Newbie

[joelie]

Hi; I am Joelie and i have never painted in egg tempera, but have wanted to for quite a while. So often when i saw a painting that was really wonderful i noticed that that was the medium. A few years ago i saw the Helga Pictures by A. Wyeth. I went to your gallery after finding this site on ask.com and this seems to be what i am looking for. It is reassuring that not all of you have been at this for years and still have beautiful work to show. I was born in 1952 and married fairly young and had 6 children. There is only one at home now so for the past year i have been painting w/watercolor. I love to draw/paint people, pretty rusty but getting better.
A few days ago i ordered some egg tempera by Sennelier in the Daniel Smith catalogue, was looking at some of the work in there and my favorite was one that was egg tempera. It was the first time i had seen it or could find out anything about it, why is it such a 'secret medium'?
Now i see i probobly should not have ordered that, that people mix their own? I will go through your posts and find out what i can, order a couple of recommended books. Thank you. Joelie from South Dakota

[RobM]

Welcome to the forums Joelie.
There is a vast amount of information both here on the forums and also in the main web site. www.eggtempera.com
Once you have gone through the forums you will certainly find out that ET is not such a secret medium.
Many folks start off with the commecial egg tempera and then 'gaduate' to mixing their own which is so much more satisfying and handles slightly differently.
Anyway, just enjoy the painting and the forums.
Rob

[alexgarcia]

Welcome Joelie. I wish you the best as you endeavour to learn such a wonderful medium. I think you will find that the community here at eggtempera.com is one of the most respectable when it comes to forums. Also you will find that many are generous with their knowledge. Looking forward to seeing your work.

[joelie]

alex. i have seen your woek and it is very nice. i especially like the side by side one of the same fellow after a year of working in ET. it is encouraging to me to see how you grew.

[Alessandra Kelley]

Egg tempera is a fun medium, and so easy. I don't know why it's not better known, but it is versatile within its own limits. There's a lot of useful information here already, and if you can't find what you need to know, just ask.

[joelie]

sent a similar message to this but i am afraid it is in cyberspace with a few other messages. i dug out a watercolor of one of my daughters that i did this summer, just a quick sketch, a little muddy. i went over it w/the egg tempera paints and while it is nothing great i was astonished at the clarity compared to the original. i began a new piece from scratch, i call 'my italian cousins'. it is from a photograph. my technique is horrible but as i muddle along i am learning.. this was something i tried earlier when i first began watercolor. the poor people were so worked over they looked as though they had a skin disease.
luminous brush is being searched by local library and bookseller friends. if that fails i will look into the shipping price from the UK, i plan to order the book of Koo Schadler, everyone speaks well of her workshops.

[Bert Congdon]

We are all pleased to help you, Jolie. I am willing, even though I haven't painted since having a cerebral hemorrhage three years ago. I will share what I can. One art teacher I had refused to help me, saying he had spent his life learning ET, and was not about to give it away. I feel the opposite. I am 79, and I don't want to die without leaving behind everything I know.

[Dale Evans]

Bert,

that's a lovely attitude. I've just joined the forum and your post was one of the first I read.. gave me a really good feeling about this place,

Dale

[RobM]

Welcome Dale........as well as Bert (a great contributor) there are many here who are all very friendly and only willing to help..........

[kackoff]

The Luminous Brush is a little hard to find, but it's available. Amazon currently lists three copies available from $97. I bought a copy just recently and it is a good book, and worth having. I found it here for $30:
http://www.artistsupplies.com/Fine%20Art%20Supplies/Art%20Books/Egg%20Tempera/luminous_brush.HTM.

Cheers, Karen




sent a similar message to this but i am afraid it is in cyberspace with a few other messages. i dug out a watercolor of one of my daughters that i did this summer, just a quick sketch, a little muddy. i went over it w/the egg tempera paints and while it is nothing great i was astonished at the clarity compared to the original. i began a new piece from scratch, i call 'my italian cousins'. it is from a photograph. my technique is horrible but as i muddle along i am learning.. this was something i tried earlier when i first began watercolor. the poor people were so worked over they looked as though they had a skin disease.
luminous brush is being searched by local library and bookseller friends. if that fails i will look into the shipping price from the UK, i plan to order the book of Koo Schadler, everyone speaks well of her workshops.