Debra Keirce

Too Many Rules!

2/28/2016 1:42:52 PM by Debra Keirce
5 Comments

Rules - They are a blessing AND a curse.

It's nice to feel like we can follow rules to paint an incredible, award winning painting. It's a curse to know that the most successful people broke the rules of their time in order to achieve their legacies. I mean, where would we be today if Benjamin Franklin had stayed indoors that day it rained and he got the notion to fly his kite? Love or loathe modern art, but what would have happened if the expressionists had colored inside the lines?

"It's a Jungle Out There" by Debra Keirce, 12"x16" Oil

The trouble with rules is knowing which ones to follow and which ones to break. I've come to really appreciate this lately. You see, I started a new venture this year. DebKArt Home Studios is hosting some of today's master painters to teach workshops in Northern Virginia, in my home studios. I thought I had well stocked studios. I've been painting and teaching from them for so many years now, I was sure I'd thought of everything an artist needs and then some. But here's the thing - Some instructors want natural light. Others want windows darkened so we can use artificial light. Some instructors and students MUST stand to paint. Others only sit. Some will paint only from life. Others will paint only from photos. Some squint. Others say keep your eyes open, or you won't be able to see.

Don't even get me started on how passionate artists can be about their brands of paints, mediums, substrates and brushes!

"Out of the Box" by Debra Keirce, 8"x6" Oil

I am learning that whether you paint the light like Rembrandt did, or in glazes like Vermeer, or with direct deliberate strokes like Sargent, there is a rule book unique to each of these master artists. And the rules contradict each other. If you try to follow them all, you drive yourself crazy getting caught up in a web of absolutes, and you produce nothing.

"Pandora's Boxes" by Debra Keirce, 6"x8" Oil

As artists, I am beginning to believe that the challenge for us is not in learning all the rules. Rather, the challenge we all need to rise to, is creating our OWN sets of rules. I can live with that.

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For Artists, Commissions Are the Hardest - AND the Most Rewarding

2/18/2016 4:37:51 PM by Debra Keirce
4 Comments

I'll just come right out and say it. Commissioned paintings are by far the best value for a collector's money. There.

It's not just my opinion. It's fact. Even if the painting doesn't turn out exactly the way the collector hoped, it's hands down the best value for their dollar.

Why?

Two things - IMHO and YOLO. (For those of you like me who aren't up on the latest texting acronyms, I got these from my kids. In My Humble Opinion and You Only Live Once)

IMHO, commissions are the product artists create when we are trying our best to be the eyes and arms of the collector. We try to create art that the collector would create if the collector could paint. That means, we are instruments. We of course are painting in our style, with our own spin, but the concept for the art is not our own. The collector is instructing us. Think about this. We are doing our best to get into another person's head, read their mind, and portray what they are thinking. It's almost a supernatural feat!

So why don't we all just stay in our studios painting what we want, and not even bother with the challenge of developing our psychic mind reader powers? Why do we work at Vulcan mind melds with complete strangers to pull ideas (like the pulling of memories in Harry Potter) and apply them to our canvases? Why do we tirelessly rise above blurry reference photos and try to interpret things like "Please give them fewer wrinkles." "Can you make them look thinner?" "In real life, his hair is grey, not black." "I know this shows my house in winter, but can you paint it in the spring?" "My cat is always smiling...but not in this photo. Can you paint her smiling?"

YOLO, so why not try for the biggest rewards we, as artists, can experience? There is no bigger reward, accolade, endorsement or compliment of an artist's work than a wave of emotion when the collector first lays eyes on their finished commissioned painting. Whether they have tears of joy, a look of awe, or a simple "Yes, that's it. You captured it." There's no better feeling for me than to touch someone's heart with my art. It's why I get up every morning, and I cherish those moments so much, it makes the challenge worth it!!

So, we work up our courage, face the challenge of a commission, do our best, worry about how the collector will react, and finally....FINALLY, feel the love. It's magic and it makes me so proud to do what I do.