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Don Conroy at the Launch of Junior Painter of the Year 2011 in Botanic Gardens
Categories and Judging Criteria
There will be three regional winners (Leinster, Munster and Connaught/Ulster) from each category. From these winners we will select three national category winners and an overall national winner.
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The team of judges will be headed by John Fleming, CEO of Sightsavers. Prizes will be awarded for paintings that, in the opinion of the judges, most effectively explore and celebrate the power of creativity.
Judging Criteria
Prizes will be awarded for paintings that, in the opinion of the judges, most effectively explore and celebrate the power of creativity.
This includes:
• Powerful expression of the artist's observations, thoughts, feelings and emotions.
• Originality and creativity.
• Effective composition, sense of colour and colour-mixing skills.
• Application of different painting techniques, e.g. to create tone, highlights and texture.
Some Tips from Don Conroy
1. Using a dip pen and brush with watercolour paints can be very effective. Lightly sketch the subject you plan to paint. Lay your watercolour on it. When dry, go over pencil with black ink. This will create a strong image.
2. Remember, there is no one right way to paint or draw. Look at other artists in art books or galleries. See how they can tackle different subjects like trees, the sea, people etc.
3. If painting a landscape scene, work from left to right with a broad brush. Remember the sky is always darker at the top and gets lighter as you near the horizon line.
4. Some advice on mixing paint:
a. Mixing colours: it is a difficult skill to master in any painting medium but here are hopefully some useful tips:
i. Primary colours are red, blue and yellow. They cannot be produced by mixing colours so that's how they get the name primary.
ii. When mixed in pairs one gets what's called secondary colours e.g. blue & yellow creates green, red & yellow creates orange, blue & red creates purple.
iii. When two colours mix with a third, this is called a tertiary colour. These are then known as neutral colours examples include browns, beiges and greys. It's all in the mix of colours.
Please see More tips from Don Conroy under the Related Info Section on the right.
Good luck!
