Winter 2010

AMERICAN

ARTIST

®

Watercolor WINTER 2010 ®

CONTENTS 4 Editor’s Note 6 Contributors

7 Noteworthy 12 Weekend With the Masters Review 16 Artist to Artist: Dean Mitchell

Not one to conform, this artist has stayed true to the subjects and medium he finds most meaningful and become one of the most respected artists in the country. 26 More Than One Way BY LYNNE BAHR

Mark Mehaffey’s career has only benefitted from the wide range of materials and techniques he’s explored. 36 Watercolor Fundamentals: Backlit Flowers BY JANET WALSH

Attending to the direction of the light is a critical step in creating a dynamic still life. Here’s how to paint a backlit floral setup. 44 Painting as Performance BY JOHN A. PARKS

John Gibson’s invented still lifes allow him to experiment with color, space, and form, with little chance to correct or revise. 52 16

26

COVER

Breakfast Club (detail) by Gordon France, 2004, watercolor, 20 x 28. Private collection.

52 Modern Masters: Jan Kunz

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BY LYNNE BAHR

This artist believes that passion, training, and hard work go a long way toward successful watercolor paintings. 62

62 Composing the Landscape:

Foregrounds

88

BY LORI WOODWARD

Nineteenth-century landscape artists have a lot to teach about adjusting the size, shape, color, and placement of compositional elements.

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70 Capturing the Energy of

Everyday Life BY AUSTIN R. WILLIAMS

Gordon France tells the stories of everyday American life through city scenes full of energy and motion. 80 Loosening Up With Watercolor BY KAREN STANGER JOHNSTON

Working in watercolor helps prevent Jim Riley from getting too tight with his oil-painting technique. 88 Breaking the Rules BY LINDA S. PRICE

Unhindered by conventional rules, Ratindra Das feels free to explore and take detours on the way to creating the paintings he describes as midway between traditional and abstract. 96 Coming in ... Watercolor (ISSN 1053-3915) (Issue 61) (USPS 013-433) is published quarterly by Interweave Press, 201 E. Fourth St., Loveland, CO 80537-5655, (970) 669-7672. Subscriptions are $23.95 U.S. and Possessions, $27.95 Canada, and $30.95 all other countries. Watercolor is printed in the U.S.A. Periodicals postage paid at Loveland, CO and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Watercolor, P.O. Box 469077, Escondido, CA 92046-9077 or call 1-866-917-6223; or outside the continental U.S.: 1-760-317-2316.

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