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Artist Q&A Day

Today's the day - been saving up your questions for me? A few months ago I started up Q&A Days (actually, I "borrowed" the idea from another artist, Karin Jurick).

They seemed like a great way to address the volume of emails I receive asking about various elements of my process. So, the last Friday of each month I set aside as a Q&A Day, a sort of informal way for you to visit my studio and hang for a bit (don't panic - today is NOT the last Friday of the month, but is actually November's Q&A that got pushed back because of the US holiday last Friday).

So, go ahead and post your art related questions as comments to this, and I'll respond to them in the order received. Because of those annoying spammers, I've had to activate comment moderation, but don't worry - I'll get them reviewed and published for you!

Today I'm also finalizing my third book, "Come Sit Stay," for publication, so it looks like it'll be a day spent at the 'puter. This means lots of hot tea to keep my fingers (and brain) warmed up!

Thanks so much for following along, and caring enough to even have questions! Let's hope that, today at least, I have the answers!
All the best, Kim
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Comments

  1. Patrice Erickson8:30 AM

    I'm very impressed by how much work (studio and art business) that you accomplish every day/week. How do you structure a typical work day? Are there any special tools/aps you use to keep you on schedule?

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  2. Sandi8:52 AM

    I just discovered your blog and so am very excited about Q&A! You said ask, here goes. I found you while doing a search on Elin Pendleton. Have you been to her Bootcamp? I can't help but notice how much more vibrant your paintings are now compared to 2006. I am struggling with color and trying to make that transition - any advice? (I did get Elin's DVD's and had to wipe my first attempt after watching them.) Can you tell me some of your favorite color mixes (I especially like your salmony pinks). Could you please do more lesson paintings? Could you possibly make some of the photos of your works clickable to a larger version? Can you tell me about your signature? Thanks!

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  3. Unknown9:17 AM

    Why do you think art is important to a culture and ought to be supported and preserved? Is there any historical precedent for what correlates tend to co-exist in cultures that neither value nor preserve their art?

    What constitutes "art"?

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  4. Kimberly Kelly Santini10:01 AM

    Thanks, Patrice! I'm very much a "routine" sort of person, and I make lots of lists. Using the Palm program that came with my phone, I'm able to easily track what needs to happen and fold those tasks into the pattern of my days. Most days start with a little household work & walking the dog, then a few hours of computer work followed by easel time. A break to play with the kids a bit, then more computer time in the evening. I don't watch TV at all, which if you do the math, even just 1 or 2 programs weekly takes up a lot of time! Instead I read or knit or do something with the kids. But it's a huge help to me that my days follow the same routine and that I write down everything I have to do - then it's no guess work, just a matter of working through the priorities. :)

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  5. Kimberly Kelly Santini10:05 AM

    Sandi - OMG!! lots of questions!! :) just what I like!! let's see - I have always wanted to attend one of Elin's Bootcamps but haven't had the priviledge to. I have been following her blog forever it seems, and eagerly study her paintings and lessons. I've picked up a lot that way. I read everything I can about color and study many other artists' works, too. Vicki McMurray, Susan Sarbeck, Daniel Quiller and Kevin McPherson are 4 that come immediately to mind that have lots of images available online and great color lesson books to accompany them. I use a limited palette, which means I set out the same colors each day and work only with those. I've done this for about 4 years now, maybe longer, and have found that it was the best way for me to better learn the properties of what my color choices could do.

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  6. Kimberly Kelly Santini10:09 AM

    MY CURRENT LIMITED PALETTE (all Golden acrylics): Titanium White, *Ultramarine Blue Lt, *Prussian Blue, Anthro Blue, Pthalo Blue Red, Diox Purple, *Terra Verte, *Sap Green, Green Gold, *VanDyke Brown, Quin Scarlet, Cad Red Dk, Cad Red Lt, Lt Magenta, *Raw Sienna, Cad Yellow Dk, Cad Yellow Lt, Hansa Yellow. The *colors are ones I've added within the last couple weeks - every so often I swap something out, searching for a particular effect. Right now I'm working on a better understanding of my blues and greens, hence the experimentation in that area.

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  7. Kimberly Kelly Santini10:12 AM

    Sandi, as to lesson paintings, I will try to do more of them. They are a lot of work to put together, so it's nice to hear that you enjoy and learn from them! I'm also doing digital video shorts and need to work on my video editing skills so that I can get those published more quickly, too! As to the larger clickable images, I'll have to think about it. Sadly there's so much intellectual property piratry going on that I'm trying to find a balance between sharing my images and protecting them at the same time. And my signature is just a stylized version of my initials which has evolved over time. Thanks for all the questions! and welcome aboard, too!

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  8. Kimberly Kelly Santini10:17 AM

    Drafted.rough - you've asked a great question that would be perfect for a lecture series! What makes art important culturally? well, the biggest thing is that art is a reflection of how the artist views their world. Studying art reveals what the people of that particular time valued and it can be critical in allowing an understanding of a culture that has been fragmented/lost/changed dramatically. I think Art = any choice to communicate, which is a very loose interpretation, but there you go - it can be done via dress/lighting/visuals/music/audio/performance/text/story-telling - and I'm sure I've left out a bunch of other options, too. I'm not learned enough to talk about any sort of historical precedent, but I suppose I could also point out that the art which survives generations doesn't just reflect the times of the artist, but through the sheer fact of it's survival reflects the values of subsequent generations, too. Great questions!!

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  9. the deevine miss m10:17 PM

    Kimberly - the further I poke around your various sites, the more intrigued I am by your artwork and your abundance of energy! You've inspired me to start studying the vibrant colors you use.Thank you.

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  10. Kimberly Kelly Santini11:05 PM

    Miss M - welcome! hoping to see you chime in on the next Q&A day, after you've had a chance to look around. Meanwhile, thanks so much for taking a peek at my art - :)

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  11. Lori Zébière3:38 PM

    I'm sorry I missed participating in the Q&A, but I enjoyed reading the great questions and equally great answers. Thank you for sharing Kimberly!

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  12. Kimberly Kelly Santini9:33 PM

    Lori, we'll catch you on the next one!! Have a great holiday! :) Kim

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