Many people who have been looking for a piece of artwork are surprised at the vast differences in prices that many pieces of art sell for. What causes the prices to be so different from one piece to the next? The artwork can be influenced by the style of the work being done, the type of medium being used, the reputation of the artist and the age of the work.

If you want to find a great piece of artwork, you might consider a contemporary wall art created on a piece of canvas. Many of the artists creating the contemporary pieces of art are still living and creating works. Often the work of these artists will increase greatly after they have passes away. When it is no longer possible to get a piece of work by the artist, the price can rise substantially. Contemporary art is a great investment because chances are that the work will increase in value some years from now.

The more famous an artist might be, the more expensive their work should cost. Artist from different countries might not be as well known here, but the price for their work is based on their recognition in the art world itself and not the country they are from. If you choose to purchase a canvas painting that uses acrylic paints, this can be more expensive because of the medium. Watercolors may be less expensive to consider because they dry quickly and do not take as long to complete. Acrylic paintings take longer to set and dry and are often not as easy a medium to work with as others. For this reason, acrylics can cost you more as well. A watercolor does not have staying power and can degrade if not carefully preserved. This can affect the value and make them less expensive to buy.

Anyone who might be interested in learning more about contemporary wall art can choose from many different types of art books that explain the history and evolution of the contemporary art movement. Some website like Artworkgalore can also provide you with important information to help people make decisions about artwork they are considering.

Another factor that can affect what your paining can cost is the way it is framed and with what materials. You can choose from wood, metal, ceramics, and many other types of materials to frame your wall art. Canvas paintings might be placed under glass depending on the type of medium used on the canvas. Oil needs air to breathe or the gasses can build up and damage the painting. If you find someone who has experience with framing, he or she should be able to make recommendations to you about how to frame your canvas painting so you get the most out of the work without placing your canvas in any danger.

Take the necessary time to learn everything you can about contemporary art and you should be able to choose a piece of wall art that will enhance your home and bring you years of joy.

OK you’ve spent the last few months redesigning your living space and you have just about everything right and in place. You’re now looking to add some final finishing touches and one very important item is being some wall décor and colour matching canvas paintings.

Canvas art has become an important aspect of modern interior décor over the recent years, with so many styles and patterns available. Colour matching is a great way to create highlights and focal points in your living space and what could be more warming than a set of hand painted canvas paintings to match your new colour scheme.

Choosing your art

As mentioned there are numerous offerings for modern contemporary art so the choice is limitless. Depending on the contrast of your newly designed living area, picking out a nice piece of artwork can be challenging but fun at the same time. If you have fresh clean lines and soft furnishings that compliment each other then why not choose a piece of artwork that is calming on the eyes and that will compliment your colour scheme as well as create a focal point within the room, perhaps above the fireplace or seating area. If you’re a little indecisive with colours and patterns then why not choose a triptych canvas set which consists of three pieces of canvas making one single painting, with each panel being a shade lighter, again in the same colour scheme of your living space. As for patterns you can choose a piece of artwork with perhaps some matching patterns such as swirls or cubes in the design.

If after all your research into something unique for your home or office cannot be found, you may want to consider getting some art work customised for your room. This is ideal as you can then start from a blank canvas and send in your photo’s and wallpaper samples so that you can get exactly what you’re looking for to match each and every room you redesign. This makes it very unique in fact that you now have a uniquely modern designed room and a very unique custom made canvas paintings to match.

Abstract Canvas Paintings

Abstract canvas wall art are another great focal point in which you can create to match your colour scheme, these are effective if you have created sharp features such as a glass wired lamp shade or patterns in your soft furnishings. The choice is endless, but with some dedication and attention to detail I’m sure you will find just the right piece of art. Good luck in your search.

Julia English original artwork www.juliarita.com Music is used with permission from the musician. www.theresamotard.com Her cd is availiable for purchase on her site. email art inquiries here: stonehavenstudio@gmail.com Thanks so much, ~Julia Honors- Thankyou February 6th/08 #28 – Most Discussed (Today) – People & Blogs #44 – Top Favourites (Today) – People & Blogs #78 – Top Rated (Today) #21 – Top Rated (Today) – People & Blogs #93 – Top Rated (This Week) – People & Blogs Feb 8th, 2008: #23 – Most Discussed (Today) #6 – Most Discussed (Today) – People & Blogs #92 – Most Discussed (Today) – People & Blogs – Global #39 – Most Discussed (This Week) – People & Blogs #79 – Most Viewed (Today) – People & Blogs #36 – Top Favourites (Today) – People & Blogs #33 – Top Rated (Today) #11 – Top Rated (Today) – People & Blogs #34 – Top Rated (This Week) – People & Blogs

We all like to make our houses or our offices more pleasant place to be in. one way to do this is by putting paintings on the walls. A several panels oil painting for example will make your house more beautiful in terms of interior decorating for example and will also provide a visual comfort. Also a ready to hang painting will only raise two questions: where to hang the painting and where to put the nail. Most of today’s paintings have ready to hang systems attached to them.

There are different kinds of paintings, different styles, and different materials one can use to paint. Some of the most famous traditional techniques used for painting are acrylic paint, oil paint, charcoal, drawing, oil pastel, pen and ink, pencil, pigment, tempera and watercolor painting. Since painting is a very old form of expression there are several painting styles. Some of them were made famous by painters others not very successful remained relatively unknown. Amongst the most known ones are the Abstract, the Art Deco, the Baroque style, the Cubism, the Futurism, the Contemporary art, the Expressionism, the Impressionism, the Modernism, the Surrealism and many more. While the older styles made famous by painters like Picasso and Van Gogh became extremely expensive paintings, today’s not so famous artist offer wonderful paintings at affordable prices.

Today’s most common tableaus are the ready to hang painting and the several panels oil painting. Also the most wanted themes are the floral paintings, the figure paintings, the abstract paintings, the landscape and seascape paintings and the paintings done on several panels that put together form a single painting. If for example there is a 3 panels oil painting with flowers it can be put on the wall as a single painting or it can be put on different walls as different paintings without looking like something is missing or something is out of place. The same is valid with figure paintings out of which the most wanted ones are the African dancing figures which bring a note of exotic and mystery in one’s life. For some this is keeping their art alive for others is remembering the places they traveled and making their house more beautiful.

The advantage of having a multi-panel oil painting is that you pay for a single painting and you get several smaller ones that can be put together to form a bigger image or can be put in separate places without looking out of place. Also in the case of flowers or abstract paintings you can switch the panels between them and make your own painting. Since each of them is ready to hang and comes even with the walls hooks in the box, making your own art from someone else’s art is fun and can give your friends the impression that you have a new painting on the wall each time they come visit. The main painting can be divided in identical size squares or rectangles or it can have different sizes rectangles. The newer paintings also have different shapes thus adding to the idea of decorating your walls. Symmetry seems to be outdated so don’t worry if your paintings are not a square or a rectangle, but a variety of both.

If you have decided to you want to become a collector of art, you might be unsure of how to begin and what you need to know. The world of art is a very diverse place that offers a huge range of varieties from modern art to the classics. You will also have to consider if you are interested in the abstract, realist, or impressionist type of paintings. Next, you have to determine if you want to concentrate on painting created from one type of medium and what type of base such as board, canvas, or paper.

First, look at your home and the items you have furnished it with. Many homes have modern pieces of art hung in them to match the contemporary style of the architecture. You might be interested in hanging some canvas painting but will need to consider the mediums such as oils, watercolors, and acrylics that are available. If you want, you might even consider the paper or board base. The actual number of possible combinations can be very high, so you will have many options to consider.

If you have decided on a canvas type of painting, you will have to think about where to purchase your art. A traditional gallery is an excellent place to begin and many will reframed or frame a piece to suit the décor of your home. Another option is to consider using an online site to buy a canvas painting, as it is often not as expensive to send you pieces that have been created on canvas than on other bases such as board or something that is covered with glass.

If you are curious as to why so many different bases exist that can be used to create art, each medium is often best suited to different bases. An oil painting usually requires a canvas to work on to help prevent cracking of the paint and because it is unlikely to move. Watercolors, graphite, and ink pieces are best created on paper. Acrylics can require the use of canvas or boards.

Contemporary art refers to painting done since the 70s up until today. This type of art usually will bring out strong emotions from the people who view the art and it will be created in two styles from abstract to representation. The abstract is often a swirl of colors that may not look like anything in particular but it can bring out interesting images when gazed upon. The representational piece usually has an image that one can recognize.

Modern art pieces usually include works created from the 1900s to the 1970s when contemporary work began. Picasso and Pollack are just a couple of the artist you might associate with this time of work. Of course, classical art includes work from before the 1900s such as the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci.

Canvas paintings can come in many styles and if you are unsure about which you are looking for, check out the Internet for some help. Prices can be significantly different depending on which artist you choose. How famous the artist might be, how rare the work is, the size and style used to paint the work can all have an effect on the cost of the final piece you are interested in.

www.contemporary-canvas.co.uk Contemporary 36″ x 36″ canvas with a depth of 4″ in gold, brown, oxide brown and use of white cream hints with use of high quality paints and other hints. Fantastic dark and light shades of brown in a moody abstract painting with textured gold middle. Signed by Hardeep S Ghatora and is ready to hang http Thanks for viewing this video clip.

The term ‘contemporary art’ denotes art that are current or produced in recent times. Art from the post World War II is often considered contemporary art. However, as an artwork stands through the test of time, it does not remain contemporary any more. It is then known as historical art. Generally, works of art are considered contemporary if they are produced from 20th Century onwards. However, it should not ideally always be the case. How would piece of art, which was produced well after the 20th Century, be considered an instance of contemporary art if it has an ancient theme and originated via orthodox methods? Well, it would be hardly considered a piece of contemporary art.

In order to consider an art as contemporary, a few factors have to be kept in mind. The first one of them is of course the idea or theme of the art. The idea of art needs to be contemporary in order to get it recognized as contemporary. A study of the evolution and history of art would reveal much about how the idea of contemporary art came about. The technology, techniques, concepts and media adopted for producing art largely defines if an art is contemporary or not.

Contemporary techniques like single brush strokes, that is, producing a form of art with the help of a single brush stroke, help to complete the artwork in a much lesser time. Speed is the prime factor that helped this contemporary artwork technique to become popular. Newer technologies are often used to create 2D and 3D models which are more defined than the traditional ones. Acrylic paints, which are water-based, non-toxic and fast drying, are the contemporary choice of paint medium for many artists in the present times.

All these examples prove only one thing. The three main factors that contribute towards coining art as contemporary are simplicity, speed and convenience. However, when it comes to concepts, the contemporary sense becomes a little confusing. “Contemporary concepts” is a relative term. What seems to be contemporary to some might not be the same for others. In order to remove this confusion, the date and age of the artwork are taken into consideration. This provides the line that distinguishes contemporary artworks from the traditional.

So we can see, it’s not only the timeline that is considered while coining a work of art as contemporary, rather contemporary art is a combination of modern techniques, choice of medium, simplicity, speed and convenience.

History

Encaustic is considered one of the most ancient painting mediums in the world. The word “encaustic” comes from the Greek encaustikos, “to burn in,” referring to the process of fusing the layers of paint together. The oldest surviving use is the famous Fayum portraits painted on tombs from Roman Egypt around 100-350 A.D.  After disappearing for much of history, it was revived in the 1950s by Jasper Johns, who is often considered the father of contemporary encaustic painting. He used the medium most famously in his Flags and Target paintings.

Materials and Tools

Encaustic paint is usually made from beeswax, damar resin, and pigment. The beeswax has a relatively low melting point, approximately 150F, and is strained multiple times to remove impurities.  Because of this low melting point, damar resin is added, which serves both to raise the melting point to about 165F and to act as a hardening agent, so the encaustic has a slightly enamel finish when cool.  

Beeswax, being both a sealant and a preservative, allows for various materials such as paper to be collaged into the work.  As long as the paper is completely covered by the paint it will not degrade because the wax seals it off from oxygen.

There are several tools needed: first is a heat source. This can be as cheap as a hot plate or pancake griddle, or fancy ones can be bought from R&F Paints. Most artists keep the griddle temperature anywhere between 180F and 230F. The paint itself can be bought readymade (it can also be made from scratch, although that is beyond the scope of this article) and comes in blocks.  These are melted down on the griddle in anything metal – old soup cans, muffin tins, etc. New colors can be made by mixing paints together when molten; they don’t tend to mix on your ground because the paint begins to harden as soon as it is taken away from the heat source. Colors can also be extended or become more translucent by adding encaustic medium. Medium is just the beeswax and resin without any pigment; it is completely clear in its molten state. 

Encaustic is compatible with a few other mediums: oil paint, pigment sticks, and oil pastels can be added to the painting in addition to the encaustic. Anything plastic or water-based, like acrylics or watercolors, is not compatible. 

There are also particulars to the ground used. The support must be both rigid and absorbent. If it is not rigid (like canvas stretched over stretcher bars) the painting may crack, usually because of the weight of the wax in the middle of the canvas.  If it isn’t absorbent enough the encaustic might later begin to peel away from the ground. For this reason, acrylic gesso and oil primer also cannot be used. Some possibilities for supports and grounds: wood panels (luan, birch, plywood), claybord, untempered masonite, hardboard primed with Holy Grail, or raw canvas stretched over board or wood panel.

The final major tool that is needed is something to reheat and bind every layer to the one beneath it. Proper fusion is necessary so that the layers of paint do not separate over time, and so that air bubbles do not form between them, which can lead to chipping. Many different tools will achieve this: tacking irons, propane or butane torches, heat guns, etc. Heat guns are probably the safest and one of the easier tools to use because they don’t have an open flame, they often come with multiple temperature settings, and the stream of hot air can be used to blow the paint in various directions. The precise temperature and distance that the tool is held from the surface of the paint can vary and require experimentation. Different temperatures and distances yield different results.  Encaustic cools in seconds, but fusing tool can be used to reheat and rework the painting at any time – even years later.

The paint can be manipulated with anything you can find: palette knives, dental tools, even fingers. Brushes should be natural hair bristles; most artists use one brush per color and keep them lying on the griddle so they stay warm. Encaustic is conducive to heavy layering, so paint can be added and scraped back: it is both a positive and a negative process. 

Safety

Encaustic should never be heated so high that it smokes, which means that it is giving off toxic fumes. Depending on the griddle or hotplate being used, the paint usually doesn’t start to smoke until 250F. Below this point, encaustic does have a unique scent. To most people the aroma is slightly sweet, because of the beeswax, but some find that it causes headaches, nausea, dizziness, breathing difficulties and other respiratory problems, although it is not toxic. Your studio should always be well ventilated with exhaust fans or a ventilation hood. 

The flash point of encaustic (the temperature at which the vapor directly above the paint ignites) is 385F. Obviously, the paint should never be heated this high. 

Water should never come into contact with the molten wax because it can explode. 

As oil paint is compatible with encaustic, flammable liquids like turpentine will probably be involved. These chemicals should always be kept far away from heat sources.  The amount of oil paint used should also be taken into consideration. Encaustic “hardens,” and oil paint “cures,” thus there should not be equal amounts of the two materials or the finished painting will not harden or cure. As long as there is more encaustic than there is oil paint, the painting will dry fine. 

Finally, there are a series of safety precautions associated with dry pigments, which is only used when making your own encaustic paint.

Finished Paintings

Once the painting is considered finished and has cooled, there is nothing more that needs to be done – varnish or something similar is not necessary. The painting can be buffed with a paper towel or a soft cloth, which removes bloom (any impurities in the paint that have risen to the surface during the hardening process), dust, dullness, and restores the surface to a glossy finish. The hardening process will actually continue for a long time and it may need to be buffed every so often to remove any bloom that develops at a later time.

The paint is stable in temperatures ranging from approximately 40F-110F. In cold temperatures it will shrink slightly and if it is very cold it may crack. In high temperatures the paint might soften but there should not be any lasting damage.  Paintings should be hung out of direct sunlight.

www.timothywatters.com http Artist Timothy Teruo Watters (TTW) paints an original oil on canvas tribute painting of Frida Kahlo, sped up from start to finish.

If you are interested in collecting art you may be unsure where to begin. The art world is so diverse with a range of styles available from contemporary wall art to classical styles such as abstract, impressionism and realism. There are also paintings that have been created on a variety of bases. You can find canvas paintings, paintings on board or paper, or even mixed media or collages that use a variety of unique items to make up a piece.

 

If you are deciding where to begin, consider your home’s architecture and furnishings. Most open concept homes feature very modern architecture so a piece of contemporary wall art may be more fitting. Contemporary wall art is available in a range of styles and mediums including oil, acrylic and watercolor. They are available as canvas paintings, pieces on board or paper so your choices are really limitless.

 

Where will you be purchasing your pieces can have a large impact on what you can choose from. If you are buying canvas paintings from a gallery, you can often request that they reframe a piece in a way that suits your décor. If you are purchasing from an online website, you may be more interested in purchasing canvas paintings as they can be less expensive to ship than a piece painted on board or which has been framed under glass.

 

You may wonder why paintings are done on different materials. Oil paintings need a canvas or a board background that will not move and crack the paint. Acrylic should also be done as canvas wall paintings or on board. Watercolor, ink or graphite pieces need to be painted on paper.

 

Contemporary wall art can evoke a range of very strong feelings in the viewer. Pieces can be painted in a variety of styles varying from completely abstract to highly representational. Abstract or non-representational pieces usually use color or pattern to fill a space as opposed to a structured piece that composed according to set rules.

 

There are a few very famous painters of contemporary wall art. One of the most notable is Andy Warhol who created amazing pieces of pop icons and images such as his famous Campbell’s Soup Can series. Contemporary wall art is similar to modern art and there are many crossovers. Basically, contemporary wall art has been created by artists who have been active after the 1970’s, whereas modern artists such as Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollack were active from the mid 1900’s to the 1970’s.

 

If you are looking for canvas paintings in any style, you may be unsure about what you can expect to pay. Artwork can range significantly in price even among pieces that are painted on the same substrate (a canvas wall painting versus a painting on board) or are the same size. The fame of the artist, the rarity of their work, the size of the piece and the style it is painted in can all affect the price of an original piece of artwork.