I had another chance to interview a fellow artist, this time Polish surrealist artist Paulina Góra. She tells about her favorite style of art and how music, movies and her children inspire her.


Tanja: Paulina, thank you very much for taking the time to answer my questions. Would you please tell something about you and your interests?
Paulina: I don’t know what to say about myself. I am a mom first, an ordinary mom. I am interested in many things but don’t have much time. I spend all my free time painting because I like to do this the most. I also like reading, watching movies, listening to music…

Which kind of art do you like, which not, and why?
My favorite style of painting… Hmm… I like very dreamy, surreal paintings. I like the romanticism in art and symbolism. And I admire the old masters.

I like your art because it is so very unique. The figures almost always have those big eyes and small mouths. Can you tell how and why you developed this style?
I really don’t know, somehow while working… I don’t always paint planned paintings. I often paint under the impression of the moment… and I think it began this way, without plan or intention. It’s as if the characters themselves wanted to say something, tell their own story.

From your profile on dA I learned that your favorite writers – amongst others – are Kafka, Poe and Verne. Did they influence your art? If so: how?
I really like to read, although I have a huge backlog now I never really thought about whether these writers influenced what I do, it’s more subconsciously I think. I really like the atmosphere of secrecy and mystery, also I love various fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen.

What else influences your art (movies, other artists, people in your life…) and in which way?
I think music can have a huge impact, it certainly helps to calm down and enter the right mood. And yes, I like movies, I love Japanese movies: Akira Kurosawa and “Ugetsu monogatari”, directed by Kenji Mizoguchi. Generally I am a film buff, I guess. The biggest influence on my work have my children, they give me inspiration and strength. Well, and some personal experience, searching…

From what I can see, you usually paint with oil colors. Did you try other materials and did you like them/not like them? Why/why not?
I like oil colors the most because of their beautiful deep colors. I also like pencil drawing. I don’t like watercolors, Maybe because I don’t know them well. I admire artists who use them, it certainly requires really great skill

Since when do you create art and can you remember how and why you started it?
Honestly, I think it was most probable in kindergarten. I loved to draw, thanks to my teacher of art

Do you remember your very first painting and do you still own it?
Yes, my first oil painting. It was a still life and my mom has it.

We know each other from deviantArt. In which other art-related communities are you active and do you use them for different purposes?
I like dA the most , but I also use Facebook. There I am in touch with my friends who I live very very much

Which tips do you have for people who want to start painting?
Heh … I mean I try to follow this rule, the painting is to give joy … I’m trying to build skills and learn as much as possible, you need to do something consequently

Related to your art: what are you the most proud of?
I am very happy when I finished something as intended, but after a while I am dissatisfied and I see my own errors

Related to your art: What do you want to achieve in future?
I would like to further develop my skills, and I also want to give a bit of joy to others

Thank you very much, Paulina, for this interesting interview!

Paulina on deviantArt
Paulina’s Fanpage on Facebook

While I painted the sunflower in watercolor I made some photographs. I used them to make a tutorial, which you can download as pdf-file here: Sunflower-Tutorial. Either left click on the link to open the tutorial in your browser (for which you may need an add-on) or right click on the link to save the pdf on your computer. Also available on SlideShare.

Inspired by an instructional video by watercolor artist Joanne Boon Thomas, I painted this sunflower. I wanted it to be bold and expressive and I am quite happy with the result. It will be one of the birthday presents for my mum. I hope she will like it…

Painted with watercolors on watercolor paper.

10th may, so one could expect nice weather in this country, but it’s raining, again. They forecast even a storm! This makes me long for warm colors, so today a color scheme with autumn colors, the weather is more autumn than spring too. The foto was either taken by my sister Iris of by me, I can’t remember:

Inspired by the beautiful photo “African I” by coffee-and-pepper on deviantArt. Painted in Photoshop CS2 with a Wacom Intuos 3 pen tablet.

Another selection of links and artworks I saw recently on the web: about colors, dailay painting, art challenges and of course several awesome artworks by fellow artists!

Colors

For most artists – well, for all people I guess – colors play an important role in their life. Colors can make you feel better, can influence your mood and can show our personality in a variety of ways.

On NowSourcing.com I found an interesting chart about the psychology of colors.
Link: The Psycology of Colors

Anne Bruckner wrote in her weblog ihrem Blog “Sketch, Draw, Paint!” about color swatches and color wheels and how it can help artists to keep tracks of the colors they use.
Link:Color Swatches & Wheels

Daily Painting

Die paint (or draw) every day – only a small pictures, aside the huge artworks which usually need more time – can be a nice way to show your creativity and often it results in really beautiful artworks.

The website “Daily Paintworks” is all about the art of daily painting and you can find several awesome artworks there, and some challenges which can help you improve the painting of small and more spontaneous artworks.
Link: Daily Paintworks

The art students of the university of Paderborn (Germany) show their results of daily painting in an exhibition, until 17 june 2012 (in German).
Link: Das Daily Painting Projekt macht Station in Schloss Corvey

Challenges

Challenges can be a big change for artists to get more exposure for their art. Each year there are several challenges – not all reliable. But nevertheless it’s interesting to look for them, e.g. on the websites of the well-known art magazines.

On Arstists Network are several challenges to find this year, amongst others::
Watermedia Showcase until 16 july 2012,
and the Artistic Excellence Competition for all traditional media, deadline is 15 july 2012.

On American Artists you can find a challenge as celebration of their 75th anniversary for paintings (all media), drawings and sculptures. Deadline is 8 october 2012.
Link: The 75th Anniversary Competition

Ártworks

And last but not least some awesome artworks I saw recently::

Inspired by “Say Goodbye” by Anni Suvi; painted in Photoshop CS2 with a Wacom Intuos 3 pen tablet.

I had the great pleasure to interview Italian surrealist artist Luca Rossi. He tells about his passion for art, the fun of collaborative work and gives some tipps for people who like to draw.

Tanja: Luca, would you please tell something about yourself and your interests?
Luca: Hello Tanja, I am happy and very grateful to you for being here for this interview. Well, my name is Luca, I am 40 years old and I’m a self-taught artist trapped in a body of a clerk. I have many passions: art in all its forms, and music, literature, cinema and everything appears to my senses fascinating or bizarre. I also love playing the drums, but my neighbors are happier if I draw…

We know each other from deviantArt. In which other art-related communities are you active and do you use them for different purposes?
Besides deviantArt, I am active on Shadowness. These sites are useful to promote my work, but most are a source of inspiration and they bring me in touch with many great artists, from who I’m learning a lot. I like to exchange opinions and viewpoints with them and maybe “snatch” some secrets of their technique.

Which kind of art do you like, which not, and why?
II love everything that speaks to me, any kind of art that has something to say. Today I am very attentive to drawing and painting, strictly surreal.

Since when do you create art and can you remember how and why you started it?
I started drawing before speaking! As a child I drew futuristic cities and landscapes of distant worlds…
I was fascinated by the illustrations of NASA of the 70th, those related to space colonies, and also I loved the first Japanese cartoons that landed in Italy, especially the first mecha from Go Nagai.
But the most vivid passion and the introduction to the surrealism I owe to Karel Thole, a Dutch illustrator who has worked a lot in Italy. His fanta-surreal covers are, in my opinion, insuperable!!!

Do you remember your very first drawing and do you still have it?
I do not remember, but quite possibly a city of the distant future, in the first 70th. I only have a few sketches of those years… what a shame!

What are your favourite materials and why?
In this regard I am very conservative: pencils, oil, ink, acrylic. Each of these media has its own charm. I like to develop and test new ways of using these media, sometimes with disastrous results! But all is experience.
Today I am very focused on the use of graphite. I had always relegated pencils to a secondary role in the creative process, terrible mistake! Everything starts from them!

I especially like your surrealist drawings. They all seem to tell their own story. When you start a drawing, do you already have a detailed idea of the result or do you just start and see where it ends?
I work both ways: sometimes with no idea of what I do and this happens for most of the drawings. In paintings, on the contrary, I am planning the entire sequence of the work creation, starting from a very specific idea displayed in my mind, usually inspired by current events or personal experiences or, often, by the dreams of my wife and myself.

You do a lot of collaborative work, which means you draw one part of the artwork and someone else draws the rest. Why and how did you start this?
Doing collaborations is very funny, instructive and allows you to get in touch with other artists who share this passion. Oh…is addictive!
I have begun collaborations and Exquisite Corpse thanks to Immy (Immy-is-Thinking on deviantArt) in 2011, and since then I have not stopped. I was fascinated by this way of doing and sharing art and all the many artists from around the world who participated in this game, an army of incredible talents! I thought it would be nice to try…

How does this usually work?
I usually contact a partner and make agreements on technique and format of the work we do together, the rest is pure imagination! For the Exquisite Corpse there is a rule to follow, they are hidden collaborations: in practice, you draw on one half of the paper covers the drawing except for a small strip visible and sends it to your partner, he will finish the remaining half not knowing what is hidden.

Does someone who wants to collaborate with you have to have certain skills or a certain style?
naaa… I’m just an amateur who wants to learn! About the style I like to work on something unusual and extravagant, surreal!

As you just explained: you draw one half of the paper, hide it except for a small stripe, and the other one draws the second half. Did you ever try other forms, for example spare round parts? If so: how did it work out? If not: do you think this would work? Why/why not?
I never tried other forms of work on the Exquisite Corpse apart from those “classical”, but you can work in any way you described, what matters is that your part of the drawing is hidden except for a small portion visible.
The result is always surprising!

Which tips do you have for artist who also want to do collaborative work with someone?
Just ask to collaborate, and engage strongly in what you will make. I try to always give the best of myself, I would be infinitely sorry to disappoint anyone who asks to work with me.

Which tips do you have for people who want to start drawing in general?
Practicing every day, try many different techniques and materials, after not too much time everyone will find its way and the medium more congenial to achieve his own style.
I’m still working on this, and it’s really fun.

Related to your art: what are you the most proud of?
The one I will make in my deathbed, hopefully when I have one hundred years.

Related to your art: What are your goals for the future?
Drawing and painting until the age of one hundred years!

Luca, thank you very much for this interesting interview! Your last answer should be written on t-shirts for artists

You can see more of Luca’s fascinating art in his gallery on deviantArt and on his Shadowness page.

Inspired by a video (see below) I painted a sunflower today. I liked to be expressive und leave the form of the petals to chance. Painted with acrylic paint on stretched canvas with a flat brush and a palette knife.

Another color scheme inspired by nature. My sister took this photo.

Hay Bale