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Conversations About Art: Abstract with Guido Viaro

Guido Viaro and Abstract Art As a writer, Guido Viaro is currently working on abstract short stories, but it’s abstract as an idea that influences him. “In my working room I’m surrounded by abstract paintings by Guido Viaro,” he says of his grandfather of the same name. “I love all Kandinsky, perhaps for his previous studies of proportions and colors. I love Paul Klee for his fake innocence. I love Jorge Luis Borges for his short story “The Aleph”. I love Ingmar Bergman for his film “The Seventh Seal”. I love Franz Schubert for his quartet “The death and the

February 19, 2015

Trust in the Process: Understanding Introversion (because we don’t)

Understanding Introversion Part I this series is here Part II this series is here Part III this series is here Part IV this series is here Introversion and being an artist actually have little to do with each other. As much as people would like to pigeon-hole artists into the introversion category, I’m not convinced it’s true. There are an awful lot of artists out there who prefer to just want to be out there with other people, attending shows, or generally being the center of attention. As it happens I’m not one of them. I get my energy from

December 21, 2014

Technique Instruction: Pastel Portraits

I paint mostly with oils, but I have ventured into the realm of oil pastels at times with some success with portraits. In fact, probably three of my most popular works have been oil pastel paintings (seen below). I recently came across this step-by-step pastel portrait link by Gwenneth Barth-White, and thought it would be nice to share. It actually more follows how I build up my oil paintings (though I’m much less deliberate and more emotional instead), but it’s still nice to see a good process. Enjoy: I painted quite a few oil pastel portraits over the years, but

December 18, 2014

2014 Year in Review: Greg Mason Burns

This was a huge year for me artistically. I had my first museum and gallery exhibits and produced some of the best paintings I’ve done. My work has developed in both the abstract and figurative realms, and my style has strengthened. Below is a video of my work in 2014. I hope you enjoy. You can see the videos on both my youtube and vimeo channels.

December 18, 2014

History of Color: Gold

I recently posted a video from the BBC about the history of the color blue. It was such a fascinating watch because blue is the most important color on my palette. This new video from the BBC is about the color gold, and, as expected, it’s influence is pretty far reaching. And who knew that the greatest goldsmith of all was also a murderer, a rapist, and once stole gold from the Pope? Pretty daring stuff I’d say. I’ve never done a lot with the color gold itself. I tend to rely more on yellow, but there are some

December 18, 2014

Technique Instruction: Figurative Oil Painting

My strongest work are my abstracts, but sometimes the figurative comes out in me and I produce some good landscapes, still life paintings, and portraits. I enjoy these more than my abstracts because of the challenge they present, but like anything they require practice. I came across these videos by Joseph Lorusso who shows us how he builds up his palette and uses it on canvas to produce a portrait. There are some good tips in here on figurative oil painting. I hope you enjoy. You can view both on www.artinstructionblog.com. The vast majority of my work is abstract, even

December 9, 2014

Greg Mason Burns

Conversations About Art: Abstract with Guido Viaro

Trust in the Process: Understanding Introversion (because we don’t)

Technique Instruction: Pastel Portraits

2014 Year in Review: Greg Mason Burns

History of Color: Gold

Technique Instruction: Figurative Oil Painting

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