Loriann Signori is an artist friend of mine who brings an unbridled amount of energy and passion to her pastel and oil landscape paintings. A self-described painter of luminosity, Loriann divides her time between studying the landscape with small plein air paintings that provide color notes and interpreting them back in the studio for her larger paintings.

Common Characteristics of Good PaintingsGood painters don’t merely recreate what is in front of them. An experienced artist knows how to create a successful painting, no matter what situation or model he or she is presented with or the materials being worked with.Of course, this often comes after years of practice and experimentation — as well as the development of a unique artistic voice.

Sacred Stones by Carla OConnor 2006, gouache, 30 x 22.Gouche meaningGouache is an opaque water-based medium that drives to a matte finish and can be rewetted.Painting with gouacheGouache pairs well with watercolor, since they’re both water-based and use gum Arabic as a binder. It it good for providing saturation where watercolors tend to be too washed out, but be cautious, as it can muddy watercolors.

I don’t think I’d be exaggerating by calling Edward Hopper one of America’s national treasures. His work captured a time and place like no one else, and his distinctive style makes his work instantly recognizable.But his drawings are an undiscovered secret, as I found out when I began looking at many of Hopper’s works on paper.

This deep, rich green is fit for subjects both earthy and regal.In a sense, the name “forest green” is a misnomer, because as artists well know, leaves and mosses are never a single color, much less a single value. Nevertheless, forest green does evoke the overall impression of foliage—the sort of thick canopy that can block midday sun during a summer hike through the woods.

Inspiration Advice from Mary WhyteI went through a phase when I thought I could control everything–where my career was headed, how my relationships were going to turn out, and what kind of life I was going to have. The best you can do is meet what appears on your path head-on.Open to InspirationThat goes especially for being open to inspiration for artwork.