Sunday, December 28, 2014

Painting Demo of Peaches







Peaches and Crab Apples
Peaches and Crab Apples, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Peaches and Crab Apples
8x10 oil painting on a canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
How to Purchase:

"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Panting Demo of an Orange Still life in Oils

Today I am doing a painting demo of an Orange. The still life is simple and the painting has lots of think paint and great warm colors.






Orange Still Life No. 6
Orange Still Life No. 6, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Orange Still Life No.6
8x10 inch oil painting on canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
How to Purchase:

"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Apples and Grapes painting Dmeo

Today I have a painitng demo of apples and Grapes for you. I hope you enjoy it.



Apples and Grapes still life
Apples and Grapes still life, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Apples and Grapes
Oil painting on canvas panel 8x10
Media: oil painitng
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
How to Purchase:
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

The Fear of Making It.

The paralysis that comes from the fear of making a mistake is often the mistake…” 
 - Jason Hirschorn,
As they say, just do it. I always tell myself if I paint it they will come. It's my field of dreams.



" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Oil Painting demo Landscape with Sunflowers

Today I am painting a field of sunflowers. In this quick over view you will see how I work from back ground to foreground. I hope you enjoy this video.
The painting is done in oils on an 8x10 canvas panel.



Sunflower Field, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Sunflower Field
8 x 10 oil painting on panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
How to Purchase:
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, December 15, 2014

Painting demo

Today's painting demo is of a mountain landscape with flowers blooming in the spring.





" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

If You've never failed you have never lived

With the Holidays coming up  like a fright train coming around the bend and I know you have so much to do just like me, it can be so over whelming. You feel like everyone else does it better, gets more done, and just seems to win when you fail.




Fell better now? I know I do.


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Drawing the head demo

If your like me and drawing or painting the head is difficult here is a quick tutorial on how to draw the head. I can always draw it when the person is looking at mme but how do you do it when they are turned and you only see part of one of the yes ? How do you get that head tilt right?

I've been working on a painting for days try to get the shadows and tilt of the head just right. So I know how difficult it can be.

I hope this helps.







All Work ©2006-2014 Art by Delilah
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Creating art is not a bus ride to easy street.

Creating art is not a bus ride to "easy street".


What's your BIG idea? What challenges and excites you? What takes your breath away, keeps you up at night, makes you smile all day long?

Sometimes it's "distant and far away," but it's in there! Find it, dust it off, honor it. Pursue it! People will join you and things will unfold in amazing ways. Dream bigger dreams and take action. It's what makes life worth the living!

But here’s the thing: starting a business is always a lot harder than you think. More important is that you must think of your art as a business.You just need to know that it is, so that when you do go through harder moments, you can tell yourself that that is to be expected, and so you drive through it.

Successful creatives push through the pain because they know it is ‘supposed’ to be hard work. Then the rewards really do come.


 - " POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, November 03, 2014

Painting Demo Venice

Today I take my paint brushes to Venice to paint the Gondolas on the canal. Bring your paints and come along with me.

" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Painting Demo, Dogwood flowers




Dogwood Flowers
Dogwood Flowers, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Dogwood flowers
8x10 oil painting on canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
Price: $200 USD
How to Purchase:


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

The Artist Mind those that expect receive

The artistic mind, flowing properly, sees the world differently. Call it what you will--a Celestial moment, synchronicity, serendipity. There's a higher harmonic. It's got something to do with receptiveness and alertness. Those who expect, receive. We can leave it to the gods where it comes from. The important thing is to give in to it--allow this dream mind to run.

To allow for creative flow give thought to your current processes and habits. Study your workstation for areas of awkwardness and limit them. See that things are handy.

Cut back on time-wasters -- the procedural ones and the two-footed kind. Do your work in a logical and yet creative order.

Artists are often dreaming, wondering, wandering and idling in the fanciful department. It seems that artistic types can actually "live in" a world of their own creation, perhaps preferring it to the real world, their work being an extension of it.

When I feel an artistic moment coming on,I surrendering to the need to make something and I don't need time wasters getting in the way of my creative flow.

Success as an artist means having freedom. Freedom to follow your nose. You need freedom in order to create, and you need creativity in order to pay the price for your freedom.

" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Does the IRS think you are an artist


Does the IRS consider you an artist?
If you say you are an artist, but you make little money from selling your art, can your work be considered a profession in the eyes of the Internal Revenue Service?Read more on this

In this rough environment it is hard to make a living as an artist. As artist it is very important to write your yearly business plan and keep proper documents of shows and expenses. Document shows applied for and not accepted, accepted shows, update you resume with awards received , keep your website current, and send out monthly news letters.

This is all part of the business of being an artist. I know not the part we like but the must do list of things to start each day with.





" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Wednesday, October 08, 2014

Dream a little dream

Artists are often dreaming, wondering, wandering and idling in the fanciful department. It seems that artistic types can actually "live in" a world of their own creation, perhaps preferring it to the real world, their work being an extension of it.

I know I am a dreamer a believer in all things are possible.Live your dreams.Dream a little dream live a big one.


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, October 06, 2014

Candy Corn Painting Demo


Candy Corn
Candy Corn, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Candy Corn
oil painting on canvas panel 7x5
Media: oil painting
Size: 5 in X 7 in (12.7 cm X 17.8 cm)
Price: $50 USD
How to Purchase:






" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Friday, October 03, 2014

A Busy Sept for a Daily Painter

September was a busy month with Gallery Shows and events, but I still managed to paint every day.I have been working larger lately. I still do the small daily paintings but not as many of the 5x7 . I have been doing more 8x10 because I am also a Plein Air painter and I use a cigar box easel in the field. Here are a few of the paintings I did in Sept 2014.


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Wednesday, October 01, 2014

Painting Demo Snow Angels



Snow Angels
Snow Angels, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Snow Angels
8x10x3/4 oil painting on stretched gallery wrapped canvas with painted sides
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
Price: $200 USD
How to Purchase:
"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Painting Demo of a Lemon, daily painter

The beginning is the most important part of the work. Plato 





Lemon still life 1.00 Auction

If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced. Vincent Van Gogh

Lemon still life 1.00 Auction, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
A Lemon
5x7 oil painting
Media: oil painting
Size: 7 in X 5 in (17.8 cm X 12.7 cm)
How to Purchase:
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Painting Demo of a Strawberry

“Self-education is, I firmly believe, the only kind of education there is.” - Isaac Asimov (1920-1992), Author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University









Raspberries and Strawberry
Raspberries and Strawberry, painting by Delilah Smith
    About This Painting:
"After the first brush stroke, the canvas assumes a life of its own; at this point you become both governor and spectator to your own event." (Anonymous quote from our Resource of Art Quotations, provided by Derek Franklin, the reigning "King of Quotes.")
Raspberries and Strawberry
5x7 oil painting on canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 7 in X 5 in (17.8 cm X 12.7 cm)
How to Purchase:
"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, September 15, 2014

Olive Painting Demo

I broke this demo up into two parts to be able to show more detail of how I work.


Part two of the Olives

Olive Still Life
Olive Still Life, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Olive Still Life
10x8 oil painting on a canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 8 in X 10 in (20.3 cm X 25.4 cm)
Price: $200 USD
How to Purchase:
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Passion , Obsession,Compelling Addiction

Art has the power to make you think, elevate your emotions, and transport you through time and space.

The word passion comes from the Latin patior, meaning to suffer or to endure. These days, losing its uncomfortable roots, passion is a feeling of unusual excitement, enthusiasm or compelling emotion toward a subject, idea, person or object.

Here's how to get it: Revisit and repossess your core dreams and fantasies. Consider your dreams to be private, unique and sacred.Indulge them.

 Get help from and watch the actions of the already passionate those possessed like me. Indulge, honour and live in your own imagination. Don't talk about it, do it.
“Big, deep planning is a glamorous way of procrastinating.”


Song of the Poppies
Song of the Poppies, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Song of the Poppies
30x40x1.5
oil painting on stretched gallery wrapped canvas
(no international shipping)
Media: oil painting
Size: 40 in X 30 in (101.6 cm X 76.2 cm)
Price: $1000 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $1000 USD plus $50 USD s/h
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Friday, September 12, 2014

Quality is a habit.

"Art should take what is complex and render it simply,
Every painting problem comes down to four visual elements: shape, value, color and edges."

Quality is not an act, it is a habit." (Aristotle)

" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, September 01, 2014

Sept News Letter,Bye-bye summer, hello fall!

Date: Sept 1, 2014

News From the Studio 


With a Passion for Painting


Art by Delilah
With a Passion for Painting
Delilah is an award winning artist who paints fresh colorful paintings with bold brush strokes . She paints full time both in her studio and Plein Air

What I've Been up to:
Bye-bye summer, hello fall! September is here. Wow where did the summer go.I participated in several Plein Air paint outs and shows this summer painting the Michigan Landscape. I meant some new artist friends and collector. I am looking forward to fall colors and the glory of the rich colors.





The above Paintings can be seen at the Our Town Art Show
The Community House 380 South Bates Birmingham, Michigan 48009
October 9, 2014 - Saturday, October 11, 2014



News From the Studio
What New on the Easel 
I will be showing at the Crooked Tree Art Center

GREAT LAKES PLEIN AIR PAINTERS ASSOCIATION (GLPAPA)

Cindy-yates-GLPAPA-webSEPTEMBER 19, 2014 – NOVEMBER 15, 2014

Dates:  September 19 – November 15, 2014
Location: Edith Gilbert Gallery
This juried exhibition of work from the Great Lakes Plein Air Painters Association will highlight plein air painters working around the Great Lakes area. This fine plein air painting organization is an organization with a focus on painting from life outdoors. 
These paintings will be at the show.


These painting will be on display at the Crooked Tree Art Gallery Show. Contact the Gallery for more information.

Last but not least is the show at ArtPrize.
Fuzzy Buzzy Bees
This painting will be shown at the B.O.B. during ArtPrize 2014.
Sept 24-Oct 12
At the B.O.B
in downtown Grand Rapids MI
Tips for Artist:
Present your small canvas paintings in style without buying frames. Paint the edges and display them on small replica easels of the larger style ones.If you are a daily painter like I am this is a great way to display those little gems.




Contact Information:
Art by Delilah
delilah@artbydelilah.com
Painting of the day
Face Book



" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Painting Demo of Sunflowers



Can of Sunflowers $1.00 Auction
Can of Sunflowers $1.00 Auction, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting: I have been offering one of my daily painting each week at auction with bidding starting at $1.00. This painting is now available at auction. Bidding starts at $1.00. Happy bidding.
Can of Sunflowers
7x5 oil painting on canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 5 in X 7 in (12.7 cm X 17.8 cm)
Price: $1 USD
How to Purchase:

"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, August 25, 2014

Art Marketing how do you get your work in front of buyers

Marketing art can be a huge challenge.

How do you get your art in front of people who will not only love it, but want to buy it as well? Should you invest in magazine ads? Participate in art festivals? Show your work in a local gallery? All valid tactics you should be pursuing, but you may be overlooking your best marketing opportunity: Selling to collectors who have purchased your work in the past.

My Daily Painting July and Aug work.


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Sunday, August 24, 2014

Do you wonder how some artist get so lucky

I've found that... “I've found that luck is quite predictable. If you want more luck, take more chances. Be more active. Show up more often.”

Yep that is so right. Everyone asks me how can I paint everyday.They work everyday and no one ask them that question. If you are an artist you show up and you paint. Not every one is a winner but even my bad ones are so much better then they used to be. Want more luck? Show up more often.

 - Brian Tracy (1944-), Motivational speaker and author" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Saturday, August 23, 2014

Strange Habits of Highly Creative People

According to Harvard psychologist Shelley Carson, eccentric people tend to be more creative because of something called "cognitive dis-inhibition.

Getting up early was a habit and a ”must” of Ernest Hemingway and Marcel Proust, Beethoven was drinking dozens of cups of coffee a day, and Benjamin Franklin had his ritual of ”air-bath” in front of an open window while V.S. Pritchett adored a glass of martini with his lunch. All modern analysis and researches,done on this matter did not lead to a ritual or weird habits that would be common for all those great minds, but they did discover that majority of them had some sort of eccentric habit or rule.

Albert Einstein picked up cigarette butts off the street to get tobacco for his pipe.

"Basically, creative folks have less of a filter on their thoughts and actions, which makes them more likely to do things that don’t follow the norms of behavior.


Francis Bacon, a British artist who painted gruesome and intense portraits, lived the high life. Bottles of wine, beers at the pub, and drinks at private clubs were a daily routine. Interestingly, all the imbibing and hard living helped his creativity.

T.S. Eliot wore green-tinted face powder and lipstick

" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Friday, August 22, 2014

No one is going to save you

"No one is coming to save you; no one is going to discover you. Just like any other business, you, and your target market, must be abundantly clear about your unique value proposition." - Ann Rea

I know we all think if a gallery owner would notice us that would be the key to the next level. The key to the next level is knowing where you want to go and developing a path to get there. It's not easy but it is doable.

One you decide where you want to go take that first step in the journey and enjoy the ride.

"Art is something else. Art is fluid, transmutable, open-ended, never complete, and never perfect. Art is an event." (Robert Genn)

Robert has left us but his words and art live on.





 " POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014



" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Quote of the Week

"Creativity takes courage." (Henri Matisse)
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

ready to Sail Sailboat painting


Ready to Sail, sailboats
Ready to Sail, sailboats, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Ready to Sail
24x24x1 1/2
oil painting on gallery wrapped stretched canvas
Media: oil painting
Size: 24 in X 24 in (61 cm X 61 cm)
Price: $700 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $700 USD plus $20 USD s/h





The Ann Arbor Michigan Art Fair starts next week July 16-19 2014!

Come and see original paintings at my booth B702 on Thompson Street.




Delilah
With a Passion for Painting


"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
All Work ©2006-20014 Art by Delilah
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Come and see whats hot in Ann Arbor

For artists and art fair lovers the Ann Arbor Art Fairs equate with the New Year's Day or the first day of school -- it is the event around which the other 361 days of the year turn here in Michigan.

 Dates: July 16-19, Wednesday through Saturday Location: Main Street, South University, Liberty and the University of Michigan Campus Easiest parking: Briarwood mall off of State and I-94, free parking and then take the shuttle to the fairs & some new reserved parking What you'll find: over 1000 juried artists from across the nation in four authorized events

Come and say Hi. I'm on Thomson Street part of the State Street Area booth B702


"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Friday, July 11, 2014

Come and visit at the Ann Arbor Art FAir

The Ann Arbor Michigan Art Fair starts next week July 16-19 2014!

Come and see original paintings at my booth B702 on Thompson Street.




Delilah
With a Passion for Painting


"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, July 08, 2014

Daily paintings for June 2014

We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done. (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)

" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, June 30, 2014

Have a Great 4th of Jully


Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
This is a .99 cent auction to celebrate the 4th of July. If you are like Yogi Bear you will have a few of these in your fourth of July picnic basket. Just be careful so those pesky little bears don't get it first. So whether you are off to Jelly Stone Park or the beach pack your PB&J's for a fun fourth of July.

Peanut Butter and Jelly

5x7 oil painting on a canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 7 in X 5 in (17.8 cm X 12.7 cm)
Price: $0.99 USD
How to Purchase:

"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Sunday, June 29, 2014

The Elements of Design -LINE



The elements of design: LINE
A line Actual or implied creates a boundary ,defines an edge or indicates a direction.


Characteristic of Line are: Width - thick, thin, tapering, uneven Length - long, short, continuous, broken Direction- horizontal, vertical, diagonal, curving, perpendicular, oblique, parallel, radial, zigzag Focus- sharp, blurry, fuzzy, choppy Feeling- sharp, jagged, graceful, smooth

Types of Line:
Outlines- Lines made by the edge of an object or its silhouette.
Contour Lines- Lines that describe the shape of an object and the interior detail. Gesture Lines- Lines that are energetic and catch the movement and gestures of an active figure. Sketch Lines- Lines that capture the appearance of an object or impression of a place.
Calligraphic Lines- Greek word meaning "beautiful writing." Precise, elegant handwriting or lettering done by hand. Also artwork that has flowing lines like an elegant handwriting.
Implied Line- Lines not actually drawn but created by a group of objects seen from a distance. Implied line is the direction an object is pointing to, or the direction a person is looking at. ( I like this one a lot)

An implied line is one that the viewer imagines. Value, Shapes and Color can create lines.

Zigzag lines:
Freedom Cupcake, Fourth of July
Freedom Cupcake, Fourth of July, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Freedom Cupcake
10x10x1 1/2
oil painting on stretched gallery wrapped canvas
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 10 in (25.4 cm X 25.4 cm)
Price: $250 USD
How to Purchase:

Conga Cherries
Conga Cherries, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Conga Cherries
5x7
oil painting on a museum quality panel ready to frame.
Media: oil painting
Size: 7 in X 5 in (17.8 cm X 12.7 cm)
Price: $100 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $100 USD plus $10 USD s/h
Or, send me an email


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, June 23, 2014

Light and Shade the Elements of Design

Art by Delilah With a Passion for Painting


Writing has laws of perspective, of light and shade just as painting does, or music. If you are born knowing them, fine. If not, learn them. Then rearrange the rules to suit yourself. Truman Capote

Value: Refers to the light and darkness of a tone.

A lot of us use the terms hue, tint, tone and shade when referring to color in art, but did you know each of these terms has a very specific meaning? For a painter, knowing the difference between them all is important when communicating concepts in your painting.

Tones are created when you add both black and white to a hue.
 Value contrast refers to the difference in value between one tone and another, Black and white represent the extreme of in value contrast with the varying shades of gray in the middle.

Adding black to a color will darken it. This is caller a shade. Adding white to the same color will lighten it , this is called a tint.

If you slightly squint your eyes, you will see that at least 2 and possibly 3 values of color make up any object in the natural world. Practice creating entire paintings with no more than 3 values on any object. Paint a few of those and you'll discern a rhythm between areas of 1, 2 and 3 values. It's a fun game.


A Morning Read
A Morning Read, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
A Morning Read
6x4
oil painting on a museum quality panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 4 in X 6 in (10.2 cm X 15.2 cm)
Price: $50 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $50 USD plus $8 USD s/h







" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Sunday, June 22, 2014

The Elements of Design in Painting

Art by Delilah
With a Passion for Painting





Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try” – Dr. Seuss



The elements of design are the basic strategies you use in your composition. It doesn't matter what your subject is or style they apply to all paintings.

Elements of Design:
The elements of design are building blocks to develop your painting. The basics are: Value,color,shape,line,and texture. All painters deal with these elements.

When you have finished your painting check the elements. Could the art be improved by push one of these elements more? Develop an exit check list to see if you have used this design elements.



Blossoms and Oranges
Blossoms and Oranges, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Blossoms and Oranges
16x20x3/4 oil painting on gallery wrapped stretched canvas
Media: oil painting
Size: 20 in X 16 in (50.8 cm X 40.6 cm)
How to Purchase:



" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Thursday, June 05, 2014

Art is an Event

"Art is something else. Art is fluid, transmutable, open-ended, never complete, and never perfect. Art is an event." (Robert Genn)

Robert has left us but his words and art live on.





 " POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Move your painting to the next level

Dissatisfaction is the first step toward moving to a higher level.


You get your intuition back when you make space for it, when you stop the chattering of the rational mind. The rational mind doesn't nourish you. You assume that it gives you the truth, because the rational mind is the golden calf that this culture worships, but this is not true. Rationality squeezes out much that is rich and juicy and fascinating.” 


Making quantum leaps in our progress as painters is critically important.
Remaining stagnant is not an option. But quantum leaps don't usually occur on their own. Great painters recognize when they are in a rut and intentionally place themselves in an environment that challenges them and forces them to try new things. ultimately, growth as an artist comes once you break out of your comfort zone to a place you feel free, a little uncomfortable, and suddenly reinvigorated about your work.

 ▢ 1. Know that dissatisfaction is a blessing. Reaching a level of unhappiness with your work is a sure-fire way to be on the lookout for change. Embrace your dissatisfaction.

 ▢ 2. Immerse yourself in the work of great masters. Go to the museums and study their works. Stare. Paint their paintings in your mind from start to finish. Try to figure out how they made every brushstroke. Their breakthroughs will register in your mind and will help you make your own breakthroughs.

 ▢ 3. Paint feverishly. The worst thing you can do is stop. Instead, ramp up your painting time. Stop thinking and start painting intuitively. Stop judging yourself. Just paint, experiment, and challenge yourself.

 ▢ 4. Confuse your brain with multiple mentors. Though others will tell you this is the worst thing you can do, it's the best road to finding your own breakthrough. Following a single mentor is a great road to becoming a clone. Study with different people in an environment where your brain can get constant stimulation with lots of painters at the same time. Even the most experienced painters study other painters in order to stimulate brain activity and increase their knowledge. "

Now turn off the computer and start painting.

 POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, June 02, 2014

Paint you mind, expose your ideas


"Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the danger of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of crackpot than the stigma of conformity." - Thomas J. Watson, Sr. (1874-1956), Founder of International Business Machines (IBM)



" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Saturday, May 31, 2014

What is the best advice you have ever been given about painting?

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given about your painting?

1.Drawing: Using simple strokes with a brush,

2. Underpainting: I determine the basic value design. I mix transparent red oxide and ultramarine blue for darks and show general shapes of the dark, light, and midtones in a transparent underpainting.

3.Value and Opacity: I start to introduce opacity. I mix grays, cover the light area, and keep the dark area transparent. I’m still ignoring color and am now paying attention only to value .

4. Color Temperature and Relationships:I pay attention only to color relationships, not to the detail of the shapes. 

5: Modeling Individual Elements:

6.Edges and Details: 


I think the number one best piece of advice I ever got about oil 

painting is: You can not have light with out dark.

Pansies in a Tin Can
Pansies in a Tin Can, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Pansies in a Tin Can
oil painting on gallery wrapped stretched canvas
11x14x3/4
Media: oil painting
Size: 14 in X 11 in (35.6 cm X 27.9 cm)
Price: $380 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $380 USD plus $15 USD s/h


 POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Friday, May 30, 2014

Don't Lose you hard earned Art Money

I don't know about you but as artist we are always getting email from sent by scammers. One that I get the most is I am a 12 year old taking an art class and I love your work, we have a class assignment ti interview an artist. Could you give me the following information:
Name
Age
Where you Were Born
Went to School
Mothers Name
Pets Name
And so on....


The 25 Riskiest Passwords

Here are the 25 most common passwords of 2012, along with the change in rank from last year.
 1. password (Unchanged)
 2, 123456 (Unchanged)
 3. 12345678 (Unchanged)
 4. abc123 (Up 1)
 5. qwerty (Down 1)
 6. monkey (Unchanged)
 7. letmein (Up 1)
 8. dragon (Up 2)
 9. 111111 (Up 3)
 10. baseball (Up 1)
 11. iloveyou (Up 2)
 12. trustno1 (Down 3)
 13. 1234567 (Down 6)
 14. sunshine (Up 1)
 15. master (Down 1)
 16. 123123 (Up 4)
 17. welcome (New)
 18. shadow (Up 1)
 19. ashley (Down 3)
 20. football (Up 5)
 21. jesus (New)
 22. michael (Up 2)
 23. ninja (New)
 24. mustang (New)
 25. password1 (New)
 Using passwords like these will significantly increase your risk of identity and other theft. password (Most popular and easily hacked.)

Tips for making more secure passwords:

 Include punctuation marks and/or numbers.
Mix capital and lowercase letters.

 Include similar looking substitutions, such as the number zero for the letter 'O' or '$' for the letter 'S'.
Create a unique acronym.
 Include phonetic replacements, such as 'Luv2Laf' for 'Love to Laugh'.

 Don't: Don't reuse passwords for multiple important accounts, such as Gmail and online banking.

Don't use a password that is listed as an example of how to pick a good password.

 Don't use a password that contains personal information (name, birth date, etc.)

 Don't use words or acronyms that can be found in a dictionary.

 Don't use keyboard patterns (asdf) or sequential numbers (1234).

Don't make your password all numbers, uppercase letters or lowercase letters.

Don't use repeating characters (aa11).

 Tips for keeping your password secure: Never tell your password to anyone (this includes significant others, roommates, parrots, etc.).

* Never write your password down.

* Never send your password (or your credit card or bank account info) by email. Sounds obvious, but if I had a dollar for every time someone did this, well, I'd have lot of extra cash.

Email is not secure. It's like writing your passwords on the back of a postcard and mailing it.

 Periodically test your current password and change it to a new one, at least four times a year.

 Don't let your computer "remember" your passwords. Yeah, I know it's easier than remembering them, but you don't want that info stored where someone (other than you) can get at it.

* About the "don't write them down or tell them to anyone" part: I have so many passwords that I can't possibly remember them all, so I keep them in a password-protected file. Of course, I made the password to that file especially difficult and named the file with something that has nothing to do with passwords (I didn't call it "Passwords").


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Memorial Day Tip

Freedom and opportunity only exist if they are used.

And one of the ways we fuel our dreams and empower the future is by "borrowing" confidence from the past. Celebrate your past achievements and use them to know, deep inside, that you can boldly go wherever your wish in the future. Go climb some big mountains! Paint a painting that you have been thinking about.

As I often do, I want to remind you to enjoy nature this weekend. Go for a hike, watch the flowers grow, fly a kite or have a barbeque, and enjoy the changing seasons. This is your life--enjoy it!
Liberty and democracy are fragile things and they do not flourish by themselves. They require loving care and costly sacrifice by those who cherish them. Every day, liberty is under attack by those who would censor our words, our thoughts and our prayers. Every day, freedom is challenged by often good, well-intentioned people who want more "order" or more political correctness at the expense of our liberty.

Flag, We Remember
Flag, We Remember, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
We Remember
7x5 oil painting on canvas mounted on a museum quality panel read to frame ro set on a small table top easle,
Media: oil painting
Size: 5 in X 7 in (12.7 cm X 17.8 cm)
Price: $100 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $100 USD plus $10 USD s/h
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Friday, May 23, 2014

How to Sell Prints of Your Art Work

Print on Demand - Online Printing


It seems to me like the best way for artists these days to begin selling prints of their work is one line. There are a number of companies who offer this online service, but basically it works like this:

1. You upload a good quality photo of your artwork to the print on demand website.

 2. You set the prices and options for your prints and the company adds their costs and markups.

 3. A buyer purchases a print of your work from the website in any of the print options available. eg. paper, canvas wrap, acrylic print, postcards, etc.

 4. The print company automatically produces the order and delivers it to the buyer. 

5. The print company pays you at the end of the month for your sales. Fineartamerica.com 

 I can tell you that I sell a few this way and I am confident it will grow. There is a very low fee of $30 you can hardly go wrong. As the artist you also get the opportunity to purchase prints of your own work at cost price. So if you need prints for a show so darn easy.

They also give you your own website for this price and a blog and all sorts of promotional tools - quite amazing actually. Now for my shameless self promotion:if you're looking for a cheaper way to own some of my artwork - here's your chance! :-) Just click here


(By the way that's an affiliate link so I do get a wee commission from them if you sign up - nifty the way you can make money online isn't it? Always thinking. You can do the same yourself if you sign up with them.)

Here is the Link: Fine Art America

So get going , I can here the cha-ching in your pay pal account right now.


Delilah  Smith - Bunny and Butterflies


 " POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Tuesday, May 06, 2014

One way to clean your brushes and smell like a Baby



"Baby oil will clean your hands and brushes, but before you use those brushes again-make sure that they're washed out really well with turp before beginning your next painting session." - Ken McGavin

I clean my brush with turp then swish the in baby oil smell so good. Then I just give the a swish in turp in the morning and we are ready to rock and roll.


Bluegill Pond
Bluegill Pond, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Bluegill Pond
8x10 oil painting on canvas mounted on a museum quality panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 10 in X 8 in (25.4 cm X 20.3 cm)
Price: $200 USD
How to Purchase:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $200 USD plus $10 USD s/h

"post your opinion in the comments" Or, send me an email
Thank You:
Art by Delilah, with a Passion for PaintingAll Images © 2006-2014
" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014

Monday, May 05, 2014

How to Grow Your Art Businness

All Artist know, there really isn't enough time in the day to do everything.

 There's creating of the paintings (thumbnails, concepts to work out, study of the material for your painting, actual time to paint), marketing of yourself to sell your paintings, shipping of paintings, contacting galleries, contacting clients, finding new clients, sending out newsletters, doing studies, etc... a thousand little things to do.

 It can get overwhelming at time. The more pressure that you put on yourself, the more stress that you are going to feel.
But despite the hubbub and distractions, the conflicting goals and shifting priorities, I’m finding it really does get easier.
Orange by Delilah
Orange by Delilah, painting by Delilah Smith
About This Painting:
Orange
5x7 oil painting on canvas panel
Media: oil painting
Size: 7 in X 5 in (17.8 cm X 12.7 cm)
Price: $100 USD
How to Purchase:
Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $100 USD plus $10 USD s/h

" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com All work © 2006-2014