Pocket Point – Slide that brush!

Pocket Point – Slide that brush!

Every now and then I see painters furiously stabbing away at a painting like a sewing machine. Badabadabadaba.. on and on. Other times, the work is a little slower, but it still is a stamping motion, smash down, lift up, repeat. There are a several reasons why this...
Pocket Point – Proportions

Pocket Point – Proportions

Proportions are one of those things that “we know that we know”, but we can’t easily explain what it means to someone who doesn’t. Here is a great way to explain it to young students, along with some visuals you can show to help them understand. Older students also...
Pocket Point – Guidelines

Pocket Point – Guidelines

The key to making guidelines is drawing lightly; very lightly. Young artists will erase and erase to get things “right”, but they also often draw with a heavy line. The erased marks cause the paper or canvas to look dirty, and the inaccurate lines are so noticeable...
Pocket Point – The Poor Poor Palette

Pocket Point – The Poor Poor Palette

Everyone knows you want a set of markers with as many colors as you can afford. The same goes for crayons, colored pencils, pastels… anything that comes in sets. But for some odd reason, students always think they should only get out one tube of paint on their palette...
Pocket Point – Blank Canvas Anxiety

Pocket Point – Blank Canvas Anxiety

Every artist is intimidated by the blank paper or canvas. Sometimes it’s debilitating. You can encourage students, but how do you really alleviate any of their fears? Expectations and misconceptions can shut down many artists, especially a perfectionist. Here is...
Pocket Point – Neutral POW!

Pocket Point – Neutral POW!

Most artists look at neutral colors such as flesh tones, and think, “it’s light brown”. Then they attempt to make these colors using brown pigments and white. It’s ok, but colors made this way are lifeless. There are reasons why, and...