All posts by Diane Atwood
I never realized how much influence one color could have over others
I’m learning so much in the Color Theory class I’m taking this semester. The instructor is Jim Flahaven at the University of Southern Maine. These images are from an assignment designed to help us better understand simultaneous contrast. I won’t take it for granted that you all know what simultaneous contrast is because I didn’t know. […]
Mary Brooking. An artist who finds inspiration in the natural beauty of Maine
Mary Brooking says she enjoys testing the balance between reality and abstraction. She prefers to paint with acrylics, but her work is often mistaken for oil paintings because of their softness and tonal depth. Mary also teaches acrylic painting in a wonderful space in Westbrook, Maine — Continuum for Creativity. Read more about what motivates […]
Dorette Amell, Maine Artist. Be prepared to be inspired
Work hard, says Maine artist Dorette Amell. She knows what she’s talking about. She worked hard to find her voice and to become the fine artist she is today. A woman who practices what she preaches. Read more to find out what inspires Dorette to create art. Cautionary Tale (Bitterness) 2015 Casein on Birch Panel […]
Amy Stacey Curtis and MEMORY: Her final biennial
Amy Stacey Curtis, who has lived in Maine since 1986, says her work “physically exists as art only when installed in a space and activated by an audience.” Over the past 17 years, Amy has installed eight solo-biennial exhibits. For each, she has chosen a Maine mill as her space.Her first exhibit was in the […]
Learning to be an artist. Making progress and works in progress
It’s right on the tip of our pens
No commentary with this post. Pictures only. Exquisite little pen and ink drawings that we did in our Drawing: Media and Strategies class with Michael Shaughnessy. We had to do 12 drawings each on 6×6-inch squares of heavy paper. They all had 4-inch borders, but we weren’t restricted to staying inside. There did have to […]
Diane Dahlke. An artist who finds inspiration in play
When she’s not at her easel, Diane Dahlke is encouraging and mentoring aspiring and developing artists. She teaches painting in MECA’s Continuing Studies Program. That’s where I first met Diane. I took her Practice of Painting class several times. Couldn’t get enough! Because her lessons still roll around in my head and in the hand […]
How to be inspired by apple trees and abstract art
En plein air. A French expression that means “in the open air.” A plein air painting is done outdoors. Last week, Jim, my painting instructor, took the class on a plein air field trip to Randall Apple Orchard in Standish. It was a warm, sunny fall day. Couldn’t be more perfect. And there were no […]