Aaron Holland Fine Art

I have been keeping a sketch journal for about fourteen years (I am on my eighth or ninth sketchbook currently).

Much like a BLOG, I find them to be a great place to capture the "meditations of the heart" or to put down "visual reminders" and inspirations.

4 x6" graphite on paper, HOLLAND

"More than any other subject, water must be painted in terms of rhythm. It is impossible to capture each rivulet and splash of foam. Rather than drawing the anatomy of the water, you should squint your eyes and look for the areas of contrasting value. Squinting eliminates the unnecessary details."

Paul Strisik was born in New York, but lived in Rockport, Ma. since 1952 where he painted full time and frequently traveled in this country and abroad to enjoy the challenge of new subjects. He was a dedicated plein air painter, finding that even the briefest outdoor studies serve better than photographs to carry him back to the subject to remind him of the feeling, the light and the mood of the place. An occasional interior or still life offers him a change of pace from his outdoor activities. He worked in both oil and watercolor.

Paul studied at the Art Students League in New York with Frank Vincent Dumond. It was from Dumond that he learned about cause and effect, to learn what causes appearances in order to paint the effect with understanding.

Above you will find a simplified version of how to construct a celtic knot. Although there are many variations on this, this one is closely inspired by The Book of Kells (the Authoritative manuscript of the Irish people). This version I used to create the Love picture.