It was, as art historian Linda Merrill writes in her book, A Pot of Paint: Aesthetics on Trial in Whistler v. Ruskin, “the most celebrated lawsuit in the history of art.”  As we suggested in [...]

“James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) was one of the most deliberately contentious, witty, and fiercely independent artists of his generation.” With this, the Carnegie Museum of Art opened a 2012 exhibition of works by Whistler by [...]

“With almost any creative endeavor, we mistakenly think that we know what translates into success.” – Susan J. Langer Most people look at paintings in galleries and museums and think that artists are special people, endowed with [...]

If portraits seduce, confront, and fascinate us, it’s not least because they put art directly in the service of the human psyche, with all the mysteries that entails. Out of the several genres of realism [...]

Lisa Regopoules is particularly well known for her paintings of specific birds, so when the organizers of Pastel Live invited her to demonstrate a still life, she decided that a “non-traditional still life” was the [...]

To eyes trained on traditional realism, a painting like the above might seem an anxious jumble of shapes and colors. And that’s exactly what it is, but for a good reason: Picasso’s “Night Fishing at [...]

The following article features a leading artist who is teaching others how to paint through online workshops at Pastel Live and PaintTube.tv. By William Schneider Working in one medium is challenging enough; why on Earth should you consider [...]

 By Contributing Author Carol Strock Wasson On my way home from the Chicago area recently, I got to thinking about the importance of attending an exhibition even if you have not received notification of an [...]

Rocks are hard.  That’s a fact. But painting them gets easier with a few basic principles in mind. Number one pitfall to avoid: making your rocks look like potato sacks. Okay, but how? The following [...]

“Having your head in the clouds, even for just a few minutes each day, is good for your mind, good for your body, and good for your soul.” – Gavin Pretor-Pinney “Paintings of clouds are [...]