Journey Art Supplies Blog
Tips, Tricks, Thoughts, and inspiration from across the art spectrum.
Frank Webb: Design Before Color
One of my favorite artists is Frank Webb. His art embodies humorous freedom where nothing is really straight and his bold colors remind me of a vivid dreamscape. It was my honor to interview Frank a couple of years ago
Frank Webb: Design Before Color
One of my favorite artists is Frank Webb. His art embodies humorous freedom where nothing is really straight and his bold colors remind me of a vivid dreamscape. It was...
Featured Artist: Erin Berrett, Contemporary Rea...
Ampersand Gessobord artist Erin Berrett is a contemporary realism oil painter best known for her still-lifes. Some of her favorites are meaningful commissions that have sweet or fun and quirky backstories. Ampersand checked in with Berrett and asked her to share some of her most memorable commissions and the stories behind the paintings
Featured Artist: Erin Berrett, Contemporary Rea...
Ampersand Gessobord artist Erin Berrett is a contemporary realism oil painter best known for her still-lifes. Some of her favorites are meaningful commissions that have sweet or fun and quirky...
Interview with Landscape Painter Jane Hunt, by ...
Learn more about artist Jane Hunt's evocative impressionistic landscape paintings on Gessobord panels in this interview by Ampersand. Her sweeping landscapes skillfully merge a sense of immense wonderment with a tranquil feeling of warm familiarity
Interview with Landscape Painter Jane Hunt, by ...
Learn more about artist Jane Hunt's evocative impressionistic landscape paintings on Gessobord panels in this interview by Ampersand. Her sweeping landscapes skillfully merge a sense of immense wonderment with a...
An Interview with Frank Webb
I had the rare opportunity to interview artist Frank Webb during the last workshop he did at Cheap Joe's in August of 2016. I was impressed by his humility and the knowledge of his craft. His influence on the art of watercolor cannot be underestimated. Lately, he has been posting his paintings on Facebook and it is encouraging to see that he is still actively doing art. Frank was featured in issue #66 of the New Palette Magazine is a fantastic article entitled "Design Before Color". Frank also has a number of DVDs available.
An Interview with Frank Webb
I had the rare opportunity to interview artist Frank Webb during the last workshop he did at Cheap Joe's in August of 2016. I was impressed by his humility and...
At Home With Sterling Edwards
Editors Note: In talking with Sterling the other day I realized that we need to keep in touch with one another. After reading what Sterling has to say about being at home, visit his websites and be inspired by his art. Sterling Edwards (Confined), March 2020 www.sterlingedwards.com I’m sure that as you read this you too are confined in your home due to the Coronavirus. Isn’t it amazing how quickly our lives and this world can change? It really reinforces the old saying, “never take anything for granted”. Until recently, I spent most of my time traveling around the U.S, and on occasion, other countries teaching painting workshops. I’ve been doing this for about twenty years, and I can truly say that it is a great way to make a living. The only real downside to my job is all the hours that spend strapped into a micro-seat on an airplane or sitting in one of those airport chairs that were carefully and masterfully designed to be uncomfortable. For the time being, however; those days are gone. Like everyone else that I know in this business I am on lockdown. Workshops are either being cancelled or rescheduled. As I write this no-one really knows when it will be safe to gather in groups again or travel. So, I’m using this opportunity to get in some much-needed studio time. For the last year or so Diane and I have been working on setting up a recording station in my studio. Our goal is to record painting demonstrations that can be purchased as digital downloads. I plan to eventually have an entire library of subjects available for purchase on my website. These videos will enable me to cut back on the number of workshops that I teach every year and give me more studio time and time to relax. In fact, we’re even looking beyond the videos and planning to do live televised classes in the studio at some point. I don’t claim to have the slightest idea how to do that, but I know that I can learn. So, I have spent the last week in the studio organizing my painting table to accommodate the lighting and camera equipment that we’ll use for the videos. A few weeks ago, I was contacted by California artist and good friend Birgit O’Connor. We call each other from time to time and catch up on what’s happening with our careers. She asked me if I would be interested in an interview that would be recorded and watched on Facebook. I had never done a filmed interview from my studio before so I was a little unsure how it would go. She reassured me that it would be a piece of cake, so I agreed to do it. A couple of days later we interviewed each other, and it went very well. Birgit posted the interview on Facebook and it received good comments so I am sure that we will do more face to face discussions on various topics. I’ve also used some of this free time to clean out a little bit. I have concluded that art supplies multiply at night. I don’t know how but I’ve suspected it for years and this last week has fueled my suspicions. I was finding things that I purchased twenty years ago. These are things that I no longer need but I know that they would be used by someone else if they had them. So, into the box they go. When the box is full it will be given to a public-school art teacher to be shared among the students. I’ve done this a couple of other times and the response has been incredible. Funding for school art programs has been slashed to the bone and it’s not unusual for the art teacher to buy supplies for the students out of their own pocket. I know that anything that I donate will be much appreciated. It’s a win/win. I need the space and they need the supplies. I have also used this time to write my monthly newsletter, catch up on emails, design a couple of brochures, update both of my websites, and work on some paintings. As you can see in the photographs, I’m working on some large acrylics on canvas. Most of them are Abstract Expressionism but there are a few that are what I refer to as Representational Abstracts. These are paintings that have a distinct theme but also incorporate some abstraction in the way the various shapes are distorted and interact with each other. I like to call it my signature style. In fact, I wrote an article about it titled, “Abstract Art You Can Hang Your Hat On”. It was published in the New Palette Magazine, Issue #67 in 2018. For those who might be interested, I also wrote an article titled, “From Here to Where” that was featured in the New Palette Magazine in issue #62 in 2017. That article was all about Abstract Expressionism; something that I really love. The magazine is published by Cheap Joe’s. It goes without saying that I’m also doing other things besides working in the studio during this time of confinement. The weather has been relatively mild, so Diane and I have gotten in a few days of what she refers to as “dirt therapy”. We’ve been planting shrubs, raking what’s left of last years leaves, and generally cleaning up the property. I should stress that she is the only person in this house that calls it therapy. I call it back breaking labor that should be deemed unlawful for a guy my age. Diane tells me that it’s good for me to get some fresh air and use some of my muscles that I haven’t used in a while. The reason that I haven’t used them in a while is because they don’t work. Well. She’s not buying it. Diane is a former nurse so all these excuses that I come up with are just wasted breath. But I’ll have to admit; of all the people to be cooped up with for weeks on end she is the one I would choose. We’re a good team and we know it. We live in two acres of woods and look forward every day to sitting on our screened porch and enjoying a gin and tonic in the evenings. We also spend many of our evenings watching movies on Netflix and Amazon. This really is a matter of trying to make the best of a bad situation. I think that we are very fortunate, and we fully realize that many are not. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who are struggling or suffering through this crisis. We hope that all of you are safely tucked away and well. Sterling EdwardsSterling's Studio
At Home With Sterling Edwards
Editors Note: In talking with Sterling the other day I realized that we need to keep in touch with one another. After reading what Sterling has to say about being...
Leap of Faith - Ward Jene Stroud's American Jou...
Inspired and inspiring, artist Ward Jean Stroud shares his personal journey 2200 miles from his home in Portland, Oregon to Cheap Joe’s in Boone, North Carolina to teach his Brusho watercolor workshop.
Leap of Faith - Ward Jene Stroud's American Jou...
Inspired and inspiring, artist Ward Jean Stroud shares his personal journey 2200 miles from his home in Portland, Oregon to Cheap Joe’s in Boone, North Carolina to teach his Brusho...
Sue Archer Art Workshop Photo and Interview
Cheap Joe's Terry Henry sits down with artist Sue Archer and covers a wide range of topics. Watch a multitude of free art lessons, art tutorials and other artist interviews at the Cheap Joe's
Sue Archer Art Workshop Photo and Interview
Cheap Joe's Terry Henry sits down with artist Sue Archer and covers a wide range of topics. Watch a multitude of free art lessons, art tutorials and other artist interviews...
Chat with Artist Linda Baker
In this free artist interview, Cheap Joe's Terry Henry sits down with artist Linda Baker and covers a wide range of topics. A most interesting interview with artist Linda Baker. She really has a lot to say about life and art.
Chat with Artist Linda Baker
In this free artist interview, Cheap Joe's Terry Henry sits down with artist Linda Baker and covers a wide range of topics. A most interesting interview with artist Linda Baker....
Artist Chat With Gerald Brommer
Gerald Brommer Interview August 28th, 2015 Interviewer: Terry Henry Gerald Brommer was born in 1927 in Berkeley, CA. Gerald grew up in Northern California then studied to be an educator in Nebraska where he earned a Master’s degree. After moving to Southern California, he received instruction in watercolor painting from Watson Cross, Noel Quinn, and Robert E. Wood and since the 1950s, he has produced watercolors on a regular basis. The subjects he has chosen to paint vary widely from California coast views to desert landscapes and European city scenes. Throughout his life, he has been interested in geology and rock formations that are often included in his work. He finds their varied textures and unique shapes particularly interesting as subject matter. Gerald has also become an internationally recognized teacher of watercolor painting and is the author of eighteen art instruction books and numerous articles in art magazines. He served as president of both the California Water Color Society and West Coast Watercolor Society. Through the years he has actively exhibited watercolors, holding 110 one-man shows and having his works displayed in 204 group exhibitions. Since the 1960s, he has been in demand as an instructor of watercolor workshops and has traveled all over the world conducting these classes. https://newmastersgallery.com/artists/painters/gerald-brommer/# Cheap Joe's: Let’s begin our chat today with the question I have asked each artist I have interviewed: When did you first realize you were an “artist”? Gerald: I was an elementary teacher for 5 years and taught high school students for 25 years and in the process of doing that, the art stuff was always there as far as the teaching of it was concerned. After I’d been married about 5 years, my wife gave me a set of oil paints for Christmas and I started to paint. However, I really didn’t enjoy oil painting that much and wasn’t that good at it either. Then I took my first watercolor class from Noel Quinn and began painting in that medium and really enjoyed it. So during my teaching career, I was always doing watercolor at home after work. Noel Quinn was the president of the National Watercolor society at that time and he talked me into joining them and so I submitted a painting and became a member. After that, I started showing my work in a couple of galleries and though it might sound crass, I began making more money selling paintings than I was teaching school. At that point, I think during the seventies, I had to make a decision as to what I wanted to do. During that period of time, I literally couldn’t paint fast enough and remember selling 100 paintings that year. That will never happen again. Now you are fortunate to sell ten paintings a year. What I think happened is that people were building houses and needed things to decorate them with and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. So I quit teaching school with the proposition to the principal that if I couldn’t stand working at home that I would come back and teach the next year. Well, it only took a week for me to decide that I didn’t want to go back to school again, especially since my paintings were selling at that time. So for the next couple of years, I just painted and sold what I made. Workshops were just starting to happen and I kept getting calls to teach and I told them I was too busy. Then one day as I was driving down the freeway and listening to an interview of Steve Garvey, who used to play first base for the Dodgers. The interviewer asked him why he went to school in order to talk with the kids after he quit playing and I will always remember his answer. Steve said, “Baseball has been so good to me I am impelled to put something back into the pot”. It was like he was talking directly to me. I just about drove off the road. So the next time I got a call to teach, I said yes. The class was in San Antonio, Texas and there were about 35 people in attendance and when I started talking, and everybody’s eyes were locked to mine, I realized that this was not like teaching high school. That’s really how I got started teaching workshops. Cheap Joe's: That is a very interesting story and really leads me into my next question. Who has inspired you during your very interesting career? And if you could be any artist in history, who would that be. Gerald: I probably would be Winslow Homer because I really like his work and he was very prolific and he has probably been more of an influence than any other artist. Cheap Joe's: How would you describe your style of painting. Gerald: Most artists don’t do what I do in the sense that I do both abstract and realistic art. When I teach I teach all of it. I might get really excited about doing abstracts and focus on that style when I get home. Over the years I have absorbed techniques from different teachers. As far as influences Robert E. Wood was a friend and incredible painter who I took a class from. I also studied with Millard Sheets and learned a lot from him as well. Whether I work from a realistic point of view of an abstract perspective I mostly paint landscapes. I can look out of the window here at Cheap Joe’s and literally see dozens of paintings. Cheap Joe's: You have briefly described your journey and your style so my next question would be this: what do you want your 25 students this week to leave with at the end of the class. Gerald: Excitement! I have never had any trouble motivating people. You didn’t get to see what we turned out yesterday but it was phenomenal what they did in one day. That’s what I feed off of. I get so excited seeing how the class is responding and what they are doing and learning in the process of taking a workshop. When I begin a workshop I have no idea how it is going to end up because there are twenty-five different people who are all at different skill levels. Some are struggling with their art and I have to work with them a lot more than those who are at the top of their journey. I only have each person for five days and all I can really do is try and motivate them and get them to take what they have learned home and continued with their art. Cheap Joe's: Have you ever had a low period where you struggled with making art. Gerald: After I began painting full-time I can’t remember ever having a low period in that sense. I have always had a goal or a place I wanted to go with my art. The lowest I can remember being was when I broke my wrist last year and couldn’t paint for a couple of months. It hurt to hold a brush and it was really frustrating. Cheap Joe's You have had a long, successful career and are approaching 91. What’s in the future for Gerald Brommer? Gerald: I thought that this (2015) was going to be my last year. I don’t think I even sent anything in for the Cheap Joe’s Workshopper magazine. But I already have six workshops lined up for 2016. Cheap Joe's: In closing could you share with us a favorite story about Cheap Joe’s. Gerald: I think getting together with Joe and his wife Lynda and going out to eat and tell stories is one of my favorite things to do. This place is phenomenal and what Joe has done for art and artists is a story I never get tired of telling. I remember visiting Boone after having done a workshop for North Carolina Watercolor Society in Charlotte. I had not met Joe at that time and one day my wife and I went looking for the store and we drove up and down the main drag looking for this big sign that would be Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff. I was thinking blinking lights and Las Vegas and when we finally saw the little sign at the bottom of the hill I thought that this can’t be Cheap Joe’s. So we found the store and learned the story of how it all began. We met Joe and he asked me to come back to Boone and do a workshop which I thought was really wonderful. It is a great success story and I am proud to be involved. Cheap Joe's: Gerald, it’s been a pleasure talking with you today and we will see you next year. Gerald: Thanks Gerald will be back in Boone teaching September 11-15, 2017. Here are some examples of Gerald's work:
Artist Chat With Gerald Brommer
Gerald Brommer Interview August 28th, 2015 Interviewer: Terry Henry Gerald Brommer was born in 1927 in Berkeley, CA. Gerald grew up in Northern California then studied to be an educator...
Brenda Swenson Interview
Brenda Swenson is the artist/author of two books, Keeping a Watercolor Sketchbook (Award of Excellence Finalist) and Steps to Success in Watercolor. Her paintings and sketches have been featured in Splash 11, 12 & 14, Artistic Touch 4, Watercolor Artist, Watercolor Magazine, Watercolor Highlights, and numerous other publications.
Brenda Swenson Interview
Brenda Swenson is the artist/author of two books, Keeping a Watercolor Sketchbook (Award of Excellence Finalist) and Steps to Success in Watercolor. Her paintings and sketches have been featured in...
Janet Rogers Interview
Originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Janet currently lives in Ormond Beach, Florida. Janet has won numerous awards from exhibiting her watercolors, including Disney’s Festival of the Masters, “Under the Oaks”.
Janet Rogers Interview
Originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Janet currently lives in Ormond Beach, Florida. Janet has won numerous awards from exhibiting her watercolors, including Disney’s Festival of the Masters, “Under the Oaks”.
Susan Crouch Interview
We sat down for a brief interview with Susan Crouch, signature member of the Watercolor Society of North Carolina and published watercolorist.
Susan Crouch Interview
We sat down for a brief interview with Susan Crouch, signature member of the Watercolor Society of North Carolina and published watercolorist.
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