A year late, but grateful!
 

A notice about a post from Chris Saper sent me back to the SOG website. Happy to say my auto save did remember me!

I wanted to drop a note I should have done a year ago.

I went to the Principle Gallery in Alexandria last year to see the Women Painting Women show and spilled a drink on Ilaria Rosselli Del Turco! It was because I was swept up in her wonderful hug (being European she was going for the second cheek and I was doing the bear version...) and, although not selected, I found SO MANY actual friends in the show, that I had met here!

There is a weird anonymity that one feels when typing in their skivvies from hot horrible Phoenix, spilling out ideas and taking them in. One forgets that these keystrokes are attached to humans. When an opportunity to meet face to face arises, it is seriously amazing.

I knew Cindy Procious and Linda Brandon in actual real life, but meeting so many living avatars was a sensory overload.

I see the forum has gone rather silent, but I am just tossing out a message in a bottle to 1.) thank Cynthia for having the foresight to put us all together in one place and 2.) see if, now that so many of you have international personae, if you might pop in and say "Hi".

Thank you all!

Hi Debra

I have been in hibernation for 7 years getting a Bachelor's Degree in Business and have recently came back to check what I have missed and it is desolate. What happened?

There is still a wealth of information here to reconnect to, but I miss the old crowd.
N

Ngaire, it just takes people starting to post again and I think slowly it might reactivate. However, with the economy, I think people have less time to spend here. Also, the advent of social media has a lot of people spending time doing that, though they are not learning venues.

Merry Christmas to all
 

I hope everyone stays safe over the holiday break and has a great Christmas and New Year.

My New Year Goal is to come back here and learn to be a better artist.

Ngaire

Time flies
 

Heavens, it's been nearly 20 years since I've posted anything here. I couldn't even begin to recount the events in those years. (Divorce and remarriage, for starters.) But I am still doing artwork -- some painting, but I returned to an older interest, in woodblock carving and printing, and I have a nice printing press and I try to ply the trade on Etsy, without a lot of luck.

After so much time, I suppose many of the active folks of yore are inactive or gone. I'm not sure the current state of the nation or economy supports any longer the arts in general, or portraiture specifically, but for those of you who are burning the light, I hope you're doing well.

Cheers

My light still flickers ...

Yet, I can see it from here. Best wishes, comrade

S

Wow, has it been that long, Steven?

It seems the social media craze has taken over. I think as social media became ever more popular, the Forum became less and less visited. That's unfortunate because none of the social media platforms can match the Forum in terms of learning.

Good to hear from you and about your new ventures.

I do think if someone were to start posting some portraits that people might start posting some. But, I doubt it will ever be what it once was.

Are you on Facebook? I'm there personally and as a business.

2020 after 20
 

You are so vivid in my memory.
One of my clients passed away at the age 50.

BTW, please criticize my videos on word secrets:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_5rVApCPA4&t=138s
And please subscribe as my old friends.

WOW.
I saw this in my notifications and sooo much has changed since.
Good to see some of you still with us!
Be well. Be happy!
dj*

Well, I just hit 66, and while I'm not spry, I'm still active. But I have too many boats in the shed for a guy my age. It may be time to "come off the water," as they say. Maybe I should just take up drawing and painting.

Still water is deep
 

Quote: It may be time to "come off the water,"
Checked "come off the water" comparing with your location :)
Still water is deep, the deeper the water is, the slower the flow, although the wind on the water surface is strong, the water sinking in the depths will maintain slowness... a person: in the case of difficult and troublesome, maintain a calm and peaceful attitude. Generally speaking, moving too fast, too fast, wear and die quickly. Peace will last long, so say "quiet and far".

Wish you as a big fish come out from deep water.

I have enormous affection for this site, despite my long absence, due in part to living all over the world, and in part to having a life that has been visited by trouble, some of which was my own fault. I've learned a lot here, and have met new friends, with whom I'm still in contact, as we have moved on to other artistic endeavors. This was and has always been a premier source of information, talent, and camaraderie.

Hi, SB, hope you are doing well --

"Coming off the water" is an idiom that means recognizing that one is getting too old to keep taking boats out into the sea. I'm a life-long and pretty good sailor, but I'm starting to feel my age (66), and I have to be careful about the safety of people I'm with. (I usually sail alone, and I especially like high winds, so I'm kind of a disaster in the making. But I really love pushing everything to the limit, especially when sailing.) I hope you're doing well.

S

P.S. I'm a lot better, now, at being "still water." I think it annoys some folks, who think I just don't care. But equanimity isn't about not caring. It's about not being swept away.

equanimity, equability and ability
 

I am interested for your sparkling thoughts, which I am lacking of. I compared equa- words, equanimity and equability share higher value. I paid heavy toll for not being in that state of mind.

Steven: I value your words highly, I wish you be one of few to recognize my break though finding in word secrets, which are ignored now.

Without new change, can not surpass the excerllent ones
 

"If there is no change, we cannot substitute for the hero" is a literary viewpoint proposed by Xiao Zixian in the Southern Dynasty. thus positively affirmed "踵事增华" and "New Changes" in literary propositions. Relative to the classic, "change" is given the same emphasis. This claim, which is not necessarily inferior today than it is in the past, is an absolute new change or even an anti-classical conception of the "solitary spirit".
“'若无新变，不能代雄'是南朝萧子显提出的文学观点。在文学主张上正面肯定了'踵事增华'和'新变'，将 相对于经典的“变”予以强调。这种今不必不如古的主张，发展至于极致则是“独抒性灵”的绝对新变甚至反经典 观念"
踵事增华 指继承前人事业，使它更美好完善。“若夫椎轮为大辂之始，大辂宁有椎轮之质，增冰为积水所成，积水曾微增冰 之凛，何哉？盖踵其事而增华，变其本而加厉，物既有之，文亦宜然。”
word secret in alter revealed by vowel analysis, can you see?
. change ·adjust · adapt · amend · improve · modify · convert · revise · recast · reform · refashion · redesign · restyle · revamp · rework · remake · remodel · remold · redo · reconstruct · reorganize · reorder · refine · reorient · vary · transfigure · transmute · evolve · tailor Mar 17 2020

Order vs. disorder vs. sequence 序 vs 亂,續
 

Secret is in o in order 序 containing in two parts vertically (a top dot is one part) vs. /i/ in disorder 亂 containing in two parts horizontally, no break at the right part--L like stroke, also /i/ in sequence 續
To be continued...
Order by upper, low two parts in 序 reminds of that jeopardy is severer than danger. Imagine a sword hangs above.

sublimation
 

If current linguists' views on words are likened to photograph, lack of artistic sublimation, my "Secret of Words" is like Chinese master artist Yang Zhiguang's concise, wonderful brushstroke, conveying spiritual charm, Kong Fu 功夫歲月不饒人.
如果語言學者對單詞的看法比作照相畫匠，一覽無遺卻並無取捨缺乏藝術昇華，
則我的解密猶如楊之光大師的簡練妙筆傳其精神韻味，非畫匠能為。

Learn art by learning Chinese character of art
 

Hide vs. reveal
 

The word hide is closer to word harmony; while reveal is closer to real, art includes realism but not limited in realism...

THE SEDCRET IS by numerology, even# h=8, d=4 in hide vs. odd r=9, l=3 in real. Replace d in hide by g7, hug--squeeze /-kw-/ tightly in one's arms.
Similar: embrace, cuddle, squeeze, clasp, clutch, all contain odd number valued: r9,p7,w5,l3,s1.
Replace embrace by even value z, m, embosom, Hanzi cang is back.
There is more dark secret I will reveal in my book.
Harmony and order are related.
Harmony, balance, coherence, concinnity, consonance, orchestration, proportion, symmetry, symphony, unity... two or more vowels in a similar group are in dominance.

Emergent vs. gradual
 

Emergent, sudden 突然 t2, by m4, d4,
Gradual 漸 j1, slow, restrained, step by step, little by little, progressive, successive,
continuous, systematic, regular, steady, consistent, more odd number value letters.
Sargent alternates these two cleverly.
gradational vs. gradual: /ei/ in scale vs. o,^ in slow, up.

Your name may affect your style
 

Compare Ingres vs. Delacroix, Vermeer, Rembrandt vs. ?, Bouguereau, Eakins vs. Sargent and Mary Cassatt, Norman Rockwell, Wyeth vs. ? Repin vs. Surikov and Serov, Fechin…

dense, dent, dental vs. denude...
 

Learning the word secrets can improve our art skill.
learn vs. lecture, leap vs. stand, lean vs. plumper, leaven vs. emergent, lead, lethargic vs. vivid, pleasant...
Test, the key is s1, l3,n5,p7, odd#
measure, key is m4, o6, and u, 2 parts, even #.

Repin valued Serov, Fechin, etc. highly, yet Repin's work is sheer joy, and abounds in wit and technical bravura.

One worthes 50?
 

Tsing Hua"s former president Jiang said: I can guarantee to train 50 engineers but not an artist. Not to say a breakthrough finding that I got fortunately. I must thank a hero in Chinese modern history, who is my grand uncle, who influenced and helped me indirectly, otherwise I might be dead in an accident.

Graduate
 

for my 5th book on word secrets.
Sargent for beauty by Pinyin. Zorn and Sorolla for art.

By the rarity of the skill of the artist may include accuracy. Accuracy alone is not artful. Artistic, reflects in the zeitgeist, portraiture distinguishes from photograph.
My published "secret of words vol. 5" Jul. 2020. analyzes and illustrates the secret of word accurate/exact vs. rash.

藝術與真實不等同
過真拖累妨礙藝術
狡猾與忠誠相徑庭
簡潔與智慧相共處
Secret of art word

Start to probe Korean characters as symbols for words.

精而不正确
精而無當
雖精何用
Being precise but not accurate is not as good as accurate but not in detail

My "Secret of words" Vol. 6 is on the way.

Scumble--thin--hint
vs.
thick, exhibit
word secret by Chinese characters is in my book Vol.6

Art vs. science, mark vs. sign
word secret is cracked by numerology...

...too many detail, etc.--lumpish, but to exaggerate one needs to add more firstly, then simplify.
too few--empty

Orange, pink vs green, blue, purple... word secret by vowels
Orange brownish on face that shows on photo should be reduced, altered.

Hi Debra, I am hoping to tickle your fancy with reconnecting the SOG group. I miss it and bet others do too.
Are you up to it?

Hi Steven, I am hoping to tickle your fancy with reconnecting the SOG group. I miss it and bet others do too.
Are you up to it?

Hi Mike, I am hoping to tickle your fancy with reconnecting the SOG group. I miss it and bet others do too.
Are you up to it?