Sharing Favourites I - The Savvy Painter

Today I'm starting something new. It's a way of sharing posts and blogs that have become favourites over the last few years.

Hopefully it will become a regular feature of Art Matters so you can look forward to catching up with blogs and people I enjoy. I'm purposefully going to keep each post short and keep the focus on one artist, blog or a particular post that resonated with me. I'll add these links to a dedicated page at the top of the blog for future reference.

Strata - oil on canvas 760mm x 760mm © 2015 Carol Lee Beckx

Listening while you work 

Most artists have little rituals when they start work in the studio. My painting time begins when I put on my apron, originally black but now more white than black. While in the studio, I listen to music or talk shows on the radio. 

Recently I discovered The Savvy Painter, podcasts by Antrese Wood. Her podcasts are interviews with a wide range of artists. It's so much more than a podcast, however. It's a resource where you'll find information on other artists, art books, and much more. They talk about their work, their inspirations, art education amongst many other topics, ably directed by Antrese's insightful questions. Her lovely conversational tone makes these a delightful accompaniment to painting.

About an hour long, these discussions keep me painting. They keep my left brain occupied and informed while my right brain is free to work on creative solutions. If I get caught up in my painting and tune out, I simply stop the podcast and go back to replay a section I have missed.Sometimes I find if I have music playing, I listen too much - if that makes sense - and lose focus on my painting, words are easier to have running in the background. I'll be interested to know what you think about this.

Each podcast is accompanied by detailed notes on the episode including links to the website of the images of the artist being interviewed, other artists discussed, and books mentioned during the show. 

I hope you will enjoy the podcasts as much as I do.

Here's the link:The Savvy Painter