The Famous Optical Artist - Bridget Riley, An Op Art Pioneer

One of the major Optical Art (Op Art) proponents, British artist and printmaker Bridget Riley was born on the 24th of April, 1931 in London. Riley is most commonly known for her signature black and white oil paintings depicting geographic patterns that cause optical illusions which have become synonymous with the Op Art movement.

Bridget Riley was educated at the Royal College of Art from 1952 to 1955 and in these years her paintings were semi-impressionist and figurative. It was not until the 1960s that her signature style developed.

Visual Graphic Arts

Riley's black and white forms - painted in oil paint on canvas - gave viewers the impression of movement and colour due to optical illusions. Works such as "Movement in Squares" (1961), "Black to White Discs" (1961-62), "Loss" (1964), "Blaze 4″ (1964), "Drift No. 2″ (1966) and "Cataract 3″ (1967) typically possessed such characteristics.

The Famous Optical Artist - Bridget Riley, An Op Art Pioneer

Bridget Riley's paintings also had another feature - the potential for increased audience participation in the appreciation or display of the work of art. This was a hot topic in the 60s, when many performances were being classified as "happenings." Happenings are unconventional and formless performances where audience involvement actually determines the course of the performance. Riley's oil paintings were in a sense dependent on what the individual experienced on viewing them. Though the paintings were given names hinting at their subjects, they could be interpreted by the audience in any way.

Riley held the first of these exhibitions, which were pivotal in getting the world's attention to the Op Art movement and Riley's art, in 1965 at the Museum of Modern Art, New York City. She had already held her first solo in 1962 at Gallery One, London. Other exhibitions followed, but it was the 1965 show at New York that drew international recognition.

By 1967, Bridget Riley began to modify her style and thought of incorporating oil colour in her art. She began incorporating on colour stripes in an oil painting entitled "Paean" (1973), "Dominance Portfolio, Blue" (1977), "Ra2″ (1981) and "Silvered 2″ (1981). Crucial to this change was the extensive travelling she undertook from the 1970s. The hieroglyphic decorations she saw during her visit to Egypt played an important part in leading her to incorporate colour and contrast. Her later works are colourful and some of these bright paintings include "Fete" (1999), "Echo" (2000), "Carnival" (2000) and "Sylvan" (2000).

Among the other achievements of Bridget Riley is her distinction of becoming the first woman and British contemporary painter to receive the International Prize for painting at the 1968 Venice Biennale.

The Famous Optical Artist - Bridget Riley, An Op Art Pioneer

Using Artists Materials and supplies in a new and innovative way to pioneer a the Op Art movement in painting, Bridget Riley is undoubtedly one of Britain's most important artists. Her geometric patterns skilfully created with Oil Paints have influenced many and have been appreciated by all sections of the audience.

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How to Paint Mist Or Fog in a Landscape Painting

Painting mist or fog turns an ordinary scene into something special or specific. For example, mist can indicate that it is morning before the sun has burnt off the fog or it can indicate distance. Fog can add mystery, suspense or even peacefulness to paintings.

You should decide beforehand if you want the entire scene to contain mist of fog or just distant mountains and valleys. A scene that is fully misted will have little detail in the background because just like on a misty day - visibility is limited. Look at other paintings and at nature and observe what you see.

Visual Graphic Arts

Let's say that the entire scene will be misted. You most likely will use opaque or dulled down colors and paint in the background, again use little detail. A dry brush technique with circular strokes makes a nice misty effect. Use slightly more detail in the middle ground and more in the foreground. When the painting is done you could use a very - very thin (watercolor consistency) white and go over the entire painting layer by layer until the effect you desire is achieved.

How to Paint Mist Or Fog in a Landscape Painting

If the effect your looking for is mist or fog at the base of mountains or trees, then that's pretty easy too. I paint with acrylics and they dry quickly so this technique works well. After your mountains or trees are dry, dry-brush with white from the bottom upwards. Remember the mist is very transparent, so you need to use a tiny amount of paint on a dry brush. Start at the base, use circular strokes and work your way up until the mist blends in. Do the same with mountains or water scenes.

I would suggest practicing these techniques before attempting to apply them to a finished painting. If you aren't comfortable, the last think you want to do is ruin your work. Remember, mist and fog are fairly simple techniques that add tons of character to art.

How to Paint Mist Or Fog in a Landscape Painting

Together - with step-by-step lessons and your desire to learn drawing and painting techniques we will bring out that true creativity inside of you and create beautiful works of art! To see acrylic tips, tricks, lessons and to Learn Painting Techniques visit my how to paint instructional site. The best way to begin painting is to follow prescribed instruction and get your feet wet. With a little practice, you will be well on your way to a rewarding hobby of painting. Let http://www.IamPainting.org show you how!

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Visual Communication: What Does It Mean?

"The greatest thing a human soul ever does in this world is to see something. . . To see clearly is poetry, prophecy, and religion, all in one." ~ John Ruskin, Painter

Visual communication involves our eyes, heart, and mind. By the time we reach adulthood, we have millions of visual images stored in the dark recesses of our minds. Our memories serve us and ground us. Our minds reminiscence and recall visual messages during our waking and sleeping hours; which in turn, visual imagery form our thinking, attitudes, and personalities. Since visual messages are penetrating our hearts and souls, take a moment to learn what visual literacy and visual communication actually mean.

According to Google's online dictionary, *visual literacy* means:

"Visual literacy is the set of skills involved in the interpretation and criticism of images. It is a field of study in academia, drawing on art history and criticism, information design and graphic design, and computer interface usability. It is also a goal of education paralleling linguistic literacy. The basic skills of visual literacy include the vocabulary of concepts necessary for understanding and discussing images."

Visual Graphic Arts

Then again, according to Google's online dictionary, *visual communication* means:

"Visual communication is the communication of ideas through the visual display of information. Primarily associated with two dimensional images, it includes: alphanumerics, art, signs, and electronic resources. Recent research in the field has focused on web design and graphically oriented usability."

Visual Communication: What Does It Mean?

Since the invention of television and the Internet, visual communication has bombarded the world. The average person is showing preference to learning and being entertained through visual media as opposed to printed material. No doubt about it, we are living in a visual world! (revised 2/15/2006)

Visual Communication: What Does It Mean?

Debbie Jensen, Graphic Designer and Photographer [http://www.debjensendesigns.com]

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How To Improve In Magic: The Gathering

Besides just reading articles all the time, you should also always keep yourself updated with the available cards in the format through visual spoilers or browsing through discussion forum constantly. When a new format is about to be released, go through the whole spoiler card by card to know every available card in the format, even you did or did not attend the prerelease. Doing so would help you prepare your games and decks against cards in the format, as you know now which card could single handedly destroy your deck or vice versa against another deck.

An example here would be the all-star dredge deck that was amazingly powerful and popular a year back in extended. It was so powerful that every deck prepares multiple sideboard slots against it, but is the deck prepared for these sideboard cards? As the deck revolved around its graveyard, it has to take into consideration all cards that could single handedly destroy it, and how to go against them. You will need to pack permanent removals for Leyline of the Void, Tormod's Crypt or Yixlid Jailer. Is that enough? Do you win when your opponent is tapped out? No because there's lots of Ravenous Traps running around! What if you don't have 3 cards going into your graveyard this turn?

There's still Faerie Macabre to consider! However, when a deck board in such cards which does not interact with itself, it makes the deck weaker against different source of threats. Several pros attempt to attack this angle through a transformation sideboard of heavy creatures and equipment. Doing so would in return caught the opponent who might (or might not) boarded in a million anti graveyard cards, and thus stealing back the sideboard games. This is a basic example of understanding the cards available in the format against you, and vice versa against others, could help you win or lose a game.

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