Just some thoughts on this forum.

[screenpainter]

I have gray hair (although it doesnt say that on the bottle) and I consider myself young at heart. This forum and Artrage has been a lifesaver to me and I know to many others too. The program is fantastic for pros and learners all of whom post their paintings even though they may say nothing. I know little about old artists, new artists and the like but through this forum I am learning so much. I give advice on very few occasions as I do not think I am qualified to do so but if a new member comes into the forums and at least is trying to learn then I will encourage as much as possible. That is the way that I learnt, from all the help that I got when I first arrived here. Its a great place where I have made many friends who have helped me through the good and bad times and I hope to be here and an active, helpful member for many years to come.
LONG LIVE ARTRAGE AND ALL WHO PARTICIPATE THEREIN

well said Katie. Thanks for keeping the forum heartbeat alive for us. Your enthusiasm has kept us all going and encouraged as well. You are such a love.
From MOARA gallery and all your hard work to bless us to being personally a dear to everyone here. Personally. if McCartney can still rock at seventy, I have some good years left too. and for me art is a place where there are no and should be no discrimination in age or anything else. And I have learned so much here about art as well here. I'm young at heart too.

[screenpainter]

My thoughts on this forum was not ill meant. They were just for care. They were some thought on the state this forum is in IMO. And the fear of a future development.

Maybe it will be similar to another forum I was a memeber of. That was a Painter forum. From the beginning it was very much alive. But it slowed down and down and down. All memebers had gray hair in the end. The pros disappeared and left us old hobbyists alone. A bunch of very social "we are all a cosy Painter-family" members took over the day-to-day writing and gave each other all the taps on the backs in the world, whatever the issue, paintings or birthdays, grandchildren or illnesses. The forum changed from an art forum to a social forum. Finally it shut down.

Maybe this won't happen to this forum. I don't hope so.

I am sorry for my disturbing thoughts. No more writing. Full stop.

No need to apologize for bringing up the subject... obviously it was needed to bring up this subject and glad you did. Look at all the responses. I love ArtRage and would also love to see the forum keep thriving as well. At some point people just get busy with working and doing art. And maybe people who are retired have time to view all comments and respond to art being posted. I have been less active lately, but remain a big fan of the forum and hope it continues to be a place for artists to gather. I find it hard to keep up sometimes and still be active in other areas. It still is the best art software out there on the planet and still a great bunch of people and artists. I sure would love to see it simpler to view art because the pace of people creating art nowadays is just so much faster than ever before in history. Places like Flicker and Facebook have ArtRage communities where people talk less and paint more, but it seems to then lose the heart and become kind of distant without the personal connections and dialogue. Glad you started this thread. I have every confidence it will continue to bloom and evolve.
And some of us old timers need to loosen up and have some fun!!! Start an art project in the art projects. share some brushes in art supplies for people to use. And make some tutorials again... which seems to have stopped.
How about some more of your fantastic tutorials!!!

[D Akey]

Twaager, have you also posted under the name of Sweedie?

[dcahall]

I would like to "chime in" in this thread. I am not sure I would even qualify as an amature. I have retired and am trying to teach myself to draw. When I found ArtRage, I go so excited I went out and bought a Wacom Bamboo tablet with my retirement gift from my former employer. I love the software but sometimes struggle trying to figure out how to accomplish some things since I have never painted or did any real art work. I have done some computer graphics for web sites, presentations and some DVDs but this is a "whole new world" for me.

I purchased some books on drawing and have made several tries. I have also gone through some of the ArtRage tutorials I found on several different places. I have submitted some things under the Gallery thread that did not get any comments at all (neither positive or negative). Maybe my attempts were so bad no one wanted to embarass me.

As a "total novice" my take on the comments are that most of us would like to have some feedback (I notice that most comments under the Critique thread are negative and most under the Gallery thread are positive. Some times I feel that I do have a little bit of a "thin skin" but I would still like for you skilled people to give me feed back. I would suggest though that when it is obvious that we are "amatures", you help us understand the things we are doing right (or at least progressing on) in combination with your comments on the areas where we need improvement.

I have not been very active on the list because I sometimes feel very "inadequate" when I seem some of the fine posts in the Gallery and know I can not match any of those things. But, the bottom line is I would like to learn and need the help of you skilled people.

I would like to see more tutorials that go step by step to help me understand how to accomplish things or use the software. Again, I love ArtRage but sometimes do not always understand how to use the tool to accomplish things. As a quick example, if I use the square tip for an oil paint brush, I sometimes have a hard time controlling the angle of the brush when I start to paint. I also sometimes struggle with controlling the beginning and ending shape (as in tapering) of the brush.

I do like this thread though and find that the entire forum is one of the strengths of ArtRage.

[Bobbi]

This is an interesting thread. The comments are thoughtful. I know that there are some who have mastered Art Rage more then others and they have shared what they have learned. Art Rage is an ongoing learning experience. I personally think it is meant for having fun in creating. The people who populate this forum are respectful of others and genuinely want to help each other to enjoy the creative process. Exploring and trying different aspects is one of the most pleasing parts of Art Rage. The number of participants who submit their work is sometimes overwhelming. It seems almost impossible to see every submission, and I feel guilty sometimes that I cannot comment on every one. I think we are always glad to see someone post for the first time and we want to welcome and encourage them to continue contributing. Doesn't matter if the postings are "amature" or professional, I think we can learn from each of them. But above all, simply enjoy creating. And isn't it fun to know we are communicating with folks from all around the globe?? Why, we are all "world reknown" artists. Move over Leonardo.

[Alexandra]

What a wonderful comment Bobbi.

[gxhpainter]

Bobbi what a wonderful comment you exactly expressed my opinion!...