News

Tough Love - 8 Hard Truths for Artists

Heather Martin

Comments 14 Tags advice, art advice, hard truths, tough love

Tough Love - 8 Hard Truths for Artists

Many of us have had those teachers. The ones with notorious reputations for being tough as nails, and making students drink their own tears for breakfast. Some people loathed their existence, yet others thrived on that brutal criticism.  Anyone that knows me, knows that I lean hard on the soft-hearted, positive, and sappy side. It’s crucial to keep people motivated and excited about creating. One needs a certain level of confidence to gain that brush mileage and work towards their 10,000 hours. However, when it comes to myself, I only have tough love, and think it’s what helps me grow...


Gouache vs. Oil Paints

Gouache vs. Oil Paints

After a few years devoted to wrapping my head around gouache, I decided it was time to dip my toes back into oil paints (not literally 😝). I missed the rich smell of the drying paint, the buttery feel, and the taste. Kidding...not the taste, but you can ask our dog Pancake which color is his favorite since he recently gave my palette a taste test. (for those that are concerned, we did indeed manage to get most of the paint back in a slightly altered condition, I specifically choose non-toxic pigments, and he is back to his mischievous self) Currently I’m teetering...


Gouache - Paint Reviews

Heather Martin

Tags art supplies, gouache, paint

Gouache - Paint Reviews
I'll take you on a little gouache paint brand tour, and tell you my personal experience with each brand. We'll go over Arteza, Winsor & Newton, Holbein, Da Vinci, Turner Design Gouache, Royal Talens, and M. Graham.

Ask Me Anything - Part 1

Heather Martin

Tags about me, about the artist, animals, ask me anything, instagram

Ask Me Anything - Part 1

On a whim, I asked fellow instagrammers to "Ask Me Anything", and these are the great questions that were submitted. Due to the large number submitted, this is going to be split into two parts. So here's part 1: How do we target the right audience for sales? How to recognize? @vinitha.art Oof, a business question right off the bat! Honestly, this is a really hard question to answer without knowing more details, but a piece of advice I'd like to offer to other artists is: just be true to yourself, and do what YOU want. I never really tailored my work to a specific...


Tips for Artists on Instagram

Tips for Artists on Instagram

FULL DISCLOSURE: I am definitely no expert, and there’s a sea of other articles that might be more helpful out there. This is just my own personal experience summed up in a single blog post. “HOW did you get so many followers on Instagram?” It's a frequent question that feels weirdly taboo and is usually said in a shy whisper. Maybe you're not supposed to care, and it's supposed to be something that just magically happens because you're just THAT good. Real artists don't care about those petty things....right? But it's a valid question for anyone that knows how important business and marketing is, and...