Abstract Art

April 30, 2016

Blue and Green - Two New Paintings

I covered a whole canvas in light blue and one in light green, both 44" x 44". Then I began work on the blue canvas first, by drawing rows of small shapes in various shades of blue and green. After drawing, I carefully painted in the shapes, and then began again to draw more overlapping shapes. I mixed colors from pale blue and aqua to deep blue, toning them down with gray. This process took several days of drawing lines and then carefully filling in the spaces. This is the result:

Blue Jazz, acrylic on canvas, 44" x 44"

After Blue Jazz, I began work on the green canvas in a similar manner--first drawing shapes with lines, and then filling them in, repeating the process several times. But the direction this painting took--and it pretty much dictated the path to me--ended up with the lines themselves becoming the final surface element. I also varied the color pallet more in this one, including red, orange and yellow as well as various shades of green.

Meadow Crush, acrylic on canvas, 44" x 44"

Both these paintings are now on display at Quintus Gallery in Watkins Glen, New York. They'll be part of a two-person show I'm in there which opens on May 20th.

Apr 30, 2016 4:25:01 PM

October 08, 2015

Enjoy This Fun Tutorial on Painting Abstract Art

Readers are often looking for more guidance on painting abstract art. Recently I found this tutorial that makes it easy and fun to explore abstract painting techniques: Abstract Painting Techniques.

Here's an intro to the program from Chanelle Leslie:

“Abstract painting can be a deceiving art form. It often seems relatively easy when you look at the finished product, but in reality, it’s not always so simple to create something perfectly imperfect. In fact, it can be downright intimidating.

This tutorial is designed for beginning artists trying to train their eyes and intermediate artists looking for new exercises to stretch their limits. It’s also a wonderful way for artists who are advanced in other genres to use their skills in a new way.

When you’ve been through all 11 exercises, it’s time to play with the final one: creating an alter ego. If it worked for David Bowie, there’s gotta be some merit to the alter ego, no? Learn how an alter ego can help push your artistic boundaries in the final section.

While none of these exercises in themselves will make you JMW Turner, they will offer you a structure by which you can improve your skills in ways you might not have discovered otherwise.”

Give it a try, and enjoy!

Light My Fire Two, 44" x 20" acrylic on canvas: a commission painted for a client in the UK.

Oct 8, 2015 2:57:22 PM

September 15, 2015

Yellow Jazz

Lately I've been in love with yellow, using it on the background of my paintings. I cover the whole canvas in cadmium yellow light, and when it dries, I begin layers of detail in other colors. I made one large painting in this style, 72" x 44", which was sold by my new gallery, Quintus, in Watkins Glen.

This new painting is 30" x 30", and the square format changes the appearance of this composition. I begin the painting by drawing a somewhat random pattern of lines, then filling in some of the spaces. After that layer dries, I draw more lines, and then fill in those. In the final step, I work more slowly, adding whatever I think the painting needs to complete it.

YELLOW JAZZ, 30" x 30" acrylic on canvas

Sep 15, 2015 2:30:00 PM

June 08, 2015

New Gallery Exhibiting My Art

A new gallery opened in Watkins Glen, New York in a renovated Water Works building. Quintus Gallery at 65 Salt Point Road, is right on Seneca Lake, not far from downtown. They now have fifteen of my paintings hanging in their amazing space, along with work by several other contemporary artists.

Parting Two is on the left, Spring Escape on the right.

The building itself is amazing, and I've tried to capture some of it's features in these photos:

This is the main entrance of the gallery, with several of my paintings hanging on the center wall.

This photo gives you a sense of the original stonework, which owners Kathy and Joe have tried to preserve as much as possible. One of my paintings is in the foreground, two in the background.

Here are two small paintings of mine hanging in one of the nooks and crannies.

It's a real adventure to walk through the labyrinth of the gallery from floor to floor, alcove to alcove. And then, just walk out the door to view gorgeous Seneca Lake. My daughter and I took a stroll from downtown Watkins Glen to the gallery, walking along the lake shore.

If you're stopping for lunch, I recommend the Wildflower Cafe. I've had two delicious meals there already. And if you're a hiker, you must do the state park with its fabulous waterfalls.

Jun 8, 2015 2:29:32 PM

August 28, 2014

New Abstract Painting Plays Against Yellow

This summer I took a break from painting, hoping that I might start fresh in some new direction. I wasn't sure what that might be, but I wanted to take a chance. After a while, I realized that thinking about painting wouldn't get me there. The only way I could work things out would be in the studio.

I have always loved yellow, so I began by covering two very large canvases with cadmium yellow light. I liked the way their large yellow presences loomed.

After the first canvas was dry, I applied titanium white with a large soft brush to create a ghostlike image across the surface:

Yellow, 60" x 40" acrylic on canvas.

On the next canvas, I created a series of textures and shapes with lines. When they dried, I began to fill in some of the shapes with color. Since this canvas is 72" x 46", it took a long time to painstakingly fill in these spaces.

Yellow Two, 72" x 46" acrylic on canvas.

The final stage was filling in small sections with various shades of gray:

Yellow Two, 72" x 46" acrylic on canvas.

I doubt this is the new direction for me, but I have Yellow Two hanging in my dining room.

Aug 28, 2014 12:52:34 PM

March 25, 2014

New Video of My Abstract Drawing Process

I have posted videos showing how I make my abstract paintings, but filming the abstract drawing process was a different experience. I usually draw by standing up or sitting on a high stool at my drawing table, where the paper lies flat. To make this video, I put the sketchbook on my easel and drew standing up.

Drawing like this, it was a little harder to control the pen--I had to find other ways to steady my hand than leaning on the table. But for the most part, it worked fairly well.

My granddaughter held the camera, with the instruction to film only the drawing and my arm--not the rest of me. Because she was holding the camera, not me, I didn't realize that things in the background were kind of distracting. There were two paintings on a wall that appeared, and part of another painting behind the easel.

Next time I'll check the camera out myself first, and try to simplify the background. Another thing that might help is to put a large cardboard on the easel behind the drawing paper. Next time.

I made this drawing with colored calligraphy pens, but you'll hear all about it when you watch the video:

Mar 25, 2014 1:36:00 PM

March 18, 2014

Repainting a Large Canvas

Lately I've been looking at my older paintings, selecting those that don't quite work. I may have thought so when I painted them, but not now. I've taken these paintings off my website and now I'm repainting them.

I did a series of paintings that had been popular back then--but not all of them worked that well. Here's one that I chose to work on today, on a 48" x 48" canvas:

Crescendo, 48" x 48" acrylic on canvas.

First I covered the whole canvas in parchment (a light tan) and let the paint dry. This gave me a "blank canvas" to start with so that I wouldn't feel constrained by what was already there. The original texture, however, still remained.

I began painting freely with a brush, beginning with cadmium orange, Indian yellow, raw sienna and burnt sienna. In between the shapes I'd created with these colors, I added titanium white and dabs of the other colors.

For variation, I added a bit of red and some Prussian blue, painting quickly without worrying too much about composition. I just let it flow.

That's how I ended up with this:

Abstract Painting #231, 48" x 48" acrylic on canvas.

In my next painting session, I'll see where this one takes me.

Mar 18, 2014 11:58:38 AM

March 11, 2014

Six New Abstract Paintings on My Website

This week I put six of my newest abstract paintings on my website. That means I made a commitment to call these six paintings "finished." Some have lingered in the studio for a while before I was ready to do that. Others have been worked on more recently.

There are two horizontal paintings--revisions of early pattern paintings. One is very busy and "in-your-face," the other is more muted:

Abstract Patterns Three, 36" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

Abstract Patterns Four, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

The other four paintings are small square canvases, all painted recently. Here's a sample:

Feeling True, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

You can see all six of the new paintings, as well as my other most recent work, on my New Abstract Paintings Gallery. All are for sale and available in giclee prints on canvas as well.

Mar 11, 2014 11:30:42 AM

March 04, 2014

New Palette Knife Painting in Red, White and Black

I used a brush to cover this 24" x 24" canvas in a parchment background before beginning the foreground with a palette knife. Then I chose cadmium red to begin laying down colors with the knife, applying thick swaths of the acrylic paint.

Next, I added a few swaths of cadmium orange, and then used titanium white to set off these colors, being careful not to let the white blend too much with the red and orange. The last color I used was mars black, quickly swiping it onto the canvas to get a sense of sharpness and energy in the marks.

After that, I did a back-and-forth dance--adding more of this color here, that one there, blending the paint in some areas, being careful not to in others. Working with the palette knife is always tricky--you can get interesting effects by overlaying colors, and by using the knife to scrape away paint, leaving the under color.

My last step was to draw lines in black, outlining some shapes, adding texture, and defining the overall composition. By outlining a "negative space," for example, I could change it from background into foreground.

Stopping in time is also important--before you overdo an effect and wreck whatever the painting has going for it. I think I stopped in time on this one--when I look at it again tomorrow, I'll decide.

Abstract Painting #229, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

Mar 4, 2014 11:30:12 AM | abstract art, how to paint, painting process

February 25, 2014

Fine Tuning Two Abstract Paintings

I often let new paintings sit for a while and then give them another look. Today I worked on two abstract paintings that had been hanging around the studio. I liked them both, but felt they might still need something more.

In this first one, I added just a few more spots of color--a bright orange and a pale yellow--which made a big difference, I thought. Then I played with it some more, mixing a light blue with white to make an even paler shade, and using it throughout the canvas where I thought it might do some good. Check out the original painting, and see if you can see the difference here:

Abstract Painting #225, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

While fine tuning the next painting, I made more drastic changes. I had been focusing on black and white and grays in recent painting sessions, but this time I went back to the colors in the underpainting: yellow, orange and red.

I began with a cadmium red deep, adding circles of this color interspersed among the dark gray and black circles toward the bottom of the canvas. I continued the layers of circles, working my way toward the top of the canvas, with cadmium red medium and red light, a medium orange, and finally cadmium orange.

Abstract Painting #224, 36" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 25, 2014 12:05:12 PM | abstract paintings, Art Process, how to paint, painting process

February 18, 2014

Background or Foreground - Question for New Painting

I've been repainting a series I called "pattern paintings" because they were basically bland backgrounds with detailed patterns of color on the surface. I decided they were too static and "decorative," so I've been trying to make them more interesting.

Here's what today's attempt looked like before I began to work on it:

Abstract Patterns Two, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

I began to paint over the middle horizontal section of the canvas, using a medium sized brush. I used colors that had been toned down and mixed with glaze medium and water: a dark red, purple, lavender, and violet blue. I painted in up-and-down strokes, quite loosely.

At that point, I thought it would be better to let more of the underpainting show through, so I took a rag and began to wipe off some of the paint I'd just added. I also blended the other colors, leaving ghosts and splashes here and there.

All this was an experiment, and I continued in that manner by drawing random scribbled lines in cadmiumn yellow light, focusing on the top and bottom of the canvas. Then I drew similar lines in Prussian blue, focusing on the center horizontal swath of the painting.

Here's how it ended up:

Abstract Painting #226, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 18, 2014 12:46:00 PM | abstract painting, painting process

February 11, 2014

Painting With A Palette Knife

Before I began painting with a palette knife, I first used a brush to paint the background of this small canvas with unbleached titanium. Then I began adding wide strokes of color with the palette knife, beginning with cadmium red deep, raw sienna, and burnt sienna.

I left spaces for the titanium white, which I added next. I allowed the white to blend somewhat with the other colors, but not too much. I then added a bit of parchment, and finally some burnt umber.

Once I got the basic blocks of color in, I continued to add more of one here, more of another there--always being careful to control the amount of blending with the background. When I wanted a more solid color, I added another layer with the knife. I also added some of the darker colors gingerly to the background to give it more texture and interest.

My final step was to draw lines in burn tumber outlining some of the shapes and guiding the eye through the composition. The lines added emphasis as well as texture.

Canvas #223, 20" x 20" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 11, 2014 12:37:00 PM | how to paint, Making Art, painting process, Texture

February 04, 2014

New Abstract Painting Made With A Palette Knife

To make this new abstract painting, my primary tool was a palette knife, which I used to apply heavy body Liquitex acrylics. First I painted the whole 20" x 20" canvas in unbleached titanium (a creamy beige color) with a brush.

Then I used a palette knife to apply the main colors, beginning with titanium white. I made some loose, broad strokes which left some of the background color showing through. Next, I added yellow oxide, then raw sienna, and finally, burnt umber.

As I worked, I let the colors blend, but not too much. It is tricky using a knife because you have less control than a with a brush. I used the burnt umber for the heaviest accent since it had the most contrast with the white and the beige background.

My last step was to draw lines in the burnt umber, highlighting movement and outlining shapes for emphasis. Then I slowed down, adding more white here, more brown there, even using a brush at one point to subtly change a color.

Canvas #221, 20" x 20" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 4, 2014 1:00:00 PM | abstract painting, Art Process

January 28, 2014

New Vertical Abstract Paintings on Website

I usually paint in square format, which I like best for non-objective abstract paintings, but among these six new paintings I just put up on my website, are four verticals. There are two sets of two in the same sizes and similar colors so that they might be hung together if desired.

Two of the paintings are in stark black, white and parchment with touches of yellow and red. Here's one of them:

Oxygen, 36" x 48" acrylic on canvas

The next set is a softer palette in lavender, purple and white, with highlights in orange-red. Here's a sample:

This Way That, 30" x 36" acrylic on canvas.

The last two are one-of-a-kind. Check out my new paintings gallery to see them.

Jan 28, 2014 11:18:07 AM

January 21, 2014

Intersections in Black and Blue and Brown

In this new drawing I worked with intersecting lines, both curved and straight, to gradually build up the composition. I began using the thick points of Zig double-sided calligraphy pens, beginning with black.

One pen that was beginning to lose its ink saturation was useful in creating a paler shade of black, which looks gray on the paper. It was useful in getting a sense of shading, receding into the background.

I drew thinner lines as well as thick, adding a grayish-blue and two browns to the mix. Then I began to draw lines with a black fine point pen, outlining the central shapes to create paths throughout the composition.

My final step was to fill in some of these shapes with the two browns. As I worked on this drawing, I stopped periodically to step back and see how the composition was developing. When I liked what I saw, I stopped.

2014 Abstract Drawing #8, archival inks on acid-free paper.

Jan 21, 2014 11:48:00 AM

Lynne Taetzsch

I am an artist and a writer.

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