Hawthorne On Painting Collected by Mrs. Charles W. Hawthorne:
Charles W. Hawthorne founded the Cape Cod School of Art, the nation's first outdoor figure painting school, in 1899, where he taught for 31 years before his death in 1930. (The Hawthorne Class Studio, built in 1900, is a historic landmark.)
People often say that they learn more from failures than successes. I agree completely. But in order to learn from a failure you must first realize where it failed and understand why. I think Hawthorne held this mindset when he conducted his classes.
"You have tried to carry that farther than you knew how. If you don't do what you don't know, you don't give yourself away. If what you have done is right, people will think you have all the power in the world..." -p. 81
Hawthorne on Painting is a compilation of student notes taken from his frank criticisms. Some are specific and prefaced by brief descriptions of the work he is discussing (the book does not contain images), but most comments are broad enough to apply to a number of situations.
"The hardest thing in painting is not to paint what we have seen. In doing this, you were influenced by the way other men have dealt with the same problem you were struggling with. This is a description of the apple rather than a visual conception of it. You have done it flatfootedly from what you thought the thing ought to be, not at all from the painter's point of view. Don't think of things as objects, think of them as spots of color coming one against another." -p. 47
While reading, I couldn't help but smile as I imagined pulling out this book at a group critique and randomly selecting an entry to recite.
"Painting is just like making an after-dinner speech. If you want to be remembered, say one thing and stop." -p. 77
Hawthorne’s big message, if I am permitted to generalize, is that color is more important than value or shape (drawing). Phrases like ‘get the colors right and everything else will fall into place’ (I’m paraphrasing) are found throughout the book. I understand this point of view, but I cannot wholeheartedly agree with it. The colors must be laid out in accordance with one another, which requires an understanding of shape and value. Hawthorne also described ‘correct spots of color, which end correctly against other spots’ (again, paraphrasing). Using words like ‘spots’ implies shape, which is where drawing comes in. (And of course, value modifies color; to have the color correct, value too, must be correct.)
I think Hawthorne was trying to help students realize shape, color, and value, as one, rather than separate principles, which is a valid objective. But I have found, from personal experience, that it is simpler to grasp shape (drawing), value, and color, separately, than to tie them all together right away. Somewhat like focusing on one thing and squaring it away before moving onto the next. Obviously, accomplishing everything at once is much more efficient, but without debating direct and indirect painting techniques, I mean only to point out that each is a valid course of action. Hawthorne on Painting is definitely geared towards direct painting.
(09/29/08)