The Litvak Legacy

Watercolor can add a lot of life to your work of art. With some helpful tips you can master and perfect the art of watercolor painting. Transparency is the most promising and the most attractive characteristic of watercolor. The watercolor feels like a sparkle of light which the color of the paper shines through the paint. The watercolor seems to blend with the color of the paper and it creates an illusion of transparency.

Some tricks can best work and create the best illusion for your masterpiece. The watercolor trick that can make your painting lively. Lift paint is a trick that a watercolor paint can have. A wet tip can add light with your watercolor. While you are working with your artwork you have to keep in mind that you must work from light to dark. This will create an illusion that your artwork is coming to life.

The paper being used for your art work must have that high quality and excellent texture. A dramatic effect can be created in the final outcome of the painting. Water color paper must be chosen promptly to suite the type of scene you want to paint. You can choose from the following types of water color paper like rough pressed, hot pressed and cold pressed. You must also consider the size and weight of the watercolor paper. This involves the fibers of the paper that you will use. If these fibers are treated it will decrease the ability of the watercolor paper to absorb the water. Lighter paper must be stretched before using it otherwise it will wrinkle when the wet tip of the brush works with the paper.

When you are looking for the best type of watercolor paint that you will use you have to consider the capacity of the painter, whether he or she is still a student or a professional artist already. When you are already an artist who can work best with watercolor, you can use artist watercolor paints which have more vibrant colors to choose from. It is really a matter of taste. Though it is best that you use artist quality watercolor paint, but you can always mix and match the colors. You can try experimenting with colors that you use to depict your work of art in the liveliest mood. You can purchase watercolor paints in forms of pans and tubes. To make the paint more workable and accessible you have to use water in order for the dry paint cake can be easily managed in paper. You have to make sure that you have rinsed the brush before trying other colors. This must be done when you are working with a watercolor paint in a pan. If you will not do this, you will get ugly and dirty looking shades of colors. You can try mixing and matching your primary colors to come up with your secondary colors. There are still pre-mixed watercolor paints available inn the market.

You can avail such, when you visit hobby stores and see if you have your most favorite color, Purchase only a few primary colors and learn how to mix your own colors rather than purchasing premixed colors. When you become more experienced, you can then start incorporating more colors into your palette.

Interior designers can now set up shop smack dab in the middle of an online art gallery populated with artwork by amazingly talented independent artists.

It’s a match made in heaven that brings together art sellers and art buyers who share a common goal: Reach thousands of people who have a passion for art and who want to create beautiful home décors.

Finding and reaching qualified clients is a full time job for interior designers. The same is true for artists, who many will tell you, prefer to create art rather than market it. So, it makes perfect sense to join forces and capitalize on the synergies created by marrying visual artists with interior design professionals.

And, it’s more than a marriage of convenience.  It’s a marriage of necessity.  That’s because the market for buying artwork and design services is not defined by a particular demographic. It’s defined by a desire. In fact, you could call it a behavior or an interest, and for some, a passion. But, bottom line is that it’s a want, not a need.

So, the market is a moving target that can land you anywhere. People who have a burning desire to live and work in beautifully decorated spaces can be found among young, urban singles, well heeled seniors, empty nesters, soccer moms, business owners … you name it!

As a result, marketing to a behavior is extremely difficult because it’s impossible to narrow the target. You need to reach thousands of people to find the few among them who are motivated to purchase art and willing to spend money on design services.

Generating that kind of reach requires a full time marketing effort and hefty ad budget on a scale with DiscoveredArtists.com’s ongoing direct marketing program. Unlike an individual artist or designer website, the art marketplace delivers the targeted traffic and click through volume that produces results for artists, and is poised to do the same for Interior Designers.

The website’s direct marketing efforts aimed at high income earners, home decorating enthusiasts, art buyers and collectors is beginning to pay off in increased traffic and art sales. Both have doubled over the past month and continue to increase weekly.

DiscoveredArtists.com is a curated online art marketplace for buying and selling wall art, fine art photography and art objects. Professional emerging and established, independent artists who create artworks suitable for home décor are invited to join the site. Artists pay an annual fee ranging from $50 to $99 to post an unlimited number of artworks on the online gallery. DiscoveredArtists.com offers artists marketing services, tools for managing their portfolios, and a secure shopping cart where buyers can purchase art using a major credit card.

More at http://www.discoveredartists.com/forartsellers

Interior Designers may register at http://www.discoveredartists.com/forInteriorDesigners.aspx.

Clefs, notes, rests, scales, chords, rhythm… How long does it really take to learn how to play the piano? The answer depends on your definition of what your desired level of ‘piano playing’ should ultimately be. There are professionals, semi-professionals, amateurs and people with next to no training. The following are three common categories that a beginner pianist might aspire to achieve.

1. You want to simply play a couple of pieces to impress friends; this frame of mind will help you avoid unwanted comments such as:

“It doesn’t surprise me that you don’t play an instrument. You never could do anything!”

“I thought anyone could play SOMETHING on the piano. You’ve proven that I was wrong.”

“I’m glad you don’t play an instrument. Why do we need more noise pollution in the world?”

Yes, people can be mean. Of course, I’m giving you the worst case scenarios, but it doesn’t hurt being prepared for the worst. Piano can easily be taught by a student copying a teacher, provided the pieces are not too long or complex. This type of rote teaching is a quick fix, designed to give a pupil confidence when asked by a friend or relative to play the piano. The downside is that a student will probably not accumulate a lot of repertoire using this method, unless that student has an astonishing memory or an incredibly accurate ear for music.

2. The second category of student involves an aspiration to play for one’s own enrichment and enjoyment. At this stage real lessons should kick in, including theory and practical technique. If music is to be taken as a serious, yet enjoyable hobby, then learning the language is essential in avoiding future frustration. Some of these frustrations might include:

“I wish I learned how to read rhythm properly. Why did I waste my youth faking rhythm when I could have learned properly? Why, why, why …?”

“I just realized something. I’m sixty and I can’t read music. Ahhhh!”

3. Finally, category three involves an aspiration for professionalism. In order to achieve this level, serious lessons and lengthy practice sessions are a must. Music, like any other language, requires understanding and an unusual amount of repetition in order to reinforce mental understandings of music concepts and tactile memory. Consistency in this category has the added reward of increasing your chances at receiving comments such as:

“Wow, you’re amazing!”

“I think my ears just smiled. Thank you for the blessing of your playing. Here’s some cash… now please play some more, oh great one.”

“I never knew real happiness until today. Thank you, thank you, thank you…”

Which category does the average person fit into? I would say the second one. Although the world is filled with professional musicians, most people want to be able to play a few songs and enjoy themselves. This enjoyment includes a bit of an understanding of the language of music, including clefs, notes, rests, scales, chords, rhythm and more.

So here’s some final advice. If you really want to know how to play the piano, ask yourself what your ultimate goals are. This will better help you channel your valuable energy.