Blog

“Mona Lisa’s smile”   During my visit to the Louvre, I’ve witnessed the many Mona Lisa’s fans more than looking at the painting!! Although, there were many extraordinary paintings in the Louvre that I would have taken my hat off with deep appreciation and admiration, yet the great crowed was around the Mona Lisa’s painting! As we all may know that The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci in the 1500s. Because of its mysterious smile, the painting has intrigued art lovers for five centuries as the most famous portrait of all times which is displayed at the…

Experience is louder than words. I have found that using black in painting is very important in order to bring vitality, depth and strength. Although, Black alone is unbending and solid yet, is very rich in its usage. Just think of the many tones of grays and the rich verities of other tones when mixing it with different colors. This is a complete reversal of what we had been taught in schools. I have been teaching my students how to use Black properly. “Little wine can make the heart rejoice but too much of it can make one sick” So,…

Passion for art! We always use, read or hear the common word “passion” for this and passion for that in particular passion for art. But what is the meaning of passion and from where was driven!? What does it mean having passion for something or to be passionate about something? Word passion has been driven from the Greek word “pathos” and has more than one meaning. It can mean something good or bad happens to us; in particular, bad thing that carries the meaning of suffering! Passion in Latin word is “passio” means suffering and the verb is “pati” means…

Purity of a child! A blog by Mona Youssef. As we mature in age, we lose the innocence of a child for many reasons. A child knows how to love, trust, feel intimate with others free from restrains, easily make friends, share his/her toys and act spontaneously as he/she almost fear nothing. This purity we all adore yet, we don’t keep or maintain! Why?! The scene of world is changing rapidly and we’re losing valuable attributes for different reasons. When focusing on spirituality & learning nature’s language, we can keep that pure child alive while is protected by the adulthood’s…

Questions Artists need to ask! 1- Should Artists pay to receive Awards? It has been brought to my attention, by some artists, asking me what do I think of invitations they received to pay fee and win Awards! Many times, a book can be read from its cover! In my opinion, given Awards is a recognition of good artwork that meet the main criteria when jury it. Should artists pay to receive Awards? If receiving Awards are ONLY for those who can afford the fee, I deeply sympathize with artists who can’t while deserving recognized Awards. Can I congratulate those…

Realism paintings, skepticism and criticism. Being so fascinated by nature is behind a realist artist. What could be more beautiful than nature! Nature is so magnificent than capturing it in one painting with few brush strokes. Realism is the true and the original vision of the creation. Through the fine details, realism was born and the creation has stood clearly firm and will remain strongly forever. What more artists can add to its exquisiteness! Neither should we subtract that art viewers would have to figure out what was meant in a painting! Realism is not about copying what is visible….

A creative mind needs a rest from time to time in order to refreshes and reenergizes itself. For the fact that a creative artist is not an automated machine that works 24 hours nonstop, and still produces same thing over and over every minute. Therefore, refreshing a creative mind is essential need for artist’s creativity and productivity. That is why learning to reenergize the mind is a step toward the goal. Our surroundings of nature are available to provide what we need. Although, it is necessary for an artist’s mind to slips in and out, of consciousness, in order to…

“Roles of proportions, perspective and realism” Having instructed my art students to pay attention to the importance of proportions, perspective and their roles, I too would like to share my thoughts with you. Roles of proportions are not only used for painting human figures but also when applying different tones! Probably this sounds new to you and her I am sharing my experience. When we add sensibly shadows or lights on a painting with certain proportions, will emphasize certain shapes or forms. It is what I call the artistic or visual math which any realism painting requires. Realism is not about…

Sensitive and creative people, in particular artists, have been misunderstood and underestimated over the centuries. However, such ones have introduced history and culture to the world. Their spontaneous and heartfelt reactions to outside influences have categorized them. It is about time we educate and correct the views of none creative people who do not posse same amount of sensitivity. . Sensitivity is the quality of being capable to perceive with full senses and swiftly respond to external conditions and stimulations. It is the vulnerability to the attitudes, feelings or circumstances of others. It is also the degree of which someone…

It has been always the case for artists to pay fees in order to exhibit their artwork. Most of the times, they end up carrying the artwork back and forth regardless of the cost incurred. Frustration is the normal feeling for artists. That is why, many of them have cut down on such exhibitions and some galleries have closed down as a result. Different artists learned different lessons and the strong remain. Some artists have stopped exhibiting for the high cost, sadly to know. And others had to find second jobs to make the ends meet. Even though, the art…