Recommendations - CJ Rider, Instructor

Olivia M July 24, 2013

CJ was very helpful in assisting my daughter with her college portfolio. She was very knowledgable about different products and techniques my daughter could use for her art pieces. CJ was always calm, encouraging, and very flexible working with my daughter's style of drawing. Arranging lessons was very efficient, and CJ was always willing to extend the lesson time if needed. I would highly recommend CJ.

Nancy W July 24, 2013

Excellent instructor; knowledgeable related to all media. And very patient. Class is fun.

Arcelia W July 6, 2013

Cj is an inspirational artist. I have a great time learning from her. I am very grateful for her willingness and patience. Hope I can meet with her again and keep painting.. Thank you

Kristine D June 30, 2013

Recently, I purchased private watercolor lessons for my niece’s 11th birthday from CJ. All of my correspondence with CJ before and after was always prompt and courteous. CJ even geared the lesson toward my niece’s interests and abilities. We held the lesson at my niece’s house. CJ arrived on time, and was prepared with everything needed. She was even flexible enough to stay an extra hour since the lesson was going so splendidly. My niece’s inherit interest and natural talent really flourished with CJ’s instruction and examples. I would highly recommend CJ and look forward to future private lessons with her myself.

ShirLee U June 28, 2013

CJ is the tutor extraordinnaire! Her classes are reasonably priced, she is skilled in multiple mediums, and she offers valuable instruction to both the novice and the experienced artist.

Noreen D June 28, 2013

CJ is a wonderful teacher, an artist with many different media and a talent for helping you grow as an artist. Started out with one lesson (beginner) and will continue as long as I keep growing..

Karol R June 28, 2013

CJ's Budding Artists art classes for kids is a wonderful way for them to learn all kinds of different art techniques, working with all kinds of different media. She has a sunny, positive attitude & my dealings with her have been delightful.

Suzanne M June 27, 2013

Oh my gosh, I can not express enough how professional CJ was and how beautiful the art work she did for me turned out. I get so many compliments on her work and her prices were more then reasonable. You will not be sorry to take lessons or have some art work done by CJ, she was wonderful.

Pat G June 27, 2013

I took classes with her for over a year.. CJ is exceptionally professional, teaching on your level and where you are in your art. Would love to take more classes from her, but we moved to Casa Grande.

Nithya S September 13, 2012

It was real fun painting with CJ. I thoroughly enjoyed it. :)
Reviews
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5/5 stars July 24, 2013


CJ was very helpful in assisting my daughter with her college portfolio. She was very knowledgable about different products and techniques my daughter could use for her art pieces. CJ was always calm, encouraging, and very flexible working with my daughter's style of drawing. Arranging lessons was very efficient, and CJ was always willing to extend the lesson time if needed. I would highly recommend CJ.
Olivia M.
5/5 stars June 30, 2013


Recently, I purchased private watercolor lessons for my niece’s 11th birthday from CJ. All of my correspondence with CJ before and after was always prompt and courteous. CJ even geared the lesson toward my niece’s interests and abilities. We held the lesson at my niece’s house. CJ arrived on time and was prepared with everything we needed. She was even flexible enough to stay an extra hour since the lesson was going so splendidly. My niece’s inherit interest and natural talent really flourished with CJ’s instruction and examples. I would highly recommend CJ and look forward to future private lessons with her myself.
Kristine D.
5/5 stars June 28, 2013

nice and fine
Johnson M.
5/5 stars June 26, 2013


Marcia C.
5/5 stars June 26, 2013


Keld Kofoed H.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Ms. Rider is always professional, helpful and informative. She encourages your artistic endeavors which leads to confidence and enthusiasm. You just can't wait to get back to class and see what you'll learn and accomplish next!
Sherry S.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Jem M.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Cheryl M.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Tiana M.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


A wonderful artist and a very nice person as well.
Diane W.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


generous with helpful tips and ideas..
Eileen E.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Suzy M.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Judy H.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Kim H.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Marcia S.
5/5 stars June 25, 2013


Fabulous!
Kathy K.
Write a review

Shirlee U.
5/5 stars June 26, 2013

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my Style of painting???

style:
What is it and how to I get some?

As you go beyond the products and the initial mechanics of painting you start running into this seemingly elusive thing called "style"

The word is freely bandied about in the art world when referencing well known artists (past and present). But what is it and how does an artist get it... AND do you want it!

In brief, an artists personal style is the culmination of how an artist handles the subject and paint on their canvas: i.e. brushwork, proportions, perspective, composition and more. All of these things become unique to each artist and the result demonstrates their style of creating a painting.

A developed artists style is as unique as a fingerprint or individual handwriting. Across any subject or medium the artist uses, the paintings can still be recognized as their work. (sans signature ;)

Your style is there from the beginning, but being a novice, it isn't completely developed.

Back in grade school, first you learn your letters then words, then you learn to print, then you learn to write in cursive then you write stories! After you are well practice your writing becomes recognizable as yours. Eventually, you or your teacher can find your handwritten paper in a stack just by seeing the handwriting alone. It becomes identifiable as your work. (You also develop a personal "style" for telling stories, etc.)

Similarly, a painting style will develop in a practicing artist. First you learn the basics (composition, drawing, colors, value, shading, etc) Then you learn to apply them to a variety of subject matter. After you have created a larger body of work, you will see that your work is recognizable from another artists painting of the same subject.

Style is usually recognized in a professional artist after they have painted a larger body of works. It then becomes evident that they were all created by the same "hand" Which is as unique as a persons handwriting.

When I teach, I enjoy having everyone create a painting from the same still life or whatever. The resulting paintings are unique to each artists hand. Their individual styles shine through even though the subject matter is the same. Each person emphasizes the subject matter differently, handles the paint differently, sees color relationships differently, etc. This is part of what creates individual style.

Style can be evident very early on but it usually morphs as an artist becomes more experienced in understanding composition, color theory, paint handling, perception and creation. When a mature or professional artist changes their M.O. from say painting portraits to painting landscapes, their style is still identifiable in the new work.

In the beginning, I recommend picking a genre and sticking to it while you develop your skills. For instance just paint leaves or flowers or landscapes or portraits, etc. If you intend to show in galleries, they like to see a fairly large and consistent body of work. If one of your paintings sells, they want to be sure that you can reproduce the magic and not just be a "one hit wonder".

The more you practice your painting, the more evident your style will become. Don't be surprised if others notice your style before you do!

To start recognizing the "style" of other painters - start with the old masters. google for instance "Monet, landscapes" and then click to see images only.  then open another window and google for instance "DaVinci, landscapes"   

Then google them again with "portraits"  or just their name to see all images.  Do this with many artists - see how each painters body of works has a recognizable aspect to it.   

All words in this blog (in part or whole) are © CJ Rider -  CJ@RiderCreations.com -
Please use complete and proper attributions with linkback if you use my writings or images.  Thankyou

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Why use QR scans? What the heck are they???

I created a QR code scan to place in my newsletter and in Flyers advertising my workshops.

What is A QR code? (Quick Response Code) It is probably best described in Wikipedia: wikipedia QR_code

In brief, it is a URL within a matrix box that can be scanned by a program on your cell phone to lead you to just about any place or document on the internet!

On my cell phone:
To create and read codes, I downloaded a program called "QRDroid" But there are many selections on the internet - pick the one that sounds the best for you and your phone. Use your program choice to create QRcodes on your phone or on your computer.

If I just want to make a brief statement about my upcoming classes but want the rest of the info available... I will put on the QR that I made for my class ad. If customers are reading the info on their computer, they can scan the QR with their cell and download the pdf with all of my class info, or a list of needed supplies for a workshop, etc. thus avoiding the potential waste of reams of paper!

I put the QR on my Art class/workshop flyers so people can very simply have my class info in their phone.
Go ahead and scan the QR below and see how it works! It is a nice way to get a supply list out to students who drop by the store and forgot it, saves on paper and INK !
cj

PS - Don't forget to give your QR code a title!


Example idea:
I can create a window flyer containing a few brief sentences in bold print with dates about upcoming classes and workshops - then insert the Code for the full page of info.

It is much more convenient to have a PDF on the phone for instant access than to have a stack of paper to keep track of- PLUS- if you find you are not interested, you can just delete it and not carry the guilt of tossing a tree! ;)

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Which Watercolor Paper??

Which watercolor paper?

There are a great deal of watercolor paper manufacturers.  To further compound selecting paper, each manufacturer also puts out a great variety of watercolor paper. So how do you choose?

Rule of thumb for beginning W/C paper selection:

1. Skip the student grade and select a mid-price of the professional grade w/c papers.
    
2. If you like fine details pick a hot press paper - for more textured paper, go for cold press and finally for landscapes and lots of paper texture pick rough.
   
3. If you can- purchase a tablet containing a sampling of a manufacturers w/c paper

More on w/c paper to come...

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FIXATIVE and other pastel tips

FIXATIVE and other pastel tips

Fixative will change the character of the pastel, (it varies depending on how heavily the spray applied). But I would still suggest a very light spray over the piece and then if you want to brighten up a few areas go back in and do so. 

Practice spraying on another surface before spraying your painting... all spray cans are not created equal and you want to make sure it isn't going to come out in droplets due to a clog, etc.  plus you need to practice distance and velocity.

Tip:  if you value the piece, then do not use non-archival materials in your artwork like hairspray.

*With pastel pencils you may not need fixative because you will probably not have the buildup that you get with the softer stick pastels*

To minimize fallout or falloff from heavier pastel application Take preventative measures.

1. Use quality paper that has enough tooth to handle the pastel you intend to put on it.
2. Use workable fixative during the painting process especially when you feel the tooth of the paper is becoming full. (use only a very fine mist- do not saturate the pastel or the paper)
3. After completing an area of pastel work, gently tap the back to release the loose pastel. (here is where you then might want to use a light mist of workable fixative) then continue working.  Do this periodically during the painting process to keep the pastel firmly attached to your paper.
4. optimally, you will want to mat and frame when complete- If you are going to stack and store or stand and store you will start seeing smudge and falloff.  If you are planning to store the piece, I would definitely give it a light mist of workable fixative before storing. When you are ready to mat and frame, you can hit a few key areas with fresh pastel to brighten up the pic

* Nothing is really a perfect solution, but here is a storage idea:
You can mount your pastel paper onto museum board and place the mat on the piece for safer storage if you are not ready to frame it yet.

I only recommend stacking if you have firm layers between the artworks.
For example:

1. Mount your pastel paper onto museum board,
2. put the desired mat in place,
3. then layer place a piece of glass (the size of the mat) as the top laye
4. repeat the process for the next piece.   

The museum board supports the pastel paper. The mat keeps the work away from the glass and the glass protects the surface of the art while keeping the works from warping down onto the piece below.

Always use archival materials as separators and supports and mats! 

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CRITIQUE 15 -PROPORTIONS: EYES

There are many good things about your sketch! You have a created a good likeness to the original image and I will show you how to make a few tweaks to get it even closer.

I will break down your portrait sketch review into several parts so we can be more thorough. 

Below is part one.

I want to focus on placement of eyes in relation to each other and the space for the nose. I would recommend sketching just the eyes and bridge of nose (utilizing the tips) a few times until you begin to see more and more details. The more you draw something - the more you see its details.

You have the lower edge of the eyes in proper alignment with each other in your sketch, but if it ever becomes an issue, you can see how a line under the eyes on the original would help you clearly visualize how the eyes are placed on the face.

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MAGIC FLESH TONE FORMULA!

HOW TO MIX FLESH TONES

Mixing correct flesh tones is the Holy Grail of portrait painting! No wonder manufactures make tubes labeled "flesh"!!

The first thing to wrap your mind around is that a tube of paint labeled "flesh" - isn't!  
Don't be fooled into thinking you will buy a magic tube of flesh and begin painting accurate skin tones with it. (first of all, think logically - it is labeled "flesh" but WHOSE flesh? Yours? Anyone's you know? How about anyone's you have ever seen before??  Really look at the color and compare it to several types of real skin!

You may have done or have heard of others doing a great deal of work to find some artist's secret recipe to making fleshtones?    Hogwash!! While there are some common sense guidelines for specific skin types ... there is no one magic bullet formula for mixing "fleshtones."

Retrain your mind to think differently about "white" flesh, "brown or black" Flesh because there is no such flesh in real life!

While creating self-portraits with a group of children several of them candidly stated that they had white or black or brown flesh and reached for that color of pencil or paint.

My job was to teach them to see the actual colors in their flesh!

I held up a sheet of bright white typing paper which they all agreed was white. I passed out a sheet to each student and asked them to place their hand on the paper and now tell me what color their skin is. Surprisingly some still said the caucasian skin was "white" and any of color was black. I went on to demonstrate and explain the nature of flesh. They started seeing the actual colors instead of the labels.

*We are loaded with preconceptions about colors, shapes and objects at a very young age. When asked to describe something or draw it, we revert back to these preconceived notions learned very early in life. These are most likely very primitive perceptions of what something actually is.

Same holds true with color.
If asked "what color is the sky" many will just say "blue."  But is it just blue? Can you grab a tube of blue paint and paint any sky? (first decision would be which blue! "Sky Blue"??)

HOW TO PAINT FLESH:

Flesh is just like any other object you paint - it is subject to its origin and to its surroundings.  

What I mean by that is its origin may be native american, caucasian, etc,  while its surroundings may be wood, metal, colored cloth, the atmosphere, type of lighting, ie reflective light, and so on.
 

Knowledgeable artists represent a pure white flower or cloth using a myriad of colors not just white and gray/black.  That is how flesh is.  It isn't pure white, pink, black, brown etc.   

There is no single formula for flesh!!
So you might wonder if you should own a tube of "flesh" paint?   From my personal and teaching experience I say not early on as it can be more confusing than helpful.  Some tube "fleshes" tend to go muddy/gray rather quickly when mixed with other colors, so if you already own a tube or plan to buy one anyway... it is important to understand what colors make up your tube of "flesh" if you plan to use it as a base for mixing other needed flesh tones.  

You will find some common ground but in general, every time you paint a portrait, you will recreate what color "flesh" is. The key is to be observant to the local colors, reflective color, shadows, surroundings, etc.

If you would like a critique or have a question- please drop me a message! 

©CJ Rider

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