Archives for Oil

Fine Art and Freedom

Fine Art and Freedom

March 22, 2014 | by

It’s been an interesting ride for Michael Dudash, an award-winning illustrator who, early in is career, occasionally spent nights locked in a cadaver room at the University of Minnesota, as he sketched illustrations for a medical magazine. Those days are long behind him, and today Dudash is a fine artist, who paints everything from portraits and landscapes to still lifes and Western scenes. C. Michael Dudash (Idaho) Sheriff, A Deputy, A Day’s Catch Oil 28″ x 42″ “As with a lot of my work, this painting tells a story by only telling part of the story. The viewer has to
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Simplicity and Truth

Simplicity and Truth

March 22, 2014 | by

While a passion for simplicity might seem to be a bit of a dichotomy for someone born and raised in the vibrantly active Southern California beach community of Torrence, 38-year-old landscape painter Glenn Dean emphasizes this is the quality he strives for, both in his personal lifestyle and most decidedly in the creation of his dramatic Western landscapes, which portray nature in its most basic forms. Glenn Dean (California) Land of Titans Oil 30″ x 30″ “I’m drawn to the big, simple shapes found in the canyons of the Southwest. I liked the monumental silhouette of this mesa in the
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The Art of Breaking Rules

The Art of Breaking Rules

March 22, 2014 | by

Dan Bodelson is a rebel. Not a James Dean kind of rebel, not a rebel without a cause, but rather one whose focus is art. You see, so much about art, according to Bodelson, has to do with defying the rules—in essence, rebelling. “In fact, there are no rules,” he says. “Because, if someone says ‘You can’t do that and don’t mix that color with that [other one],’ the first thing an artist will go and do is just what you said not to. Dan Bodelson (New Mexico) Too Cold to Ride Oil 40″ x 30″ “I came across this
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‘It is Still Magical’

‘It is Still Magical’

January 22, 2014 | by

Richard Schmid is a painter’s painter, an artist’s artist. The truth of that statement is evident not only in his magnificent paintings, which have garnered countless awards and are included in collections throughout the world, but in the popularity of the books he writes and the workshops he conducts. Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1934 and currently living in New Hampshire with his wife, Nancy Guzik, a talented artist in her own right. Richard Schmid (Vermont) Nasturtium Sketch Oil 9” by 12” “Nasturtiums, like pansies, beg to be painted, because they lend themselves so readily to simple, bold brushwork and
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A Lifelong Journey

A Lifelong Journey

January 22, 2014 | by

Lindsay Scott is a naturalist artist, or an artistic naturalist. Either way you slice it, she knows her subjects: wildlife and nature. As is often the case with wildlife artists, a love of nature, a penchant for accuracy, and a natural artistic ability form their careers. Scott’s ease with the natural world is evident in many ways, and her impressionistic/realistic art is a direct descendant of her passion for wildlife and accuracy. Her success as an artist, on the other hand, is a result of tenacity, ability, and confidence. Lindsay Scott (New Zealand) Bravado Oil 60” by 34” “This how
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Home is Where the Horses Are

Home is Where the Horses Are

January 22, 2014 | by

When Jim Rey’s mom died a few years ago, he found some of his childhood drawings that she had saved in a box. The pencil drawings, which Rey had done when he was just 4 or 5 years old, were of horses and cattle. Which is what Rey, now 74, is still drawing and painting. “It’s not something I’m going to outgrow,” he says. “I just really like the subject matter. I like painting the Western experience, so that’s what I’ll keep doing.” Jim Rey (Nebraska) Point Rider Oil 36” by 24” “I vacillated between choosing to do this painting
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Magical, Mystical Water

Magical, Mystical Water

January 22, 2014 | by

Water—whether a stream, lake, river, or ocean—is magical and mysterious, moody and mesmerizing. It can be peaceful or restless, soothing or savage, as it laps softly at a sandy shore or crashes against a rocky cliff. Words cannot begin to describe the beauty, the power, the majesty, of water. That is best accomplished by artists, who are inspired by its many facets and who skillfully capture them with paints. John Budicin (California) Vertigo Oil 8˝ by 18˝ David Drummond (New Mexico) Morning South of Dangling Rope Watercolor 30˝ by 50˝ Carolyn Hesse-Low (California) Shipyard and Kayaks Oil 11″ by 14″
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The Studio of Zhuo Liang

The Studio of Zhuo Liang

January 22, 2014 | by

“I looked for the ideal house for two years,” Liang says of the Agoura Hills, California home that yielded the appropriate space needed for his new studio. The area, approximately 40 feet by 40 feet, features a ceiling that rises a full two stories. “You immediately sense the height and it gives you a very good scale, especially if you paint large,” he says, noting that smaller spaces can often make a painting feel out of proportion and larger than it really is. Z. S. Liang (California) Joe Kipp Trader, Missouri River, 1879 Oil 44˝ by 68˝
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Happily Held Hostage

Happily Held Hostage

November 25, 2013 | by

Mention landscapes, and the name Clyde Aspevig likely will come to mind. The award-winning artist creates visual feasts, as he recreates the natural beauty of the world that inspires him. From meadows and mountains to lilies and lakes, he transports viewers, taking them by the eye and leading them to the places that inspire him. Aspevig grew up on a farm in the northern part of Montana, where his love of the land took root. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in education from Eastern Montana College and taught for a year before leaving the classroom behind to focus
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Art, Pure and Simple

Art, Pure and Simple

November 25, 2013 | by

Robert Pummill is an artist—no fanfare, no frills, no desire to grandstand his art or his artistic ideas. Chatting with the Texas artist, you might begin to think he’s taciturn, but you quickly realize that’s not the case. He isn’t interesting in tooting his own horn; he just wants to paint. “I just try to make a good picture that someone enjoys looking at,” Pummill says. “I’m not trying to send a message, and I’m not trying to do something so different that it creates a niche for me.” He goes on to explain that he paints because he wouldn’t
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