the arts and the start of the Renaissance. (Travel author Rick Steves offers quick reads and history lessons for worldwide traveling.)

Certaldo Train Station
Certaldo Train Station

Then off to the countryside of Tuscany where we caught up with our students at the Villa outside of the town of Certaldo. After the hustle and bustle of Florence, we were grateful for the vineyards, olive groves and beautiful open spaces.

View from the Villa Bacio
View from the Villa Bacio

Excursion to San Gimignano
Excursion to San Gimignano

We were all cared for with meals, travel and extra side trips by the Sedona Arts Center team of Debbie Winslow and her husband Rocket-man Jeff. Because of their organizational skills and easy manner, everything was seamless. Paintings poured out of everyone, everyday - including a few major breakthroughs for several painters. Needless to say, we’re planning future trips! Stay tuned for more international painting excursions.

Street Scene - Certaldo Alto
Street Scene - Certaldo Alto

Tuscan Landscape
Tuscan Landscape

Leaving from Florence, we had an early flight to Paris and found the airport VIP lounge to relax for a few hours before our flight to Los Angeles. The best part of travel is mingling with an international crowd in a lounge of characters. I have a week home in the studio, jury a local Plein Air Festival then immediately off to Dillman’s Creative Arts Foundation in Wisconsin to teach five days of Start Abstract Painting Today! Read on for upcoming workshops and events.Red Sqare

Abstract Landscapes Inspired by Tuscany Trip
Abstract Landscapes Inspired by Tuscany Trip

Product Spotlight
Online Special


The New Burridge
Colorful Composition Chart
& Goof-Proof Color Wheel


 The New Burridge Colorful Composition Chart
Continuing Online Special! 

Imagine painting your next powerful masterpiece with both of these studio charts nearby. Helpful if you get off track and need to refocus your color, your composition and your original intention. And they are both made in the USA.

Set of two Studio Charts - $29.95 plus shipping/handling (CA sales tax) Click HERE for info on ordering.Red Sqare

Workshops in the Spotlight

Busy Workshop!
Busy Workshop!

Trade Shows are coming up - It’s a great way to end the year!

There are many trade shows and conventions for workshops and art materials all over the country! Why should you go? Here’s a few reasons:

1. Half day and full day workshops with top notch instructors.
2. You get to try out new materials in a workshop setting.
3. Deep discounts for Art Materials!

Bob Instructing
Bob Instructing

I have a full teaching schedule for the Art of the Carolinas in Raleigh, North Carolina, November 12-15, 2009. Click HERE for more info.

•Thurs 11/12, 9am-4pm
Loosen Up and Start Abstract Painting Today!
•Friday 11/13, 9-12am
Loose Paint Sketches to Warm You Up!
•Friday 11/13, 1-4pm
Wow Your Next Paint Painting with Goof-Proof Color Combos
•Saturday 11/14, 9-12am
Abstract Florals from Loose, Colorful Splatters
•Saturday 11/14, 1-4pm
Loose & Juicy Landscapes
•Sunday 11/15, 9-12am
Loosen Up & Light Up the Rembrandt Way
•Sunday 11/15, 1-4pm
mARTketing: Business Success for the Busy Artist

Art Materials!
Art Materials!

I will be sponsored by Holbein for both these Trade Shows, meaning the paint and paper is supplied for all workshops. What a deal!

If you haven’t signed up for classes at this month’s Learning Product Expo in Pasadena, there’s still time! Click HERE to Register today!

Here’s my schedule!

•Thurs 10/15, 9am-4pm
Loosen Up and Start Abstract Painting Today!
•Friday 10/16, 9-12am
Loose Paint Sketches to Warm You Up!
•Friday 10/16, 1-4pm
Wow Your Next Paint Painting with Goof-Proof Color Combos
•Friday 10/16, 5-8pm
Act Now! Make Money with Your Art
•Saturday 10/17, 9-12am
Abstract Florals from Loose, Colorful Splatters
•Saturday 10/17, 1-4pm
Loose & Juicy Landscapes
•Sunday 10/18, 9-12am
Loosen Up & Light Up the Rembrandt Way

For more of my workshops all over the county, check out my workshop schedule click HERE.

Dark Against Light...
Dark Against Light...

Recommended Book

The Journals of Grace Hartigan, 1951-1955
edited by William T. La Moy and Joseph P. McCaffrey

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

In 1958, Grace Hartigan was the only woman included in the Museum of Modern Art to represent The New American Painting Exhibition that traveled to eight European countries. The other painters were Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko. That piqued my interest.

Grace Hartigan did not write her journals for publication. These writings consequently reveal her extreme mood swings, self-imposed suffering and day-to-day creative painting episodes. Hartigan’s restless concern with the darker, instinctual side of life fueled her moody, dramatic paintings.

She seemed to enjoy being the full-of-angst artist - which is why I was so curious to find out more about her. If I learned anything from her journals, it was about the nonproductive side of a life in turmoil - even with a daily painting routine. She painted and chronicled her true feelings about Helen Frankenthaler and Joan Mitchell; she knew them all and I wanted to know how they all mingled with each other and the better known painters, like Barnett Newman, Fairfield Porter, Jackson Pollock, Larry Rivers and Motherwell.

Grace Hartigan painting, 1968
Grace Hartigan painting, 1968

Even though her work is not my favorite for inspiration, this complicated record of one artist’s relation to the Abstract Expressionism movement gave me a truer, non-glossy sense of an artist’s life at the time of de Kooning. It’s good art history stuff.

Grace Hartigan passed away in November 2008. Up to that time, she was the Director of the Hoffberger Graduate School of Painting, Maryland Institute College of Art.

The Journals of Grace Hartigan, 1951-1955
edited by William T. La Moy and Joseph P. McCaffrey
Paperback: 202 pages
Publisher: Syracuse University Press (April 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0815609167
ISBN-13: 978-0815609162
Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
(Buy at Amazon)
Red Sqaure

Ask Kate about Art Marketing

ASK KATE! With every newsletter, Kate will post your questions and her responses on the subject of marketing, sales, and promotion. If your question is selected for the newsletter, you will receive a Burridge Permission Mug. If you have a burning question that you would like to have answered -- for your benefit and everyone else's -- email Kate at kate@robertburridge.com

Jackie from Williston, VT asks: When an artist makes a print and indicates 50 is the limit that was printed as a run, do they have to stick to that number for ethical reasons?

Dear Jackie, Thanks for your question! Yes, ethically speaking that’s exactly right. When you decide to publish a limited edition, it is up to you to determine the size the edition, keep track of the numbering inventory and provide a certificate of authenticity so your customers know exactly what they have purchased. Each state has laws that govern the necessity and wording of the certificate.

My favorite book on this subject is Legal Guide for the Visual Artist by Tad Crawford. He breaks down the information by state.

Legal Guide for the Visual Artist book cover
Legal Guide for the Visual Artist book cover

Legal Guide for the Visual Artist
by Tad Crawford
published by Allworth Press Amazon
10 East 23rd Street, NY, NY 10010
(800) 289-0963
ISBN 9781581150032
[Buy at Amazon]

If you sell out your edition, you can still use the same image to create another edition of a different size, then start your numbering all over again. If your edition is not numbered it is considered an “open edition.” The perception is, of course, the fewer the number published, the more valuable it is. Thanks again for your question Jackie - I know you have more question, so I will email you very soon.

For a list of my favorite books and magazines about marketing your art, please click HERE.

Art Scams!

I’ve been getting some pretty interesting emails lately - from “customers” who are very interested in Bob’s paintings for their new house in England... or Japan... They promise cashier’s checks if you will FedEx the paintings to their address.... or other promises!

My rule of thumb is this - If it sounds too good to be true, then that’s right - it’s not true! If you are ever contacted by email and you are wondering if it’s legit, there are several websites that can help you.

www.artscams.com
www.artquest.com
www.artistsnetwork.com

Check these out - and check them often for new ways to protect yourself!

Thanks for asking Kate! Red Square

For more info, click HERE to check out our Hot Art Marketing Workbook.

 Kate your Art Marketing Girl
Kate your Art Marketing Girl

Click HERE for top of page.

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Color Combinations

Goof Proof Color Wheel
Goof Proof Color Wheel

This section is my continuing series, featuring successful color combinations using my Goof-Proof Color Wheel. (Shameless!) This month’s dominant color is Holbein’s Cad Green Light (you can substitute a comparable green-yellow). Using the Burridge Goof Proof Color Wheel and your matching paints, try a series of small abstracts practicing this month’s color combo.

Decide on a Composition and Dominant Color.

•Cad Green Light is the Dominant color
•Violet is the Focal Point color
•Flame Red is a Spice Color around the Focal Point color
•Compose Blue #2 is the second Spice Color used around the Focal Point Color

Dominant Color All Over plus Black & White
Dominant Color All Over plus Black & White

Step One: Cover the entire canvas or paper with Cad Green Light plus white and black. For me, I treat each “layer” as practicing abstracts. At this point the painting is basically monochromatic.

Adding the Focal Point Color & Spice Color
Adding the Focal Point Color & Spice Color

Step Two: I place the focal point color - Violet - right where I want the eye to go. I do this whether or not it is an abstract or representational painting. I’ll also use this focal point color elsewhere in the painting, only grayed down. It helps to keep this limited palette color combo related.

Step Three: When dried, I loosely brush in the two spice colors (Flame Red and Compose Blue #2) around the focal point color (Violet). I have the option of also graying down these two spice colors and using them in other areas.

Graying Down the Spice Colors to Pull the Painting Together
Graying Down the Spice Colors to Pull the Painting Together

Another Version of this Color Combo using the Burridge Color Wheel
Another Version of this Color Combo using the Burridge Color Wheel

For a detailed description of the Burridge Goof Proof Color Wheel, click on HERE.Red Sqare

Product Review

Bob Burridge’s Best Bottomless Bountiful Blue Bucket of Blazingly Beautiful Brilliant Acryla Paints

Bob’s Blue Bucket
Bob’s Blue Bucket

This big bucket of paint is brought to you by Holbein - and a Trade Show is the best place to buy it! Look for Bob Burridge’s Best Bottomless Bountiful Blue Bucket of Blazingly Beautiful Brilliant Acryla Paints and a lot of individual tubes in the Holbein booth at both the Learning Product Expo and the Art of the Carolinas.Red Sqaure

Studio Tip

Your Painting - Is it Finished?

 Critique en Plein Air in Tuscany
Critique en Plein Air in Tuscany

How Do You Know When Your Art is Done?
I’ve heard that it takes two artists to make a painting: One to make the painting and one to hit us over the head when it’s done.

1. If you find yourself looking at it longer than actually working on it, most likely it is done.
2. Compare your painting with your written goals.
3. If whatever else you add to it detracts from your original written goal, it’s done.
4. If you have to ask the question, the answer is always “YES!”
• Is the sky too blue? YES!
• Do the trees have too much detail? YES!
• Do you think the focal point is weak? YES!

AnnVictoria Ponders her Painting
AnnVictoria Ponders her Painting

You are simply asking yourself permission to change it. As a painter you are constantly editing and changing your thoughts; it is what you do. Any painter who doesn’t change his mind doesn’t have one!

Here’s Some Pointers:

• Isolate the painting on a plain wall or place it behind a discarded mat.
• Light the painting with a strong, incandescent light.
• Turn away, then look at the painting for seven seconds (average time it takes to look in a museum).
•Look at your painting from a distance. Block out different sections and ask: Do I need it? Does it work right and left?
•Use mirrors to reverse it. Look at the painting upside down.

Ten Check Points in Critiquing Our Work
1. Did it stop and surprise me?
2. Does it hold my attention?
3. Was it created with authority?
4. Does it have a strong presentation?
5. Does it have an original point of view?
6. Was it created with passion?
7. Skill level - Is it my best?
8. Did I send a clear message?
9. Does it have a well-developed idea?
10. Does it have the WOW FACTOR?

Critique Session in Tuscany
Critique Session in Tuscany

There are no tricks or mystery in painting! To me, making a painting is combined with having a strong concept, an original point of view, clear intentions, commitment and being open to new ideas. Red Sqare

Try This Assignment!

Drip Tree Forest
Drip Tree Forest

Tuscany was a great place to paint trees - and I have to say, one of the most popular assignments in my Loosen Up Workshop is painting what I call “Drip Trees.”

Making a Mess, then Negative Painting
Making a Mess, then Negative Painting

Painting the Negative Shape
Painting the Negative Shape

Start off by splashing and making a big mess. Make sure it’s wet - I use paper towels to put the colors down. You’re making a mess - not mud. When dry, choose a color scheme paint the part that is NOT a tree. I generally paint my “negative space” with an opaque color or a color and a lot of white gesso mixed in. I make a significant amount of this color - sopping wet.

Emphasizing the Light Source
Emphasizing the Light Source

Next I emphasize the light source and exaggerate the tree shadows. Color is everywhere. The tree, the trunk and the landscape are colorful splashes!

Kathie Working on Trees
Kathie Working on Trees

You can also try a real “drip” tree, by spraying your painting with water and tilting the paper while the paint is still wet - the drips become the tree trunks and you can wipe some away at that time. Also, remember this - you can more tree trunks later for even more dramatic effects!Red Sqaure

Music to Paint (and Move!) By

More music! My taste in music is rather eclectic. In my studio and during workshops I play many different styles - classical, world, jazz, lounge… After last month’s foray into the Opera and classical realm, I though I better swing back the other way and recommend some new, rockin’ and movin’, fun music. Cuculand will make you feel like you’re in a Copacabana nightclub; Novalima combines African and Peruvian rhythms and you may have heard Goldfish on a popular commercial last summer for Kia, featuring some pretty soulful hamsters...

Enjoy!

Novalima - Coba Coba cover
Novalima - Coba Coba cover

Novalima
Coba Coba
Audio CD (January 13, 2009)
Original Release Date: January 13, 2009
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Cumbancha
ASIN: B001LOVA0I
(Buy at Amazon)

Goldfish - Perceptions of Pasha cover
Goldfish - Perceptions of Pasha cover

Goldfish
Perceptions of Pasha
Audio CD (September 1, 2008)
Original Release Date: 2008
Number of Discs: 2
Format: Import
Label: Pacha Spain
ASIN: B001DCXFV0
(Buy at Amazon)

CuCu Diamantes - Cuculand cover
CuCu Diamantes - Cuculand cover

CuCu Diamantes
Cuculand
Audio CD (September 1, 2009)
Original Release Date: August 18, 2009
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Fun Machine
ASIN: B002F3BPMW
(Buy at Amazon)
Red Square

Doctor Bob’s Advice Column

Bob is Planning his Next Exhibition
Bob is Planning his Next Exhibition

How do I create - I can only tell you what works for me:
1. Sketchbooks: I write - I journal my dreams and thoughts to get it out of my head. My sketchbook is my toolbox of ideas.
2. Big Idea: Is it a Good Idea? If it excites you, it’s a good idea!
3. All paintings have a metaphor - either a story about Romeo and Juliet or David and Goliath.
4. If I’m working on a show or a new body of work, I name the show first... even before I start the paintings. It’s my focus, my goal, my sense of purpose.
5. Goal - Write it out. It’s my map and guide. I’ve got to know where I’m going.

Ideas to get you started in the Studio:
1. Paint a verb - a word - your interpretation.
2. Paint a color combination you absolutely hate.
3. Paint with a new tool - Paper towel, Stick, Fingers.
4. Use “stream of consciousness” - just let it flow.
Red Sqare

Painting in Certaldo Alto
Painting in Certaldo Alto

Robert Burridge

Burridge Workshop for Artists

Copyright ©2009 Robert Burridge. All rights reserved.
If you wish to copy this material to other publications or mail lists, please ask for permission by contacting:
Robert Burridge Studio
Arroyo Grande, California
805-459-1503
rburridge@robertburridge.com
www.robertburridge.com

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