lagoarthurstudio 6/3/14 lagoarthurstudio 6/3/14

Technique Tuesday: Dirty Brush Holder

I came across this Technique Tuesday "hack" recently when I discovered the amazing alla prima portraits of Felicia Forte on Instagram. A student of hers brought her a bag of dried beans one day and suggested that she use them to hold her dirty brushes in place while painting. I saw that post and said "Eureka!", most probably out loud, and then ran upstairs to my pantry where I had stored many bags of dried black beans (a must in any Cuban American kitchen). I chose to use an old but cherished mug which features a ghosted image of my Mom and son as my new dirty brush container. My Mom was the one who taught me how to make black beans the traditional way--so it seems only fitting.

lagoarthurstudio 11/5/13 lagoarthurstudio 11/5/13

Technique Tuesday: Unique Toolz

Here's a quick little Technique Tuesday post. Like any artist, I love my gadgets, especially those I find in non-art stores. I bought this cool little magnetic clamp at my local WoodCraft store for under $5 and it is PERFECT for keeping my palette knife out of the way when I am painting (and for opening paint cans). Thanks to this little impulse buy I can now keep my taboret relatively tidy which is a real plus because I can be quite a hot mess when I paint.

lagoarthurstudio 10/8/13 lagoarthurstudio 10/8/13

Technique Tuesday: C - Thru Rulers

Some fancy artists out there will use calipers to help them make adjustments to their work. You don't get fancy around here, just useful and sometimes cheap. This trick of mine falls into both categories. I use those cheap and abundant clear rulers you can pick up anywhere to measure both my subject and my paintings when they get out of whack proportionally. That is to say if I am working at life size. Normally I have a really strong sense of proportion when I am drawing or painting, but I don't always "nail it". That's when I pull out my trusty little ruler. It is such a useful tip that I keep one of them always nearby with my brushes while I am painting.

A note of caution: if you are painting from a model, they usually prefer for you to ask permission to measure them. Just saying.