Mary Blair and her Influence on My Style

Mary Blair's style, in retrospect, is like a 20th century version of John Singer Sargent. Her colors are vibrant, balanced, innovative, and full of whimsy.

Her illustrations and work are constantly on my mind because she illustrated in a way back in the 30's and 40's that many people did not. It was a very modern approach that I think she was often copied for.

Her biggest claim to fame to this day is her brilliantly colorful "it's a small world," exhibit that is at Disneyland (originally it was at the Worlds Fair in New York in 1964 before Walt Disney transplanted it to Disneyland.) She was no stranger to Disney, though.

She designed many artboards and story boards for his big time animated films, such as Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan and animated shorts. Many of her design concepts were used for the films.

Mary Blair will always be a source of inspiration for my art work and will always strive to maybe some day be just as innovative in my own style :0)

Some Gallery Owner Advice

This website may assist in one's quest to get commercial recognition. Please check out for some encouraging viewpoints!

http://www.artbistro.com/news/articles/8862-how-to-get-commercial-gallery-representation?utm_source=nlet&utm_content=ab_r3_20090506_ugal

Making it Big

I have been in one art show. It was a lot of work and I only exhibited one piece. This art show occurred about 8 years ago, about this time of year. I thought it was a great opportunity for me because I could get recognized and also attempt to sell the work I was going to exhibit. I was just barely 19 years old, never been formally trained and scared to death of the competition. Yet, I also felt confident in my work. I remember this painting being a labor of love because I felt if I do win something, I will have put my all into it. Probably most people who enter their work are feeling as if they've got their heart on their sleeve. It's a very difficult process because you really are stripping yourself to an emotional core and hope people admire your work. You can't help but watch people take a peak at it and wonder what they're thinking. "Ugh, you call this art?" or "Wow, this is very well done." You almost feel like a stalker, like you see people examining your work and you want to watch, but you have no entitlement to go up there and try and "sell" it to them, you just have to wait and see! The torture!

This piece I worked on was a scene of the Doges Palace in Venice. Yes, a pretty ordinary scene, but I loved the sunset in the background and thought it would be a good show piece. Maybe not some kind of eye poppping kind of work, but for me, I put every ounce of my love into it. Moreso, the finish I put on the frame was also a labor of love. The frame was originally a blue color and I used acrylic paints to white wash it. Then I added some kind of varnish, sanded it down, dried it, did all kinds of things to it. I think I almost admired the frame more than the painting! Yikes!

So, here came the big day! I was very nervous, as I am generally shy, so setting things up and sitting and waiting and standing and waiting and mingling with strangers was unsettling on my nerves. But, I tried my best to put a brave face on. I had some family come and support me. The local newspaper took some pictures of me. People had snacks and drinks. A local jazz band played for us. It was actually, not very nerve wracking after all. Yet, when time came to announce the winners, my heart went into overload and raced with trepidation. I kept telling myself, "I am good enough to win, but I am not as good as some of these other artists and there are so many I'm up against - but, I am good enough."

Well, they announced, one by one, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, Honorable Mentions and then it was done. Nope, not one single piece of recognition. My heart then felt afflamed. I looked at the other art works feeling a little jaded and a bit let down. I then looked at my art work critically. Part of me wanted to take my work down and run with it in shame. I just felt maybe I am too thin skinned for this kind of thing.

Well, the show went on. People had their congratulations and now it was the time where patrons could come in and actually purchase work. I stuck around, but still felt a little down. I still kept my happy face on and tried to hang in there. Then when I was across the room, some of my family noticed two men taking a serious look at my work. Then the two men went around the whole show and evaluated the works. Then the men came back to mine. It was a strange feeling. I watched them - should I dare say it - admire it!

Some time passed and those same two men returned. They then made a deal with the people in charge of the art show. The men left. I ran (or just walked quickly) over to my painting to find a "Sold" sign on it! I couldn't believe it! This was a huge reward for me. Better than 1st place!

As the show wrapped up, I gave my painting a once over and said good bye to it. If those men only knew what I put into it and the history behind it, they'll hopefully enjoy this work just as much as I did. My family and friends noticed that only two other paintings sold besides mine. I felt that maybe this show was worth it afterall.

Artistic Inspirations

I think from an early age, many things captured me in a magical way. Probably some of my earliest inspirations were from watching the old Disney cartoons. The colors in them were so vibrant, especially the ones in the Silly Symphonies or the Jiminy Cricket Specials. They had such an enduring quality, that I think from that point on, they became my gold standard of how art should look. Here are a few examples of what I am speaking of:

As you can see, Disney had some amazing artists. The background artistry is just eye popping and very much outdoes the actual animation. I think Walt Disney had such high standards and also, it just goes to show that this kind of animation is a sign of the times. It's style is not longer in favor today, even though it can still be appreciated. Pixar comes pretty close, but still not as close and as lush as this.

I think the thing with digital art is that it's trying too hard to look too real. It doesn't want us to believe that they're actually fake. It's still eye popping and tediously done work, but it just beats to a different drum.

As I got older, different styles grabbed my attention. Books I read that were illustrated often demonstrated that same rich color effect that I still find attractive until this very day. One book I've held close to my heart which may not be familiar at all to anyone out there, but it was called, "Martha's House," where Martha, a little girl, took you through her house and showed you each room, sometimes some goofy things were happening, but all in all, it looked like an ideal place for a little girl to grow up. I may have just wanted to jump in there and be a part of it. I still have it somewhere and just grin, ear to ear, when I sit myself down and read it. I feel like I've stepped back in time.

Other books that had beautiful illustrations that captured me were the Original Mother Goose Book, full of illustrations from the 1910's. All the kids looked like little cherubs, but they were beautiful images, each and every one.

A few other books were the Disney books that had their movies in full illustration mode. The colors were just as vibrant as they were in the movie. The Lady and the Tramp one I especially liked and would look it over and over.

As I got into my teens, I began a fascination with old movie stars. This time, all color was diminished, and this time I think what I was attracted to more was the mood and style, rather than anything else. Even the contour of things is what stood out. I would draw countless old movie stars and began a large appreciation for many, including:

Vivien Leigh - Ever since watching Gone with the Wind when I was about 7 years old, Vivien Leigh's beauty has been, to me, a trademark. I didn't see her in another movie until years later, in which I believe was A Streetcar Named Desire. She had aged, but her acting was mesmerizing. I had to see her in more films, and I did. I ultimately became a collector of her memorabilia and actually have quite a collection - including an autographed photo of her.

John Barrymore - Always the one with the great side view, John Barrymore has a look that can often be hard to capture but can also be attainable if you practice it several times over.

Errol Flynn - He's got the looks of your all around good looking movie star. Yet, he has an impeccable side view.

Ava Gardner - After reading about her over the years and even visiting a museum devoted to her in rural North Carolina, Ava Gardner's wit, no holds barred attitude, and beauty have had me under a spell. I read a biography about her about a year ago, and it was almost impossible to put down. Things she did were really stranger than fiction, but fascinating and jaw dropping! Drawing her is almost impossible, but I have had a few semi-successful attempts.

Audrey Hepburn - Audrey is like the creme De la creme of ultimate beauty in Classic Hollywood. It's almost impossible to capture her at times because her looks are so refined, yet so unique. You want to capture her large eyes, full lips, high cheek bones - but somehow you can miss the mark - and badly! I think this is why she enchants me because she isn't cookie cutter beautiful and each time I see her, in books or on screen, I just want to try so hard to capture that unique look in a drawing. I am sure she's tortured other artists as well!

Gallery of Art

Here are some scans I made today of my artwork between mainly 1998-2000. I was my most prolific at this time in my life because I didn't have a job, bills to pay and a big social life. I miss those days!

Edgar Degas as an Inspiration

Many girls, I am sure, have been fascinated by the Edgar Degas' artwork in which he has captured ballerinas. They are probably his most enduring works to date. I remember first getting a glimpse of them and loving how he seemed to capture the moment, just like as if he was taking a photograph at any random moment. It didn't feel rigid and posed. One of my favorites of his is captured above. I did this one myself, but I still feel as if his is by far the superior one.

A lot of Edgar Degas work was done in pastel and I think his work inspired me to be more conscious of the effects of pastel. I am speaking of oil pastels, but some of the more chalky kind of pastels can still ellude a similar effect. The neat thing with oil pastels is that they give a similar effect that oil paints capture. Oil seems to give a lot of depth to images. This may be why I prefer to work with oils more and more.

Not long before I started using pastels, did I only have access to watercolors. I think as children we mostly exposed to crayons and watercolors. Watercolors are easy as a child because they are easy to clean up after, use mostly primary colors, are fairly cheap and fun. But, if you want to paint in watercolor and be good at it, that's another story!

Watercolors were very difficult for me to grasp. But, since I only had those and pastels to work with, I had to sort of teach myself techniques in which to grasp them. Keep them restrained and not runny. I wanted rich, deep colors from watercolors, but they'd always turn out flat and lifeless. By the time I turned about 17 or 18, did I finally figure out how to get them right. Please look at the following examples:

As you can see, I really tried to make them have some depth. Again, this was self taught. I was about 16 when I did the one on the left and about 18 when I did the one on the right.

When I first discovered John Singer Sargent's work, it was maily my admiration for his excellent skill in watercolor. Till this day I cannot find myself admiring anyone else more than him. He was precise and exact, yet free flowing. The picture on the right demonstrates me trying to copy a John Singer Sargent painting.

Learning various techniques helped me grasp the idea that water colors can be vibrant and have depth, but just not in the same way as oil paints.

Here's a Go at it!

I have been managing a different blog the last few months, but thought it may be wise to devote one blog fully to my artwork and use it as a tool to interact with other artists.

I thought I may explain a little about myself as an introduction to this blog.

As my profile states, I am 27 years old. I have been attending college for WAY too long, but mainly because I have shifted my majors too many times. Working full time doesn't help either. Not until just a year ago, was I able to limit my work to part time. Financially, it's a crunch, but I know finally finishing my education will pay off in the end!

I have primarily taken my courses at Los Medanos College since 2001. I started taking courses at Diablo Valley College in 2008, as I live closer to that campus now. Unfortunately, in order to graduate as a LMC student, I need to finish my last semester there. So, I will be returning to LMC this upcoming Fall 2009, to take about three more courses. After that, I have three more to take in the Spring and I am DONE! As of now, I could actually graduate with my Liberal Arts - with a focus on Science or Art (as I fulfilled both requirements.) Yet, in order to get my degree in Graphic Design, I still need to finish up the remaining courses. Bummer! I also have a GPA of 3.5, so it looks like I am on my way to graduating with Honors.

Drawing has been a life long passion of mine. I learned to draw at an early age, as all kids do. I had the normal Crayon box, and would draw in lots of detail. My mother once noted that a teacher wanted me to draw a picture of myself when I was about 4 years old. She said I included knee caps, eyelashes - the whole sh-bang! I think I saw detail quite well, which must of meant I was highly observant. She also noticed how I would stay precisely within the lines of my coloring books. I was no prodigy, by far, but the arts were definetly in my blood.

Well, I will need to head to bed for now, as I am fighting some kind of flu and was on here trying to bide some time until my fever finally went down. It reached 100.4, and I was piping hot - so I turned on the fan to cool me down and now I am feeling back to normal (thank goodness for Motrin!)

I will continue to write about my artistic journey's throughout my short life, as well as introduce some tips I've obtained and also share some of my favorite artistic influences! I hope for this to be just as fun for you as it will be fore me :0)

Sincerely,
Kristen