Artist Strong Blog

Enjoy interviews and articles about creative process and our inherent creative spirit.

“It’s too late… you just aren’t an artist…”

When I taught high school art, I found one part of parent/teacher conferences surprising: how many parents were told their own art interest wasn’t valuable or important. Hi, my name is Carrie and here on Artist Strong I help artists like you build your skill and...

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How to Draw Accurately from Photo Reference

In this short drawing tutorial, I support a student inside my free drawing challenge. I demonstrate a quick and easy way to check for accuracy insider your drawings, paintings, really all the artwork you create. This is a great way to improve your drawing accuracy,...

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How to create original art using photo references

In today’s video I’m looking at work by community member Carmen LLovera de López. We discuss: How she uses a photo reference but still manages to create original art A trick to creating accurate proportions in portraits Why ten (or more!) people can start with the...

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How to Be an Artist: An Nguyen

An Nguyen is visual artist who uses vibrant colours and intricate composition to illustrate the rhythms and joys of modern life. Inspired by her travels and love of music, her geometric contemporary paintings capture musical concepts of cadence and rhythm in the...

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How to Be an Artist: Lucy Sharf

Lucy Sharf an artist working with oil paint, clay and wood. She was born in England, raised in The United States, and currently lives in Israel with her family. Her recent sculptural body of work is mostly constructed from her mind but is highly influenced and...

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How to Be an Artist: Wendy Kwasny

Wendy Kwasny is an award-winning fine artist in San Diego who specializes in oil and acrylic portraiture, still life, and landscapes. She earned her BA in fine art from SDSU, and regularly shows her art at The Ashton Gallery in San Diego.  She is currently working out...

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How to Be an Artist: Kirsten Francis

Kirsten Francis is a mixed media artist living in Encinitas, CA. She received a BFA in Printmaking from the Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland OR and was a printmaker for many years. Francis creates colorful and intricate collages using a combination of found...

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What Failure Really Means for Creatives

Since I celebrated the success of my solo exhibition Anonymous Woman, I’ve applied to many new opportunities here in my new home of Houston: grants, exhibitions, peer based communities, you name it I’ve applied.  And since that exhibition, I’ve been rejected by every...

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