Erik Tiemens Workshop - Concept Design Academy

Erik Tiemens often paints on Hot Press paper. A lot of his work is dominated by blues and browns. He says you don't need a lot of color when you are doing a tonal comp. He lets his medium be loose. His materials of choice are gouache, ink and watercolor on tone paper.

He also uses blocks of watercolor papaer. He focuses on negative and positive shapes. He suggests that you shouldn't get bogged down in details. He says when he was younger he used to do very detailed line drawings. He also has done a lot of master copies. He like Zorn. He also liked to make color paintings from black and white photos as an exercise.

He has a warm up sketch technique were he explores different compositions rapidly.

He likes the California Regionalists - Emil Cosa. They capture vitality and regionalism.

He thinks painting from life helps build the artist.

He likes to paint in the afternoon because there is more contrast.

He suggests trying different formats.

He paints in his car. He pushes the brushstroke in his digital work. He uses the dimensional oil painting brush in painter. He also says he can build up a set in sketch up and then move it to painter or photoshop.

Oil Painting Influences are Constable and Turner. In those days you would do a series of paintings at once.

He mentioned Bill Perkins as an influence.

He says if you aren't painting in watercolor or gouache that limited palette sketches in markes is a great way to learn.

He plays with painting really soft because sometimes pencil drawings make you seize up. He likes to do paintings with Prussian Blue and Black. He mixes watercolor and gouache.

His art process can be very experimental - scubbling, rinsing brush and drying it off, pull highlights, build up darks.

He starts his paintings starts rough and moves to more solidified.

He likes Linsky Hair Brushes (6-8 fine tip) that he gets from Blick also Windsor Newton Series 7

He uses big brushes to block in and uses filberts to suggest people, animals and old boats.

Art History Influences

Albrecht Durer (he mixes very detailed with very loose)
The Dutch would sketch outside and draw outside and then oil paint in the studio.

Corot - tonal sketches with gouache and chalk

the Dutch Masters had a concept of the sublime in the landscape. They would travel to Italy and create a huge portfolio