FEBRUARY 21, 2023

Demo Artist: John Pototschnik (See Slideshow below)

RCAS’s February meeting was a real treat! John Pototschnik did an awesome demo showing the group his techniques and methods for creating his oil paintings. John began with a grey scale underpainting, painted before his arrival. This phase was done with Ivory Black and White with the purpose of establishing value and working out the composition of the piece. John explained that this stage of the process is where the mood of the painting is established by rendering the correct values in black and white. He also explained that problems in both value and composition can be worked out at this stage, before the painting process is complicated by the introduction of color.

John began the demo by applying color to this black/white painting, carefully matching the value of the color with the black and white version of the painting. John works strictly with a “Limited Palette” of primary or secondary colors. He says that by using a limited palette, the artist can insure that his/her painting will always have visual and harmony in its relation to color. As he painted, he explained how color temperature shifts and a limited palette work together to produce a painting. It is always amazing to watch a painting come alive as a master artist takes the viewer on a visual journey, a journey that began as a vision of the artist and ends in a carefully rendered painting that takes the viewer to a place that may be otherwise out of reach.

After the demo, there was a Q & A session where John answered questions about Paint Brands, Brushes and other materials as he expanded on his techniques for painting in the timeless medium of Oils.

Art of the Month Winner

ABOUT JOHN

John Pototschnik (Poe-toe-sh-nick) was born in St. Ives, Cornwall, England but grew up in Wichita, Kansas. He received his art training at Wichita State University in advertising design, followed by instruction in illustration and design at Art Center College in Los Angeles. Most recently he has studied human anatomy at the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts in Old Lyme, Connecticut.

In 1982, Pototschnik began painting professionally in the fine arts. Prior to that, he worked as a freelance illustrator for ten years with many of Dallas’ major advertising agencies and companies.

Since beginning his fine art career, Pototschnik has become a popular speaker and juror among art organizations. His paintings are in many private and public collections nationally.

Pototschnik resides in Wylie, Texas with his wife Marcia. They have two grown sons. He is a past president of Artists and Craftsmen Associated and the Plano Art Association. He has been honored with four George Washington Honor Medals from the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, the John Steven Jones Fellowship, plus many other regional and national awards. He is recognized in “Who’s Who in American Art” and “Who’s Who in the Southwest”. His work has appeared in First, The Artist’s Magazine, Southwest Art, American Artist, PleinAir Magazine, American Art Collector and International Artist, plus seven books…The Best of Portrait Painting, 200 Great Painting Ideas for Artists, and Expressing the Visual Language of the Landscape, 100 Ways to Paint Landscapes, 100 Ways to Paint Flowers and Gardens, 100 Ways to Paint Seascapes, Rivers and Lakes, and Art Journey America Landscapes.

He is an Art Renewal Center Living Master, a Signature member of the Oil Painters of America and a Master Signature Emeritus member of the Outdoor Painters Society.

“My artistic influences are diverse, ranging from the Barbizon painters of Corot, Daubigny and Millet to the American tonalist, George Inness. I believe all I need to know of the principles of art are to be found in the works of the masters. My paintings are not flamboyant, mysterious, trendy or shocking but I am interested in depicting the truth about life, as I see it, in a naturalistic way free of frills and bravado. I enjoy depicting simple, common, everyday life and its objects as things of beauty and worth. I intend to show the dignity and value of the subjects I paint – just as my artistic influences have. Through continued hard work I want to give to society paintings that transcend the culture and it’s ever changing tastes. . . paintings that speak to the heart.”

For more information about John Pototschnik and his work, visit: https://www.pototschnik.com/