As part of my new series of Route 66 paintings I am starting with an image close to home. The Golden Spur Restaurant is located in Glendora, California.

Photo courtesey Drew Knowles
author, Route 66 Adventure Handbook
www.Route66University.com

How I begin a painting is to first photograph the subject. I am not a plein-air painter so I work in the studio. I’ve traveled Route 66 several times. In the Los Angeles area it goes through several cities, including Glendora.

When I photograph I take as many shots as I can with my Cannon D-10 digital camera. When I started my art career I used film. That seems so long ago now. I shoot different angles and try to get a shot I can use as the main image. I take anywhere from 5 to 20 shots of each potential subject. From there I save the images and later select the one I use for the painting reference.

I then choose the canvas size. Some artists create their own stretcher bars and stretch their own canvas. I don’t do that. It is not because I can’t do it but there are commercial pre-stretched canvas available and sometimes at a better price (including my labor time) than I can do myself. A good source for this, especially during their 1/2 price sale, is Aaron Brothers Art Mart. If you are going to stretch your own canvas, including putting on gesso, here is a good reference site for more information.
Next Post: Transfering the image.

As as new content of this blog I will be posting commentary on new paintings.

Why? Because it is a way for me to give back to new artists and others interested in the art process. There is also a saying that you learn more by teaching, which I believe is true.

Most of my art education did not come from school. It came from watching working artists, reading books on art (especially art business), and lots of practice. My goal here is to show the art creatiion process as I do it.

Now there are some artists who guard their art process. They are afraid of competition or someone stealing their ideas. In my opinion those types of artists are insecure. I can show how something is done, however if someone is going to copy me they still have to do the work. Also, Picasso one said “Good artists copy, great artists steal!”

Please feel free to ask questions about the process. Of course I can only teach what I know so keep that in mind (i.e. no questions about sculpture. I have no clue about how that is done).

Most of all please enjoy. That is why I paint, so you can enjoy my work and the subject matter.