commercial landscape maintenance
December 27, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
src=”http://www.teufel.com/LandscapeServices/images/Contact.jpg” /> Commercial Landscape Maintenance: The Impact Of Commercial Landscape Maintenance For Your Business
Although you may not believe it, the appearance of your premises or business’s gardens is essential. Commercial landscaping has changed from general and austere to singular and artistic. Powerful commercial landscape maintenance ensures that your innovative and amusing design strongly reinforces your organization’s character.
When selecting a commercial landscape maintenance company to tend your gardens, consider that you are picking a partner for a continuous activity. The landscape architect has planned an unique piece that embodies your organization’s and your personal opinions, thus, the maintenance company you choose has to comprehend this and offer ongoing attention which matches, and still strengthen, these.
Commercial landscape maintenance companies are a sort of an artist of life. They see the manner in which plants, trees, bushes, and grass spring up, develop and age; what yields them energy and brightness, power and dynamism, and they work to keep all these at its full capacity in a ground. A booming organization’s image includes the same attributes which give life to your garden, thus, your image is complete when the outdoors and internal match.
Every business looks powerful, established and trustworthy when people are received by gorgeous, tended nature. Your organization’s creativeness is also communicated through the garden; the fresher the views in your gardens, the more competent you appear to understand difficulties, give solutions and assist your customers.
The place you give to commercial landscape maintenance transmits a lot about how much you worry about your customers. Good maintenance conveys deference and concern; your organization’s qualities shine through every point of the outdoors as well as the indoors. Bright tones, healthy appearance, lively patterns, beautiful shapes, strong species; all of these create a successful mix capable of promoting your organization every bit prime products or services may.
Pick a commercial landscape maintenance company that understands what sort of plants, trees, bushes, grass and other components pass a sensation of strength, quality, originality, balance, authority and singularity which can add to the message your organization wants to pass on and deliver to the customers, competition and society, since this is yet other ability a garden possesses, to demonstrate you mind about the environment and health of all creatures.
Tended landscapes pull in birds, squirrels and all types of life which transmit reliance, happiness and abundance, making your company a great place to work or meet. The gardens will certainly improve the quality of life of your workers, collaborators, stock holders, distributors, providers, customers, the community and everyone who links to it.
The grounds of your premises should never be neglected if your goal is to show how much potential your organization possesses; in fact, if care and success are your organization’s sincere traits, everything develops by itself, casually, and forces line up so that you get the best commercial landscape maintenance company to help you and give your gardens the earthy power of nature that corresponds to what your business symbolizes in whole.
African Oil Paintings – the Majesty of Light & Colour
December 24, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Early European Interpretations – A Land Without People?
The depiction of Africa’s landscape and its wildlife has an immense history. From rock paintings that are mankind’s oldest continuously practised art form, to modern day oil paintings that still search, experiment, and feel their way down new avenues into the vibrant global art market. Oil paintings of elegant human figures, richly hued animals, and subtle hints of architecture that blend so calmly with this dramatic land, continue to inspire admiration for quality and sophistication.
The craft of oil painting was brought to Africa by white European explorers who chartered their way across the vast terrain of Africa recording the wildlife and landscapes they discovered. Much of this documentation was in the name of science and natural history. These naturalists and artists were inclined to represent the needs of the empire builders and governments who funded their trips. The landscape oil paintings of this time often reflected an idealised view of the continent, an undiscovered Eden, empty and free of its original inhabitants.
An early nineteenth century traveller in the Cape of Good Hope, William Burchell, who was a prolific naturalist as well as an accomplished artist characterises this school of thought. His landscape oil painting, “A Scene on the Gariep River” was so charming that; “It smothers every uneasy sensation of the mind”. This pleasing illustration displays the kind of landscape that Europeans of the time wanted to imagine existed in Africa. These idyllic paintings continued into the twentieth century with the work of J H Pierneef, and the Everard Group. For the majority of travelling European artists, the people they saw were simply part of Africa’s flora and fauna. At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the twentieth century, major European artists, such as Picasso, began to study African motifs and techniques. This is now called his “African” phase, where Picasso produced many modern oil paintings, straying away from the conventional aesthetic representations, thus taking his artwork to a more philosophical and emotional level.
Progressive Landscape Views – Beyond the Colonial Era
Attitudes towards black African artists and their use of oil in landscape and wildlife paintings was often punitive or criticised, there was a general desire to keep the native artist “tribal”. The experience of one the earliest black South African landscape painters, John Mohl, demonstrates this:
“Mohl was approached by a white admirer and advised not to concentrate on landscape oil paintings, but to paint figures of his people in poverty and misery. Landscape, he was advised, had become the field where Europeans had advanced far in perfecting its painting. In response Mohl challenged this rhetoric and said: “But I am African, and when God made Africa, he also created beautiful landscapes for Africans to admire and paint.”
Through Mohl’s rural and urban landscape paintings he expressed a clear cultural defiance. By painting landscapes Mohl triumphed over the imperial ideals and expectations many Europeans had of the indigenous Artists in Africa. Although this European ideology may have been detrimental to the development of landscape oil painting in Africa, one common energy unites all African artists who choose landscape and wildlife as the subject of their artwork. No African artist whoever he or she may be can forget the material, the human side, the majesty and brilliance of creation.
Contemporary Oil Paintings – The Eternal Vista
Much has changed in Africa during the last century. Oil paintings of the radiant landscapes, the light, the heat, the life and the stunning beauty of this unique land and its wildlife will always be admired by those not fortunate enough to live there. Just as the people during colonial times would marvel at this realm’s incredible wonders, so today people from distant lands also appreciate its splendour. At the turn of the last century the only image of Africa people could behold were precious wildlife and landscape paintings created by artists.
Today in contemporary Britain we have many different media sources to experience the spectacle that is Africa. The Internet, TV, Video-on-Demand, DVD, Interactive games, Multimedia, the list goes on. Within this mélange of infinite images and interaction you may find that the only true way to experience this grandeur is through the eyes of those artists that are still painting the infinite and timeless scenes. Professionally produced and hand painted oil landscapes can truly connect you with the essence that is Africa. If you have visited Africa and followed in the footsteps of the early European artists, you will no doubt have fond memories of the continent. However, to own a contemporary oil painting will induce sentiment and wonder far richer than the memories themselves.
Techniques for painting clouds
December 23, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Clouds are significant in many landscape paintings. Clouds are not pure white, they reflect the sky, so it is very important to pick colors that well blend it to make these clouds look realistic. The colors you choose are based on the scene
[perhaps weather] you are trying to paint. My suggestion is to use different tones of blue and white.If you want to paint darker clouds, use darker tones to add the rainy cloud affect. You could try experimenting by blending different tones together. If you
are painting non-rainy clouds, you should try highlighting the cloud by slightly painting sun rays around the clouds.
There are many different types of clouds, and for these many different types of clouds, there are many different ways on how to paint them. Various strokes and tones will help you paint the perfect cloud. It’s important to study the
characteristics of these clouds so you will end up with the right types of clouds on your painting. Each type of cloud requires different sizes of paintbrushes. Be sure to have small,medium, and large tipped brushes, they will be handy in the future.
[Types of clouds and how to paint them]
“Stratus” is the Latin word for layer or blanket. They form lower layers that can cover the entire sky bringing gloomy, gray weather. They may form near ground level. This is also commonly known as “fog”. Since they are grayish, slightly-
gloomy looking clouds, you should use darker tones of blue, along with a few lighter tones of blue and white. Use a wide brush to paint your cloud using horizontal but light strokes on your painting. It will be extremely helpful if you look at a real pictures
of stratus clouds first before you paint them (This applies for every other cloud).
Cumulonimbus clouds are commonly known as “storm clouds”. They belong to the “clouds with vertical growth” group, mainly because they can grow up to 10km high. They are associated with heavy rains, wind,lightning and tornadoes.
I suggest you experiment with darker tones of blue, white/gray to get that “dark effect”. These clouds tend to be quite dark since they are storm clouds. These clouds are puffy-looking clouds, and they look similar to cumulus clouds except they are
storm clouds. When painting these clouds, you should concentrate on shadows. Shadows help highlight the texture and shape of the cloud which is very important. Try using circular brush strokes to enhance the “puffiness” of the cumulonimbus clouds.
Remember, looking
Basics of landscape design
December 20, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Down to Earth
Flower gardening consists of just three things: creating successive images in time; creating each image in space; and keeping the peace. It looks like hard work for those who don’t enjoy grubbing about a little but once you have achieved the first two objectives, all that is left from year to year is regularly keeping the peace.
Creating successive images in time involves the simple understanding of growing periods and taking account of them. Spring flowers: snowdrops, grape hyacinths and crocuses come, brighten our lives, but then die away and store food for next year. If we did nothing more there would be no garden, but fortunately if we had planted anemones, primulae and primroses they will take over the flowering chore before daffodils and tulips fill the scene and a little later the irises will provide massive banks of color.
This sequence is not happenchance. Because you know the sequence, the bulbs and corms can be planted together so that as the snowdrops and crocuses die away in March the narcissi, daffodils, and tulips, all bloom from exactly the same soil. Each bulb and corm knows when it is its time to emerge in the garden play.
The same goes on all year as the irises and peonies finish their cycle, delphiniums and poppies come into bloom in May, and as they finish their cycle in turn, the Gloriosa black-eyed Susans and sun flowers fill the beds for July and August. Then come Hosa lilies, lavender, and more.
While this is going on, the chrysanthemums and aster bushes are growing in the knowledge that they will be needed in September and October before those snowdrops appear again in January.
So a careful gardener learns the sequence and takes care to ensure color the whole year around by ensuring that each contributor is present ready and willing. Early flowers tend to be white, giving way to reds, and in my garden, a host of summer yellow varieties. Fine tuning from year to year involves introducing different colors for variety.
As backup, a good selection of roses throughout the garden provides color all summer long and herbs provide the scents.
Creating each image in space is nothing more than installing plants so that tall ones thrive at the back of a border while successively smaller ones occupy the front ranks. In that way a three-dimensional painting is created with nothing lurking behind taller companions. It’s very like taking one of those mass school photographs in which, if you didn’t exercise
Painting beautiful skies
December 20, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
When doing oil paintings of landscapes, the way that the sky is painted can set the mood for the entire picture.
A dark sky is often associated with late in the afternoon, a light blue sky with the brightness of the middle of the day and a purple sky with approaching sunset.
A common mistake with novice artists is to use too few color for their skies. A mixture of dark blues, light blues and plenty of white makes for a far more interesting looking sky. There are various techniques that can be implemented. Brushing on a good thick coat of oil paint, with light blue on one area and different shades in other areas then using a 1” wide brush to pull colors from one area to the other in quick left to right strokes can be very effective. Another technique is to use plenty of thinners, a mix of 50/50 linseed oil and artists turpentine is good. Cover you entire sky area with very thin paint and then use your fingers with the white and various shades of blue to construct your clouds.
If there is going to be any water in your painting ie: rivers, dams lakes etc, then make sure you use the sky paint to roughly paint in your water areas for good color symmetry. Painting beautiful skies helps keep up the motivation to paint a beautiful picture. Some artists spend a lot of time painting the clouds into various shapes to depict other objects and add symbolism to their works.
Using palette knife for skies can be effective, but does require a lot more paint to be used. Interesting clouds can also be created with the palette knife.
Unless you are painting a seascape, where it is imperative that the horizon is dead straight, it is usually not critical to have your skyline dead straight. Most often in landscapes you are going to have mountains or hills are other varying landscape components directly in front of your sky which will be at various angles that hide the straight line of the horizon.
It is a good idea to mix your sky colors with yellow to create the greens for your painting, as well as using premixed greens such as sap green, viridian etc. This helps add color uniformity to your painting. The same goes for your mountains, mix reds with your sky blues to give you various shades of purple for your mountains. Even the rich dark undiluted blues can be used for mountain peaks.
Try to avoid painting a sun directly. If you want a sun then have it behind clouds with the bright sunrays in whites and yellows showing through. Use thick brush strokes for this. It may be best to let the blue of the sky dry before painting the whites and yellows for the sun beams over the top, to avoid them mixing with the blue and ending up with a green tinge.
If you are painting the sky at sunset, then a huge range of colors from red, to yellow, to purple as well as blues can be used. Again if there is going to be water in your picture it is a good idea to paint the water at the same time as the sky to get the consistency of colors and then paint the landscape components afterwards.
5 Easy Steps To A Successful Residential Landscaping Project.
December 20, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Step #1
Planning is the essence of any activity that is related to your home maintenance or improvement. I consider landscaping as a part of home improvement activity because it will enhance the resale value of your home greatly. A well maintained home is a great asset.
That’s why when it comes to landscaping put the plan on a plain sheet of paper. Mark out various areas on the sketch plan. First mark your home building on the sketch and then locate other spaces such as pathways, flower beds, sand pits, swimming pools, patios in
relation to home building that are already existing in your home plot. Don’t forget to mark any existing big trees that you want them to be in your final layout.
Step #2
Look around your home plot for natural and artificial elements such as a busy street, flowing river, mountains, other buildings, etc. All these will have a direct effect on your home garden. This kind of analysis will help in locating various elements in your garden.
natural elements include the direction of sunlight, quality of sunlight, direction and speed of wind (if your home is on seashore the wind will be a major factor). Depending upon all these the design of your garden will change. for example if the sunlight is too harsh, you
might consider to plants tall trees so that the garden area remains in shade most of the time.
Step #3
Define the function of your garden. This means that your family members will use the garden, so what are their needs. What happens if you arrange a small family get-together in this garden, Will the garden space be sufficient to accommodate your guests. Try writing down various situations in your everyday life when you will be using this garden.
Once you define the purpose it will be easier to locate the final layout depending upon your plot analysis in step #2 and function of the garden.
Step #4
Write down a brief of the materials you would like to see in your garden. This does not mean write down everything to the minutest details, but a rough idea of what will happen in the garden. for example would you like to build the pathways in brick or paving tiles, or would the compound wall be painted from inside or will be kept exposed.
This will guide you to create a list of common material so that you get a primary idea of the budget of your residential garden.
Step #5
Create a schedule of execution for your garden and take action. Creating a schedule is a great way to save a lot of time and money when it comes to execution. Once you know which activity starts first, it will be easier to plan accordingly.
For example first comes the site cleaning, then plotting out major areas on ground. Then if you have electricity cables running around your compound wall lighting, you will have to call the electrician to complete his tasks before you start planting the delicate and
precious plant species. It should happen that you have planted the flowerbeds and a water pipeline needs to be laid under the flowerbeds that supply water to the fountain in the corner of your garden.
So planning and executing a schedule of tasks will help to improve your efficiency.
This was just a brief guideline of how to go about planning and executing a residential garden. I hope this will help you to start thinking more creatively in building you dream garden.
Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya
Watercolor Painting Made Easy
December 17, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Many beginning artists have trouble with one of the small techniques used widely in water painting called the wrist flick. This is the ending position of the brush stroke. Now pivot from your wrist push the brush tip up and away in a “flicking” motion. The last part of the stroke flicks out in a feathery point. Practice several times in each color you have. As you hit each stroke, vary the thickness of the strokes trying to imitate grasses, branches, or even feathers.
I, sometimes, rest my brush hand on top of my other hand for some of the brush strokes. Try this technique for stability and control of detailed flick strokes. Continue practicing the stroke on your paper. Be aware that a spectacular scene may grow naturally as you practice.
Along with suggesting grasses, branches, and feathers effortlessly, the Wrist Flick and variants are handy when rendering hair in portraiture or wildlife painting. A little Wrist Flicking can go a long way to finishing off a landscape painting. Too much can do a painting in before you know you’ve gone too far.
Masking is one of the most important techniques that you should master as you improve your water paintings skill. Masking fluid is the most common masking agent. It comes in colorless and in colors. Most artists use the colored so they can see where it has been applied. Others say the colored fluid is distracting or can cause them to alter the color of paints they use.
We know that the “white of the paper” is important. It creates the very light in the painting. White can easily get lost and once it is lost, it is hard to get back. Watercolor paints and paper have minds of their own – that quality of “happy accidents” is what makes this medium so much fun! (But also so difficult, some say the hardest, to master.)
A lot of artists will never use masking and others swear by it. Anything goes and whatever works for you to create the painting you want is okay. Experiment with all sorts of masking aids to find what works best for you.
What to buy: Masquepen Artist’s Masking Fluid (has a nib); W&N MASKING FLUID (colorless); Daler Rowney Art Masking Fluid (colorless); SAA Blue Mask Masking Fluid; Miskit; Cheap Joe’s Masking Fluid (very reasonably price!); Art Maskoid; Graphix Prepared Friskit Film; Pebeo Drawing Gum; Water Media Polyester Film Overlay; Incredible White Mask
Most of these and other masking aids can be found at the major online art suppliers.
We want you to have fun working on your watercolor paintings.
Do Not Conform Choose Chinese Oil Paintings
December 14, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Each painter has his or her own style. Actually, doesnt matter too much the paint reference that you have. It is important to some extent but in the end, you control the brush. Dont forget that. For example, good references are Chinese Oil Paintings. If you have the chance to study it, keep going.
One of the great exponents of South American art is the famous Colombian artist Fernando Botero Angulo. He was born in Medellin, Antioquia 1932. Botero is a Colombian neo-figurative artist, self-titled “the most Colombian of Colombian artists”.
Boteros work includes still-life and landscapes, but He tends to mainly focus on situational portraiture. His sculptures and paintings are renowned for their exaggerated magnitude and the corpulence of the human figures. He is seen as an abstract artist by the characteristics of their works.
Bath, Card Players, Dancers 1987, Meat, Superior mother are part of Boteros painting collection and among his sculptures we can mentioned Fighting Bull Pride, Fighting Bull Rodeo and Wild Horse I.
There are something sure. Oil painting never outmoded and if we talking about Chinese Oil Paintings, with more reason. This sort of paint has many variants during its process according to your experience. Nothing is established. Remember that colors are more striking in this style. Usually, the own painters mixed their colors to obtain a specific tone.
Landscape paintings are common in the majority of artists. The atmosphere that surrounds us always will be the first point of reference to express us through painting. Generally, Chinese Oil Paintings are characterized by expressing its landscapes and customs.
Hypertufa: Artificial stone for landscaping – Part 1
December 14, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
Tufa is a form of limestone rock created naturally in some underwater springs where high calcium content is present. The calcium laden water meets with high alkaline water, the carbonates mix with the calcium and form calcium carbonates deposits. These porous deposits grow as the water continues to flow and great, impressive, natural art forms result.
Hypertufa is the man-made answer to art in our own gardens. By mixing portland cement and peat moss, the home gardener can create stone-like masterpieces cheaply and easily. Hypertufa is lighter than concrete and can be formed to create plants troughs, bird baths, artificial rock formations and practically any other stone-like creation you desire.
There are several recipes for making your own hypertufa mixture. If you are constructing an object, such as a bird bath, you need to use a recipe with sand as an added ingredient to make a good water tight bond. Using portland cement instead of a prepared cement mix will keep your projects lighter while still producing the same durability as solid concrete.
Here follows a tried and true recipe for making your own Hypertufa bird bath:
*3 buckets of portland cement
*3 buckets of sand
*3 buckets of peat moss
*powdered concrete dye (optional)
*a form for the stand and a form for the bowl
The form will need to be four sided. You can use polystyrene insulation, hard plastic pre-formed or wood forms for the stand of your bird bath. Once the mixture hardens you will need the capability of extracting your project by either hammering off the wood, or breaking the plastic. If you use the insulation and heavy duct tape, it will be much easier. For the water holding bowl section, I use old, heavy plastic plant saucers for a mold.
If your peat moss has a large amount of debris present, sift it through a screen first. Most bags purchased from home improvement stores will be fine enough to skip this process. Use gloves, safety glasses and dust mask while mixing the dry cement, sand and peat together thoroughly. (A wheelbarrow comes in very handy.) If you desire to add color, mix the dry powdered mix at this point. Add water gradually to mix. Be careful not to add too much at one time. Slowly add water, mix thoroughly and add more until your can squeeze a handful together and a few drops of water (not a stream of water) will escape.
Pack the mixture firmly in your mold, tamping down as you add to fill up any air pockets. On the top of your leg or stand form insert a pvc pipe or a metal rod for connecting to your water bowl. The bowl form will also need a hole for connection or use a smaller pvc inserted in the bottom of the bowl before adding your mixture. Cover the exposed top with plastic wrap or a garbage bag and let dry. Depending on your project, drying time will require from 48 hours to a week.
After the mixture dries, remove the plastic and the form. If any rough places are present, you can chisel them away or use a wire brush. Do not assemble the pieces at this time. Cover them with plastic again and place in a cool place to cure for about a month. Take the plastic off and move your project outdoors to finish curing for several more weeks. Rinse with hose several times to remove some of the alkalinity present. After curing outside, you are ready to assemble, fill with water and watch the thirsty birds gather.
Hypertufa is a fun way of adding art to your garden. If you want your new project to look aged, use an old paint brush to apply buttermilk on the outer sides. The buttermilk will encourage moss to grow within a few days.
Learning to paint with watercolors
December 11, 2009 by Portrait Painter
Filed under Landscapes
I am new to watercolors, so I hope this advice is helpful to those learning watercolors. To begin, purchase basic supplies (www.dickblick.com has affordable art supplies) including cold press watercolor paper, watercolors (Winsor and Newton Sketchers Pocket Box), and a basic set of brushes. Although there are a lot of expensive watercolor supplies these supplies are sufficient for beginners.
Next, do research. Research various watercolor artists and their techniques. Although many people frown upon copiers, I think it’s important to copy. Its how we learn. Just be careful not to take credit for the design. You can have either a realistic, or abstract approach to watercolors. I combined watercolor with India ink and chose a more abstract approach: www.lillalouise.etsy.com. This artist’s abstract patters were very inspiring: www.wandamarie.etsy.com. Or you can create lovely landscapes like this artist has: www.kingbonk.etsy.com. Landscape paintings are great when starting a new medium.
I will not give you step by step instructions on how to create the perfect watercolor paintings because you learn from the experience and what works best for you. Experimenting is part of the art process, and it’s the most enjoyable aspect to creating.