Framing

With 5 new watercolours to frame  I'll be spending some time in the basement framing workshop this week. I usually take just a few paintings at a time before the job gets too big and overwhelming. I had intended to paint this series of watercolours all in the same size but it didn't turn out that way, so it will be individual measurements as usual. 

There's a lot of work involved in framing each painting. After the window in the archival cardboard is cut with a bevelled edge, the backing card is measured and cut. Then the lengths of wooden frame moulding are mitred in the guillotine. After that the frames are joined in the underpinner  (no ugly nails) and the glass is cut. Finally there's the meticulous work of mounting and assembling all the elements together with hopefully neither dust nor fingerprints. More often than not I have to open up again to remove a tiny hair or speck of dust that found itself sandwiched in between.

My old faithful Dexter mat cutter, simple but effective.

The Morsø mitring machine.
Note the long supporting channel goes
through a hole to the next room!

An underpinner shoots v-shaped nails into the back of the frame.

Christmas Poppy

It's December and in our garden here in southern Sweden is a flowering poppy. I look out every day to see if it's survived yet another night with cold stormy winds and pouring rain, but there it is with it's head up high. I can't help finding a certain symbolism in the very fact that, against all odds, it's still standing proudly.
I enjoy floral painting especially when it's possible to get very close and examine the details. My fascination with poppies is most likely due to the fact that they only thrive in their own environment, if you pick them and take them indoors they wilt almost immediately and look very sad. I've never before been able to paint a watercolour in the garden in December but here it is, my Christmas poppy.
see the watercolour grow on youtube

Sold to Australia - or no, not quite

Thistle   52 x 72 cm  acrylics on canvas

I often receive mails from interested customers and 2 days ago there was one from Australia.

Hello,
Good day to you over there, My name is Gabriel Wolfgang I'm from Adelaide and
i hope this message finds you well.I was going through your works and my
eyes caught THISTLE & UPWARDS , I am moving soon and i will like to have it for my
new apartment.
please let me know if the piece is available, if yes let me have the
detailed price and more information about it. i will be waiting to read from
you asap.
Gabriel.


I wrote back stating the price,material, technique and size of the painting. The following reply came:

Thanks for the message, I am very happy to know that the piece(Thistle) is still available for sale. i  must tell you i am very much interested in the  purchase because my wife really love it and she want me to get it home before she deliver our upcoming baby boy lol...I will like to let you know that your payment will be in a Cheque.

You don't have to worry about packing, insurance and tax because my shipper will be in the best position to do that as soon as you get the payment.This is because i will be traveling out of the country any moment from now for a business proposal.So get back to me with the information needed to send you the payment  I:E :

Full Name

Standard Address

Phone number

Asking price reconfirmation

so that i can proceed in the payment arrangement, consider it sold get back to me asap with needed information.

Thanks.

Gabriel.

I was just about to reply again that I unfortunately couldn't accept a cheque and that he should pay via paypal instead, when I started to get suspicious about his mail, apart from the bad English I could see that parts of the mail were copied and pasted as the text was in different font sizes. So I googled a whole sentence and this is what came up. http://stopartscams.blogspot.com/2010/07/scam-email-clark-elster.html

So Mr Gabriel Wolfgang from Adelaide alias Mr Clark Elster from New Jersey and probably many others all use copies of the same mail, they just change the name of the artwork. 

SO ARTISTS : BE WARNED, ITS A SCAM!!! THEY'RE AFTER BOTH YOUR PAINTINGS AND YOUR MONEY!!!!

Crows at low tide

Crows at low tide   watercolour 35 x 46 cm

At low tide these crows were feeding in the shallow water between the sea and the shore. There is a freshwater stream running out here with lots of goodies to eat. I was fascinated by the light as the sun broke through the haze and there was still no horizon to be seen.  Normally I choose very colourful subject matter and enjoy revelling in and rendering the complex colours of nature. By balancing on the edge of exaggeration and by taking closer looks at details, there is no end to the amount of colours to be seen. This watercolour was for once an exception and I found a challenge in painting it using three colours only: Ultramarine blue, Gold ochre and Paynes gray.

Lithographs

"The Egg" lithograph 28 x 22 cm

There are a number of galleries in Sweden, Denmark and Finland that have my works in stock and I am pleased to say that one more has just been added to the list. I am now represented with my lithographs at the renowned gallery of modern art  Galleria Carree in the centre of Kuopio,  Finland. The Gallery represents over a hundred well established, mostly Finnish artists. Finland has a long tradition of fine art printmaking and some of the worlds best graphic artists come from this country. Therefore I am especially honoured that my lithographs also are appreciated there.
You can see some of the work behind the lithograph shown here on this YouTube video. Set the definition to 720p then you can easier read the text and see the details.

Still on my feet.

Standing Goose    watercolour 46 x 35 cm 

OK folks, only 47 geese left to paint! - Only kidding, this is the third and last for the time being.

New York, New York!

I often get flattering e-mails with so called "offers" from galleries. By reading between the lines it's easy to work out that this is just another matter of "Pay to Play" fishing for optimistic artist's money and not a serious gallery entirely devoted to exhibiting good works of art.
Another of these e-mails came the other day in the form of a reminder:

Dear Elizabeth, 

I recently emailed you regarding your artwork and possible promotional / exhibition opportunities at Agora Gallery.

Agora Gallery has been in business since 1984 and is located in the center of the New York City art community, providing exposure and promotion to talented artists, for these services the gallery charges an annual promotional fee. For more information about gallery representation and the services that we provide please visit: http://www.agora-gallery.com/artistinfo/gallery_representation.aspx

I would be happy to answer any preliminary questions you might have. You can reach me at 212-226-4151 ext 207 or chiara@agora-gallery.com

I look forward to your response. 

Best regards,
Chiara Mortaroli
Marketing Assistant / Agora Gallery http://www.Agora-Gallery.com 

By clicking on the gallery's website faqs I found the following:


"If I am accepted what is the cost of the annual promotion and representation?


We offer a few options starting from $3850 which can be paid in six installments of $635 each. Renewal will be offered at the end of the first year at a reduced cost along with a profile in our bi-annual publication ARTisSpectrum Magazine http://www.artisspectrum.com/ at no additional cost. Please note that many of the artists that we represent renew their agreement after the first year"

So I decided to answer them, here is what I wrote:

Dear Chiara
Thank you so much for the genuine interest you have taken in my artwork.
I have been a professional artist since 1967 exhibiting my works internationally in renowned galleries and art museums for four decades.
Therefore I would be happy to accept your offer of paying me $3850 per year for the
honour of representing me and promoting my works in your gallery. Renewal will be offered at the end of the first year at a reduced cost along with a link to my website at no additional cost.
Please note that many of the galleries that represent me renew their agreement after the first year.
I look forward to your response
Best regards
Elizabeth Tyler

You can read more about this widespread business here http://www.artbusiness.com/artist-pay-to-play-list.html

PS. I'll post the answer if I get one.

 

Geese

Canada geese, watercolour 35 x 46 cm 

Three more geese today. Only 36 to go.......
They tend to turn away when I come, ready to run and take off, but stay a while with heads turned so they can keep an eye on me in case I happen to have a gun!

Goose step

Canada Goose watercolour 35 x 46 cm

Every evening a flock of geese lift off from the Sound and fly over our house to settle on the fields and the local golf course. The next morning they are back in the water again. This morning was no exception and I was able to single one out for a painting. It was difficult to get near them, as soon as I moved nearer they all stood up and started walking away. I had to inch my way forward a little at a time, in slow motion. Finally I was so near I could see their feathers ruffling in the wind and the light playing on their backs. I don't think I'll paint the whole flock but perhaps a few more .......

On the beach

Like many other artists I have often found inspiration on the beach. Right now in autumn there is a special atmosphere here with a low lying sun shining through the haze. The colours are warmer and the shadows softer at this time of year, the crowds have gone home and it's possible to sit and paint undisturbed for hours.

Blackberries

I finally finished this watercolour amongst the blackberry bushes. Many hours were spent painting and contemplating,  unwinding and concentrating.  While mixing the colours I tried not to think of anything else than the exact hue of the details in the subject I was observing.  A recent rain shower wetting the surface of the leaves and berries intensified the colours so the whole scene seemed surrealistic. 

Working again

Just wanted to apologise to my faithful followers for the lack of activity on this blog for 4 months. While sailing/painting in Greece in May, my husband was taken seriously ill and all my time and thoughts have been with him. With no time, no inspiration, no concentration and no energy it is, needless to say, impossible to produce anything like a work of art.
As he now is on the road to recovery I can once again turn to my work with renewed eagerness. Four months is the longest period of time I have ever, in my adult life, spent without picking up a brush and, as painting also serves the purpose of being one of the best kinds of therapy you can get, I feel really good about it.
I am making a documentary video about some of my watercolour painting techniques at the same time so the studio is even more cluttered than usual. I hope to be able to show the result soon.

My Exhibition at the castle of Bosjökloster

 Today we finished hanging my paintings at the castle of Bosjökloster for my exhibition called ”The voice of flowers” . This beautiful castle in southern Sweden, with it’s park and lake is truly a magnificent place to exhibit my works. The watercolour paintings of flowers in their natural environment were created specially for this exhibition so after several months of work it was great to see them finally in place. The exhibition will be open to the public for the next two months. For more info see: Bosjokloster

Preparing for the annual Open Studios Exhibition (Konstrundan)

We are almost ready hanging pictures in the livingroom, kitchen, hall and stairs. This year we will be open from Friday the 22 April to Sunday the 1st May. It's the thirteenth time we open our house for the public in this Open Studios arrangement which is the largest of it's kind in Sweden. It's a great opportunity to meet art lovers of all kinds and the number of visitors we usually have during these 10 days has grown to between 2500 and 3000, not only from the whole of Sweden but from many other countries.
More info here  http://www.konstrundan.nu/

Preparations for my participation in the Open Studios Expo last year.

Contract

Today I was very happy to be able to sign a contract with Pulsar Productions in Australia giving them the right to produce my two DVDs on license there. Pulsar Productions found me on YouTube and asked if I would be willing to cooperate with them. They produce and sell art instruction DVDs worldwide.
Here's the link to their website www.pulsarproductions.com.au/
More about my DVDs at http://www.elizabethtyler.com

Printing

Spent many hours in my printing workshop in the basement. I have been working with one of my aquatint etchings on copperplate. This one is of a water lily blossoming on the surface of the dark waters of a lake.
After experimenting for some time I ended up printing it in four colours which meant four times through my hand press. The first plate with the marbling effect of the leaves is printed in ultramarine. The same plate is then rolled over with yellow and printed as a relief print. The second plate with the lily is printed in magenta and yellow and lastly the same plate is printed again as a monoprint where I rolled it up with indigo blue and wiped off where the leaves and lily should be.
With this technique it is not possible to make identical prints in any way so, although I have used the same etched copperplates, each print is unique.

Branch in water

I painted this subject "Branch in water" in Turkey.  I was fascinated by the sun-bleached and sandblasted branch balancing steadily in shallow water. The symbolism in it seemed clear but not blatant.
I usually let my paintings hang on the wall to "ripen" for a while before declaring them finished. It took nearly two years before I realised what I needed to do to improve this painting. The rock on the left was actually melted volcanic lava, hence the stripes. Although it adds a dynamic touch to the subject it also distracts the eye. The same thing happens with the turbulent water. In the repainted picture on the right, both the rock and the calm water become part of the background, instead of competing with the branch for attention as they did in the first painting. Now I have declared the painting finished.

A new season

                                          

Just finished a new painting of the new season.
The first flowers of spring have always fascinated me. I never stop being amazed at these small frail flower's  ability to grow and break through the hard frozen soil. Suddenly they are there, "the same procedure as every year" - apparently against all odds. 
If this isn't symbolic what is? 
The hyacinths grew 2 cm before I had finished painting them.


A New Season  acrylics on canvas  97 x 97 cm
© Elizabeth Tyler 2011

Uploaded a new Video

A watercolour journey of discovery
This video I made during the long process of painting a series of  8 large floral watercolours. Sometimes I was so absorbed in the artwork I forgot to press the "record" button on the camera, but nevertheless I'm glad that I did remember it a few times.
I made the paintings in this rather unusual format which I personally find an interesting one. Within this tall, narrow format the eye is lead into the confined area of the picture and can wander through certain details of the subject in depth. This is at least what I have done while working on these paintings and it is my hope that others might do the same when seeing them.

History

 Eg Skejten, Elizabeth Tyler 1985  Fuglsang Kunstmuseum                                                               One of the advantages of becoming older is that you also, in very a small way, become part of history.   Having works included in the collection of an art museum is a great privilege because, when they have been there long enough, they too become history – art history.

A painting of mine which was sold to a museum in 1985 is now one of the works on show at the Fuglsang Art Museum, Lolland Denmark. The exhibition is called “Cross Section – 100 years of artists subjects.” 
In Danish:
"Tværsnit - kunstnermotiver gennem 100 år"
                                                                                                      I am grateful to the museum's curator Connie Hansen for sending me this photo. I didn’t have a photograph of it myself but I did remember working on the painting,  being inspired by all the colours created by the winter sunlight and thinking - a tree trunk doesn't really have to be brown....... 
More info about the exhibition here: Fuglsang Art Museum

Cheating?

I’ve just stumbled upon a discussion group consisting of some very serious German gentlemen who have devoted a lot of time debating my watercolour painting.
 A great honour I must say.
They seem to have a difference of opinion as to whether my paintings are to be considered genuine watercolours or merely mixed media.
 After analysing one of my videos on YouTube they were apparently shocked at seeing me demonstrating the use of masking medium. (cheating?) Oh dear, and I even had the nerve to add the last details with aquarelle pencils (ugh!)
One of the participants admitted to being a purist and brought up the fact that Albert Durer 1471 -1528 made masterpieces without any of these things. Actually he cheated too by using gouache. But poor Albert probably didn’t have a plastic bag from Lidl either (I use plastic to mask areas I don’t want colour on) This is the video that agitated the German gentlemen.
 

More paintings

Working hard everyday, 9 hours a day, 7 days a week. I've just worked out that each watercolour painting takes about 45 hours so it will take some time before I have enough for the upcoming exhibitions.

Working on a new series of watercolour paintings

After painting many works with stones, pebbles and beaches I needed to choose other subjects for a change.
Flowers are often the choice of subject matter for many artists and can be considered rather banal ( like: Oh no, not another old woman painting flowers with watercolours!) but I wanted to give the subject a new twist and a different approach.
I have for these new works chosen a tall narrow format. So instead of the normal "widescreen" I have taken up the challenge of limiting the point of view to this rather unusual format. The actual size of the flowers, weeds and the like are rendered larger than life. This gives me the opportunity to play with a lot of details in the foreground while keeping the background quite diffuse.
By painting a simple nondescript flower in this way it might be possible to raise it from anonymity to something almost monumental which in itself could be quite a symbolic gesture.