Blog

Acrylics are a huge favorite with CATF team. Our talented artists love exploiting this amazing art medium to its full potential. Today, we would be elucidating those characteristics of acrylic paints which make them an appealing and interesting medium to work with.

Working with acrylics can be both rewarding and fun. They are extremely versatile and easy to work with. Given below are some of those traits which would make all our beginner artists want to experiment with these colors.

Acrylics are best friends with water

Acrylic paints are water based. This implies that they can be both thinned and cleaned with water. When thinned with a lot of water, acrylic paints might resemble water colors.

Acrylics are Eco-friendly

For those artists who have an eco-friendly side to them, acrylics might be the most attractive option out there since these paints are non-toxic as well as non-smelly. As far as quality is concerned, they can be compared with oil paints. However, they are free of the toxicity and smell which usually comes with oil paints.

Acrylics are swift workers

If you are an impatient artist and like to get done with your work quickly, then acrylics may just be what you need. These paints dry quickly. However, this trait has both its perks and cons. The disadvantage of quick drying is that you might feel that the colors haven’t blended nicely enough.

This situation can be remedied though. All you need to have is a retarder ( which acts as an acrylic medium that extends drying time). You could also opt for a flow release ( which would potentially enhance the bendability of colors).

Acrylics love versatility

When you speak of acrylic colors, you aren’t just referring to a single type and brand of colors. Instead, acrylic colors embody an expansive, versatile range of colors, ranging from acrylic gels to acrylic pastes. Just as the colors are extremely versatile, similarly their application can be ingenuous. You could modify their texture as per your demand.

Acrylics as Enhancers

Acrylic paints are also used as enhancers at times to alter your paint’s sheen. You can either use them to bestow your artwork with a matte sheen or endow it with a high gloss. There is an entire range of acrylic colors available now which can be used for this purpose

Acrylics in Mixed Media Applications

One of the best uses that acrylics can be put to are in mixed media applications. Paper, wood and canvas are the most popular choices to use with acrylic colors. However, owing to their versatile nature, they can be used on almost any surface such as fabric, clay etc. All you have to do is make sure that these surfaces are primarily primed with gesso. Moreover, different tools could be used to vary and modify their texture and effect.

Tip: When you get bored of your paint brush, improvise using other tools such as sponges, Q-tips, toothpicks, scrapers etc.

The Best Part

Once they have been properly varnished, acrylic paintings do not need to be framed behind a glass. When and if they do collect dust, all you will have to do is wipe them with a damp cloth and they will be as good as new.



Stay tuned to get hold of our next article which would delineate the painting supplies needed to work with acrylics.



Check out our collection of acrylic art today at

1-catf.pixels.com

Middle Eastern Art
• Is it even a genre?

The category of Middle Eastern art is necessarily general since it incorporates the region’s incredible diversity and breadth, spanning from eastern Mediterranean to Pakistan.

• If it is, what themes does it deal with?

Likewise, the themes which this category of art deals with are interspersed with an incredible degree of richness and diversity. At times, these works appear to be set in contexts which are fraught with conflict and at other times, these works portray the junction between tradition and rapid development. Moreover, lately, artworks originating from this region or depicting some aspects of the regional culture tend to question West’s prevailing representations of the Middle East.

• Middle Eastern Art or Islamic Art?

Islamic Art is a significant dimension of Middle Eastern Art. However, the genre of Islamic art has been modified and customized to include contemporary works in the Middle Eastern context. Generally, inspiration is drawn from cultural traditions which are juxtaposed with contemporary themes. More than often imagery and techniques are deployed from earlier periods which are then embellished with an au courant ambience.
However, this doesn’t imply that modern Middle Eastern art is re-inventing Islamic art. Instead, it appears that it is being re purposed so as to make it a much more cognizant tool of personal expression, free from the shackles of functionality and patronage.

• Finally ! CATF’s contribution to Middle Eastern Art :D

CATF aims to shed light upon these very trends which are surfacing in this genre. Our collection of Middle Eastern artworks juxtapose tradition with contempo. They question stereotypes and break them. They experiment with colors and techniques and foreground a new and resplendent purpose of Islamic art.

Check out our collection of Middle Eastern Art today at
1-catf.pixels.com

Art makes people and people make art. It is a tricky yet an incredulous and intriguing combination. Our incredibly talented artist Maryam Mughal embodies this combination to its perfection. Hereby, she would be sharing the story of  her venture into the world of art and colors with us in her own words.

What inspired you to become an artist in the first place?

Since a child, the air in front of me was the canvas and I was brushing it with colors of my thoughts. One day I did it on paper
and the world around me said, wow, since than I was titled as a natural artist and my hands itch to create more art to beautify
life around me. I paint my desires, my expressions and expectations towards life according to my violent mood swings. For me,
each of my painting is more like my own baby as I feel my soul in it.

What are your favorite media and themes which you prefer to work upon?


Contemporary modern and figurative is my favorite domain to work. Yet I have trained myself to work on art assignments too, as a decade of work has enabled me to grasp the idea and tailor it to clients’ demands. I’m inspired by nature, pain and
transitions. I love painting beyond constraints of time and space. My hobby is my profession so I don’t see myself retiring any time in life. I want to leave some work which makes me eternal. The journey of the artist in me has faced every possible
adversity; from rejection to alienation, from ridicule to exploitation but it only grew stronger and today when I look with in, I don’t see much of myself except than an artist.

What are your career aspirations?


I Am a BFA graduate with 10 years of experience in Graphics, advertising, print media, Radio and TV. My favorite job is to create unique style paintings and artworks in different mediums. I have been associated with an international art gallery from a long
time. Also, I love creating functional artistic concepts and communicational illustrations, books and magazine design. I started my career as a Client Executive/Assistant Creative Manager in an Ad Agency in Islamabad and that’s how I got in to Advertising
Industry in 2007. Being a Fine Arts student  I had an added advantage of understanding  creativity in communicational design. My career aspirations thus run along similar lines.


From the vantage point of an artist, if you had to say something to the world, what would that be?


I believe that drawing and painting serves as a timeless means of communication since art is that expressive therapy that makes me and everyone feel connected to an image of the world that extends beyond the senses; a world in which time is still and one achieves inner peace.

Kūfic script, in calligraphy is the earliest extant Islamic style of handwritten alphabet that was used by early Muslims to record the Qurʾān.

* Characteristics of Kufic Calligraphy


This angular, slow-moving, dignified script was also used on tombstones and coins as well as for inscriptions on buildings. Some experts distinguish Kūfi proper from Meccan and Medinese scripts, which were also used to copy the Qurʾān.

* Kufic- Why and How?

The script was called Kūfi because it was thought to have been developed at Kūfah in Iraq—an early Islamic centre of culture. Simple Kūfi was developed early in the Islamic era; the earliest surviving copies of the Qurʾān—from the 8th to the 10th century—were copied in it.

Later a floral Kūfi flourished, and several other varieties of the script developed, including foliated Kūfi, plaited or interlaced Kūfi, bordered Kūfi, and squared Kūfi. It went out of general use about the 12th century, although it continued to be used as a decorative element to contrast with the scripts that superseded it.

* Kufic calligraphy at its best

CATF has an expansive collection of calligraphy which encompasses a diverse variety of techniques and styles. Despite this rich diversity in our themes and styles, our collection of Kufic Calligraphy still tends to stand out. The beauty of this style lies in its difficulty of legibility.

Literacy may be limited but its aesthetic beauty has always been accessible to all, and it is this very beauty of these patterns that matters.

Our kufic calligraphy tends to be austere, and derives its beauty from the purity of its austerity; however simultaneously it lends itself to clever, even playful variations only limited by one's creativity.

CHECK OUT our incredibly varied and creative compendium of kufic calligraphy today at
1-catf.pixels.com

Kūfic script, in calligraphy is the earliest extant Islamic style of handwritten alphabet that was used by early Muslims to record the Qurʾān.

* Characteristics of Kufic Calligraphy


This angular, slow-moving, dignified script was also used on tombstones and coins as well as for inscriptions on buildings. Some experts distinguish Kūfi proper from Meccan and Medinese scripts, which were also used to copy the Qurʾān.

* Kufic- Why and How?

The script was called Kūfi because it was thought to have been developed at Kūfah in Iraq—an early Islamic centre of culture. Simple Kūfi was developed early in the Islamic era; the earliest surviving copies of the Qurʾān—from the 8th to the 10th century—were copied in it.

Later a floral Kūfi flourished, and several other varieties of the script developed, including foliated Kūfi, plaited or interlaced Kūfi, bordered Kūfi, and squared Kūfi. It went out of general use about the 12th century, although it continued to be used as a decorative element to contrast with the scripts that superseded it.

* Kufic calligraphy at its best

CATF has an expansive collection of calligraphy which encompasses a diverse variety of techniques and styles. Despite this rich diversity in our themes and styles, our collection of Kufic Calligraphy still tends to stand out. The beauty of this style lies in its difficulty of legibility.

Literacy may be limited but its aesthetic beauty has always been accessible to all, and it is this very beauty of these patterns that matters.

Our kufic calligraphy tends to be austere, and derives its beauty from the purity of its austerity; however simultaneously it lends itself to clever, even playful variations only limited by one's creativity.

CHECK OUT our incredibly varied and creative compendium of kufic calligraphy today at
1-catf.pixels.com

Our weekly contest winner, Anne Gifford shares her journey of art

* Anne, when and why did you get interested in art?

I have been creating art of some type or another since the age of 4. I am forever grateful that my parents enthusiastically encouraged me to express my creativity, and after attempting to finish a college curriculum in social work, I opted to follow my heart and switched to fine art.

* What art media interests and inspires you?

After graduating with a BFA, I began my career as a silkscreen artist. After 25 years of printmaking, I now work with watercolor where I build successive layers of color to create my vibrant, rich, and detailed paintings. I have lived in Boulder since 1976 and find inspiration in the natural beauty of Colorado. On my many walks and hikes throughout the area, I am always on the lookout for new imagery. Light, shadows, rocks, water, mountains, canyons, wildlife and whimsy are all part of my subject matter as I bring my own unique vision to my work.

* Any other achievements that you would want to talk about?

I am an award winning artist and the seven time poster artist for the Bolder Boulder 10K Memorial Day Race, one of the largest road races in the United States. My paintings have been chosen to represent The 150th Anniversary of Boulder County and the 40th Anniversary of Boulder County Open Space.

I additionally enjoy teaching watercolor classes to senior citizens at the East Boulder Senior Center in Boulder, Colorado, as it provides me with a rewarding platform in which to share my talents.

* If you had to give a message to all aspiring artists out there what would that be?

When I create a landscape sometimes I feel as though I am recording the natural beauty surrounding us for future generations. I hope my viewer will experience the happiness I felt as I created it.

My message to all aspiring artists would be....paint!!!!!! (or draw, or make prints or pottery....)

To get to know more about our contests and more about Anne, check out our website today at

1-catf.pixels.com

Truck Art- What is it?


Pakistan’s ‘truck art’ is now quite a well-known ‘genre’ around the world. For long, it has been an homegrown art-form in South Asia, especially in Pakistan, where the whole idea of decorating trucks (also, lorries and even rickshaws) with complex floral patterns and poetic calligraphy, has evolved in the most radiant and innovative manner

You so can’t miss out on these trucks!

Anyone who has been to Pakistan knows that the sight of a fully decorated truck is unforgettable. A truck embellished from bumper to bumper with paint and colorful, sculpted metal is expressive and captivating in ways that few other artistic media can duplicate. Decorated Pakistani trucks declare a dazzling, exuberant artistry that is unmatched on vehicles anywhere else in the world.

So what does this art form comprise of?

Pakistani truck art takes two forms— murals or painted scenes and “decoration pieces.”

Decoration pieces typically adorn a truck’s side carriage and are placed on top of a mural or painting. Ranging in size from less than a square foot to more than six feet, decoration pieces are often the flashiest part of a fully embellished truck. Consisting of a metal base covered with colorful reflective stickers, or chamak patty, and further highlighted with mirrors or studs, decoration pieces are shaped to represent any of the truck art motifs, such as birds, fish, and flowers. The decoration piece is an important flourish on the truck because the artistic materials make the piece the most reflective part of the vehicle. There is no Urdu word for decoration piece, and both truck drivers and truck artists will use the English term.

CATF and Truck Art

CATF’s collection of truck art comprises of both these murals and decoration pieces. Check out our vivid and exuberant collection of truck art today at
1-catf.pixels.com

Hey folks!
This week, the art movement which we would be featuring is Pop art.

What is Pop Art?

The first question which would have popped to your mind would be that what this movement is about.
Pop Art is a modern art movement that developed in the 1950s and 60s. It was created by the Scottish sculptor and artist Eduardo Paolozzi in London, 1952. Andy Warhol, Robert Indiana and Roy Lichtenstein are examples of pop artists.

What are the Themes covered by Pop Art?

Pop art has themes and techniques drawn from popular mass culture, such as advertising and comic books. Pop art employs images of popular as opposed to elitist culture in art.

What are the Methods of Pop Art?

• The artists use mechanical means of reproduction or rendering techniques which downplay the expressive hand of the artist.
• Pop artists went for absolute clarity. Most forms were bordered with black lines as in comic books. The objects are often plain like a poster, and without perspective. The colours are clear, achromatic and primitive colours.
• Objects of the everyday life get isolated and modified or processed in collages. Pop art is a connection between reality and art, handled with abstract means. Some of their catchwords are: popular, consumable, cheap, funny and outstanding.
• Much of pop art is rather academic, as the unconventional organizational practices used often make it difficult for some to understand.
• Pop art and minimalism are considered to be the last modern art movements and so the precursors to postmodern art, or some of the earliest examples of postmodern art themselves.

CATF has an entire range of artworks which cater to this particular style and taste. To check out our work in Pop Art, click on the link below
1-catf.pixels.com

�When a poet digs himself into a hole, he doesn�t climb out. He digs deeper, enjoys the scenery, and comes out the other side enlightened.�

― Criss Jami, Venus in Arms

For me an artist is this very person. For me, art is this very hole. There is no end to it, no banality, only far-reaching enlightenment.

However, art per say can never be pinned down in the shackles of word or speech. It escapes and evades all such confinement. It is more like �love�, or as Iqbal would say � Ishk� . Something to be felt but never truly articulated. Something with a myriad of expressions and dimensions, not one monolithic definition. Something that reaches far beyond our comprehension and understanding yet envelopes us from all around.

My journey as a visual artist began from a very young age. I think I was in grade 7 or 8, when I started sketching and soon this fervor took the shape of a passion for oil paints. The feeling that consumed me when brush strokes were my arsenal and canvas my story of life is something which I find difficult to articulate. I would just dig deeper and deeper into this hole, stay in for as long as I could, wished that I could never come out of it, but whenever I did, I was always a new person; a more sensitive being, a more denaturalized individual and undoubtedly possessed an enlightened visage.

Art for me was more than colors. It was energy. It was energy to be felt, radiated and consumed by sensitive souls. I can confidently assert that my life as an artist paved the way for my life as a spiritual healer. These very experiences were responsible for making me susceptible and vulnerable to the multitude of energies which surround each of us every second of every day. Nature and Figurative Art have been some of all my all-time favorite themes. Nature has always been kind to me. She has been my Mother Goddess, inspiring me, nurturing me and endowing my soul with indescribable depth.

The binary of essence and existence is another theme which interests me greatly and serves as an inspiration for me at countless times. Yet, it is at times, when art becomes capitalized, that I lose my inspiration, but then again my calling hails me.

If I had to say something about myself, it would be that art awakened me spiritually. It made me aware of and vulnerable to auras. It made me harness my negative energies and of those around me to tune in to positive frequencies. It propelled me to think deeply and more profoundly. It instigated me to think outside the box and to outdo conventions. Most significantly, it made me feel love, peace and light. If I were to sum up my existence in one phrase, it would be that �I am all love, am all peace, am all light.�

Overview

During the mid-nineteenth century, the provocative and sensuous Aesthetic movement threatened to dismantle Britain's fussy, overbearing, and conservative Victorian traditions. More than a fine art movement, Aestheticism penetrated all areas of life - from music and literature to interior design and fashion. At its heart was the desire to create "art for art's sake" and to exalt taste, the pursuit of beauty, and self-expression over moral expectations and restrictive conformity. The freedom of creative expression and sensuality that Aestheticism promoted exhilarated its adherents, but it also made them the object of ridicule among conservative Victorians. Nonetheless, by rejecting art's traditionally didactic obligations and focusing on self-expression, the Aesthetic movement helped set the stage for global, twentieth-century modern art.


Key Ideas

1. Rebelling against Victorian materiality and modern industrialism (particularly what they criticized as the impoverished and repetitive designs of consumer products created cheaply by "soulless" machines), Aesthetic artists placed a premium on quality craftsmanship in the creation of all art. Some even revived pre-industrial techniques in the process.

2. Aesthetic artists touted the adage "art for art's sake," divorcing art from its traditional obligation to convey a moral or socio-political message. Instead, the focused on exploring color, form, and composition in the pursuit of beauty.

3. Distinct from the Victorian preference for fussy decor, curvaceous forms, and abundant detail, Aesthetic art is characterized by subdued colors, geometric designs, and simplified linear forms. The movement took as its primary sources of inspiration Pre-Raphaelite painting's of flaming red haired beauties, medieval geometric designs, and Japanese motifs and aesthetics.

4. The Aesthetic Movement maintained that art should not be confined to painting, sculpture, and architecture, but should be a part of everyday life. To this end, Aestheticism embraced not only the "high" arts, but also ceramics, metalwork, fashion, furniture-making, and interior design. Many Aesthetes, most notably Oscar Wilde, even adopted public personas through which they lived according to Aesthetic principles.

CATF

CATF has a diverse range of art which adhere to the tradition of aestheticism. To check out our collection of aesthetic paintings click on the link below.

1-catf.pixels.com