art blog

👋 Hi & welcome to my art blog! I figured it's about time I add a little about me/q&a section.

love your work !

hey thanks! so I actually have three main plein air setups that I alternate between, depending on what I plan to do. the first two both require a tripod as well:

a diy pochade box. this was my first plein air easel! I primarily use it for gouache; it's lightweight and quick to set up (and cheap to make). cons: need to have a way of securing your painting surface to the top bit (I usually use tape for paper or watercolour board, but clips are also an option), limited space on the bottom bit (if you want to have paints + palette + water cup + brushes on there, it fills up quick). not really suited for oils imo, but not impossible to make it work either.

u. go pochade box (medium size, plus the side brushes holder). a recent acquisition and I'm really liking it so far! I've only used it for oil painting, and I think that's the most common use case. cons: pretty expensive; doesn't have wet panel storage so that's something you have to figure out separately. (if you're painting with oils, the paint stays wet for a few days, so you need a way of carrying your wet painting without getting oil paint all over your backpack)

petite paint box. this thing is super nifty for making tiny paintings on the go! largest I've gone with it is a 5x7 and I think that's the max size I'd recommend. (at that size, the painting is not gonna fit in the box, so again, if you're using oils, you'll need a wet panel carrier of some kind). cons: tbh the only thing that comes to mind is that you have to hold it in your hand or prop it up on a table - the hinges aren't stiff. (the size may be a con to some but like, that's the main draw of the thing lol)

hmmm tbh I don't know if I have any advice on how to paint like me! stylistically, my approach is a mishmash of things I picked up from other artists¹ and habits I've developed as I've continued painting.

"just practice" is an oft-repeated bit of advice, sometimes expanded upon with "but practice mindfully i.e. afterwards, analyze your work and identify strengths & things you want to work on, and target your practice towards those things". and I really do think that's the best advice I can offer - just start painting, and try stuff out, and keep painting. you'll gradually find yourself gravitating to specific approaches e.g. a particular way of painting windows or tree branches or whatever, but I'm not gonna say "this is how branches must be painted", you know?