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| Roger Peterson by Martha Slavin |
A friend, taking an online watercolor class, remarked, "I'm just copying," not giving herself credit for the considerable progress she has made. Her statement reminded me of our time living in Paris when our son was in middle school. He took drawing lessons from Marc Vinciguerra, a young artist, who sat in our apartment strumming Theo's guitar before taking Theo to the local museums to draw what he saw on the walls. Theo followed a time-honored tradition of copying a master's work, a practice that most artists do to learn techniques.
Both my parents went to art schools. They, like my sister and I, spent college years in large art rooms filled with students behind drawing boards or easels with a model at the center of the room. We spent hours studying the form, learning about the bones and muscles underneath the skin, and how to draw a figure in 3-dimensions. My dad also took classes through the mail from the Federal Schools based in Minneapolis.
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| A sculptured face by Ralph Heimdahl |
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| by Esther B. Heimdahl |
I am still copying, especially when it comes to watercolors. I like painting flowers and portraits more than landscapes. I look for artists whose style interests me.
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| by Martha Slavin |
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| Uncle Buvver by Martha Slavin |
I visited Chuck Bukovnik's studio and feasted my eyes on his work. He paints flowers, filling a full sheet of watercolor paper with glorious examples. Ever since that day, I have been trying to get him out of my head. I think painting is sometimes like listening to music. When you hear a song you like, the song gets embedded in your brain and it is hard to get out. The same with painting. If I like a technique and try it, sometimes it is hard to change it to fit my own way of working.
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| Chuck Bukovnik's watercolor palette |
I look at other artists, such as my cousin, Hugh Heimdahl, who freely paints portraits just with dabs of paint. He manages to capture the character of the person so well.
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| by Hugh Heimdahl |
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| by Hugh Heimdahl |
I continue to look for inspiration from other artists. I am still learning.
More about the Soul Box Project:
We've sent several new sets to Soul Box Project. Mary has honored women killed by gun violence. My boxes name young men under 25 who have died from gunshots. Pam's boxes honored members of families: mom, dad, sister, and brother.
Lovely post. Yes, copying. Fun to think who the masters may have copied. No mistakes only progress. Keep it up, practice makes art.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Christine. That is a good question about who the masters copied!
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