fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Vanishing and Exploding Gradients in Neural Networks
By: Jakki Seshapanpu
Tags: Gradient Descent, Vanishing Gradient, Exploding Gradient, Machine Learning, Neural Networks

A Brief Overview

Image source : https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehz056

What is a Gradient ?

The Gradient refers to the gradient of loss function with respect to the weights. We calculate the Gradient during the back propagation in Recurrent Neural Networks. These Gradients are used to update the weights, to minimize the loss function.

With the back propagation we may come across two issues mainly:

Vanishing Gradient

Exploding Gradient

Vanishing Gradient :

Vanishing Gradient occurs when the gradient becomes very small.

Image source : javepoint

Vanishing gradient problem is common while training the deep neural networks. Adding more hidden layers make the network able to learn the more complex functions and does a better job in predicting future outcomes. But during the back propagation and calculating the gradients, it tends to get smaller and smaller as as we keep on moving backward in the network. This causes the neurons in the earlier layers learn very slowly as compared to the neurons in the later layers. The gradients will be very small for the earlier layers, means there is no major difference between the new weight and old weight. This leads to vanishing gradient problem.

The deterioration in the gradient value is proportional to the depth of the network. The deeper the network, the chance of getting a lesser value of the gradient towards the end of back propagation.

Vanishing gradient problem is mainly occurs with sigmoid and tanh functions. We can avoid this problem by using the ReLU activation functions in training the deep neural networks.

Exploding Gradient :

Exploding Gradient occurs when the gradient becomes very large.

Image source : javapoint

If the gradient becomes large, the model becomes unstable and model unable to learn from the training data. Exploding gradient problem can be identified if there is large changes in the loss from update to update. If the model loss goes to NaN during the training is an indication of exploding gradient problem.

Exploding gradient problem is due to large weights.

Exploding Gradient Problem can be address by :
Forward and Backward propagation
By: Mau Ruanova
Tags: Backpropagation, Gradient Descent, Stochastic Gradient

In machine learning, backpropagation is a widely used algorithm in training feedforward neural networks for supervised learning.

Generalizations of backpropagation exist for other artificial neural networks (ANNs), and for functions generally — a class of algorithms referred to generically as “backpropagation”.

In fitting a neural network, backpropagation computes the gradient of the loss function with respect to the weights of the network for a single input–output example, and does so efficiently, unlike a naive direct computation of the gradient with respect to each weight individually.

This efficiency makes it feasible to use gradient methods for training multilayer networks, updating weights to minimize loss; gradient descent, or variants such as stochastic gradient descent, are commonly used.

In forward propagation we apply sigmoid activation function to get an output between 0 and 1, if Z<0.5 then neurons will not get activated, else activate.

In back-propagation if the predicted y=1 but the actual y=0 then our neural network is wrong and loss=1, to minimize the loss we adjust the weights so y-hat=y and loss=0 (slope).

Gradient descent is on of the best optimizers in back-propagation to update the weights and minimize the loss function on each iteration (epoch). (with momentum, mini batch, RMS prop, Adam).

Hyperparameter optimization techniques to select the appropriate learning rate 0.001 run forward and backward propagation simultaneously until cost function is not getting minimized.
Batch normalization
By: Mau Ruanova
Tags: Deep Learning, Batch Normalization, Gradient Descent, Artificial Neural Network

Batch normalization (also known as batch norm) is a technique for improving the speed, performance, and stability of artificial neural networks.

It is used to normalize the input layer by re-centering and re-scaling.

Gradient descent converges faster after normalization.

x = x / ||x||
Vanishing Gradient Problem in Deep Learning
By: Aayush Jain
Tags: Gradient Descent, Vanishing Gradient, Sigmoid Function, Deep Learning

In 1980’s, at that time the researches were not able to find deep neural network in ANN because we have to use sigmoid in each and every neuron as the ReLU was not invented. Because of sigmoid activation function we were facing a problem known as Vanishing Gradient Problem.

Let’s understand what actually it is.

The Simple ANN

Let the inputs be X1, X2 and X3 and the output be Yp and the weights be {W11, W12, W13}, {W21, W22, W23} and {W31, W32, W33} for inputs resp.

Now for 2nd layer to 3rd layer the weights be {O1, O2} resp.

To calculate W11 new formula is W11 new=W11 old -n (derivative of L w.r.t W11 old), where

i.e. Loss and Y is actual output.

The sigmoid function is given by

and the value of the sigmoid function is between 0 to 1. When we derivate the function the value comes between 0 to 0.25.

How??

Its derivative w.r.t x is

If we take the value of x to be 0 then f’(x) is 0.25 and when we take the value of x to be infinity then f’(x) is 0. This can be analysed using the graph given below where blue line represents sigmoid function and red line represents the derivative of sigmoid function.

Graph of Sigmoid Function and its derivative.

This means as the layers increases the value of this derivative becomes less and less till the point where the value of old weights is approximately gets equals to the new weights.

For example, if we want to find W11 new and W11 old is 5 and n is 0.01 then we need derivative of L w.r.t W11 which is equal to derivative of L w.r.t O1 * derivative of O1 w.r.t W11.

Suppose the value of derivative of L w.r.t O1 is 0.25 and derivative of O1 w.r.t W11 is 0.02. Then the derivative of L w.r.t W11 is 0.05, which makes the new values as 4.9995 which is approximately 5.

This type of problem in Deep learning is considered as Vanishing Gradient Descent.
Federated Learning — a Broader View
By: Hartmut Keil
Tags: Federated Learning, Gradient Descent, Gradient Boosting, Machine Learning, Neural Networks

And how to protect the privacy of data.

Federated Learning has gained a lot of attraction for Neural Networks. Yet, how can these concepts be applied to other kinds of machine learning algorithms? And is data privacy guaranteed?

We will discuss Federated Learning for Neural Networks, tree-based algorithms, and K-means Clustering and show how data privacy for the different models can be guaranteed.

A general overview of Federated Learning

The motivation of Federated Learning is to jointly train a machine learning model while preserving the participants’ data privacy. Thus, the data remains with the participants and only the result of a local training step gets published. These results are received by a central orchestrator and are aggregated by him.

High level outline Federated Learning:

1. Initialization: The participants and the orchestrator start with the same initial model.

2. Training step: The participants execute a training step, using their local data and sending the training result to the orchestrator.

3. Aggregation step: The orchestrator receives the training results. He aggregates the individual training results into one single result. Based on that, he updates the model and broadcasts that model update to the participants.

4. Update step: The participants update their local model with the received update and continue with step 2.

What exactly the training step consists of and how the aggregation step is done depends on the machine learning algorithm. In the following, we will have a closer look at these steps for Neural Networks, two different tree-based algorithms and k-means Clustering.

We assume that the participants’ data have the same features, i.e. horizontal data partitioning. Federated Learning is also possible in case the participants have different features (vertical data partitioning) but this scenario is not covered in this article.

Privacy in Federated Learning

From a privacy perspective, the orchestrator is the most critical actor: He receives the individual training results of a participant. A malicious orchestrator can use that information to gain insights into the participant’s data.

A participant only receives the model update from the orchestrator and therefore has got less access to information with regards to training data.
Implement Logistic Regression with L2 Regularization from scratch in Python
By: Tulrose Deori
Tags: Python, Logistic Regression, L2 Regularization, Gradient Descent, Machine Learning

3. Mathematics behind the scenes

Assumptions: Logistic Regression makes certain key assumptions before starting its modeling process:

The labels are almost linearly separable. The observations have to be independent of each other. There is minimal or no multicollinearity among the independent variables. The independent variables are linearly related to the log odds.

Hypothesis: We want our model to predict the probability of an observation belonging to a certain class or label. As such, we want a hypothesis h that satisfies the following condition 0 <= h(x) <= 1 , where x is an observation.

We define h(x) = g(w ᵀ * x) , where g is a sigmoid function and w are the trainable parameters. As such, we have:

The cost for an observation: Now that we can predict the probability for an observation, we want the result to have the minimum error. If the class label is y, the cost (error) associated with an observation x is given by:

Cost Function: Thus, the total cost for all the m observations in a dataset is:

We can rewrite the cost function J as:

The objective of logistic regression is to find params w so that J is minimum. But, how do we do that?

Gradient Descent:

Gradient descent is an optimization algorithm used to minimize some function by iteratively moving in the direction of steepest descent as defined by the negative of the gradient.

We will update each of the params wᵢ using the following template:

The above step will help us find a set of params wᵢ, which will then help us to come up with h(x) to solve our binary classification task.

But there is also an undesirable outcome associated with the above gradient descent steps. In an attempt to find the best h(x), the following things happen:

CASE I: For class label = 0

h(x) will try to produce results as close 0 as possible

As such, wT.x will be as small as possible

=> Wi will tend to -infinity CASE II: For class label = 1

h(x) will try to produce results as close 1 as possible

As such, wT.x will be as large as possible

=> Wi will tend to +infinity

This leads to a problem called overfitting, which means, the model will not be able to generalize well, i.e. it won’t be able to correctly predict the class label for an unseen observation. So, to avoid this we need to control the growth of the params wᵢ. But, how do we do that?
Edward Hopper, Night Windows, 1928
By: Benjamin Júnior
Tags: Art, Hopper, Painting

Attending to private affairs in her apartment, the anonymous woman in Night Windows is unaware of any viewer’s gaze. The painting exposes the voyeuristic opportunities of the modern city, and the contradiction it offers between access to the intimate lives of strangers and urban loneliness and isolation. The city at night is a frequent subject in Hopper’s work of the late 1920s and early ’30s. Here, the composition of three windows allows for a dramatic setting of illuminated interior against dark night, a juxtaposition the artist identified as “a common visual sensation.”
Edward Clark — Abstract Painting — Color Field
By: Exposition Art Blog
Tags: Fine Art, Contemporary Art, Abstract, Art, Painting

Edward Clark, also known as Ed Clark (1926–2019), is American abstract expressionist painter. “Ed Clark is an American Color Field painter whose style was shaped by the years he spent in Paris in the early 1950s. As an African-American who had been raised in the segregated South, he found Paris tolerant, and the atmosphere encouraging. While there, he developed a sophisticated abstract style that was markedly influenced by the tachist painter Nicolas de Stael. His early work is remembered for his “push-broom technique,” which encouraged his full physical involvement in painting. He is also noted for the monumental scale of his work, and the fact that he is one of the first painters to have used shaped canvases

More
A clown who isn't evil? Makes a change.
By: Where Angels Fear
Tags: Painting, Humor, Poetry, Art, Jester

There he goes. One of God's own prototypes. A high-powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live and too rare to die.
Flower dip on a GOLD background ~ EASY pouring for BEGINNERS ~ Fluid art tutorial
By: Fiona Art
Tags: Flowerdip, Paintings, Flower, Acrylic, Art

Flower dip on a GOLD background

Today I did another easy pouring technique for beginners.

In this fluid art tutorial video you will see, how to create beautiful flower with a simple dip.

TECHNIQUE: Flower dip with circles

PROCESS:

- Pour your base on plastic surface

- Make circles with your colours

- Dip your canvas on the paint

- Lift

- Torch

- And here is your flower

MATERIAL:

- 8x8 inch canvas

- Acrylic paints mixed with pouring medium

- Palete knife

- Torch

Flower dip on a GOLD background ~ EASY pouring for BEGINNERS

COLOURS:

- Cadence metallic white gold

- Amsterdam oxide black

- Amsterdam expert series permanent red violet

- Amsterdam carmine red

- Pebeo iridescent precious gold

- Amsterdam expert series phthalo turquoise

- Pebeo iridescent green yellow

- Amsterdam turquoise green

- Pearl white

My pearl white mixture:

1 part Vallejo pearl medium

1 part titanium white

2 parts pouring medium

All my paints are mixed with Boesner Guardi acrylic binder and acrylic emulsion.

Flower dip on a GOLD background

Please understand that I am in no way responsible for the way you use your paint and mediums. Follow all safety instructions of the manufacturers, I can not be held liable.

Be careful and use the proper materials for your safety.

You can’t use any content on my channel, unless I give you a permission!
This is great, and equally impressive that the artwork is your original.
By: Joe Váradi
Tags: Painting, Poetry

This is great, and equally impressive that the artwork is your original. For obvious reasons your poem is a perfect fit for NCiR' - after all our mascot is the court jester. Usually we ask for drafts, but if you’d like to submit this to us, Brigitte, I’ll gladly accept.
7 Things You Should Know Before you Paint with Bob Ross
Tags: Lists, Art, Creative, Bob Ross, Painting

My valiant effort

If you have been convinced by the smooth talking bushy haired man to pick up oil painting as a hobby, you are not alone. Bob Ross and his television show, The Joy of Painting, has become a household name since the show began in 1942. Today his seemingly simple techniques and encouraging demeanor has inspired anyone to become an artist. If you have embarked on the joy of oil painting, learn from my mistakes — it’ll make your life easier I swear.

Be Prepared

The tools that Bob uses are essential. Everything; the paints, the paint brushes, the size of the canvas, and most importantly: the paint thinner. If you do not have all of the tools, it is still ok to improvise. For my painting I used a smaller canvas, therefore I never used the 2 inch brush, I only used the 1 inch.

2. The Kits.. Do Not Have all the Essentials

There are Bob Ross painting kits on the market that claim to be the “complete” set, that are not a complete set. It is an awesome gift for the amateur painter, but I would argue that the set is the skeletons to a collection you will need to add onto. Some tools that Bob used in the video that I was missing was a small knife, the color “burnt Sienna”, canvas, and the biggest loss; paint thinner (it is also helpful to have multiple 2 inch and 1 inch brushes).

3. Paint Thinner (paint brush cleaner) — is Necessary

It is impossible to experience the gratification Bob experiences to “beat the devil out of it,” if you do not have paint thinner. Most importantly, you cannot clean your paintbrushes. Therefore, it can become incredibly hard (and messy) to blend and paint without being in severe stress.

4. Bob Paints Really Fast

Finally you have gathered all of your supplies and you are ready to paint! You choose your desired episode and then suddenly watching Bob paint is now you also painting.. and it is quite difficult trying to mimic what he is doing perfectly. Creating classic landscape paintings in less than 30 minutes is not an easy task, yet Bob makes it look easy. Don’t be afraid to pause what Bob has to say so you can paint at your own pace. It takes years of practice to master some of the techniques he’s using, so take your time!

5. It’s Hard

Oil painting is hard. Once again Bob’s years of experience and training are apparent the moment you put brush to canvas. The traditional techniques that Bob uses may not work exactly how you imagined, but it will be unique in it’s own way. Don’t be discouraged if something doesn’t come out quite right, like everything, practice makes perfect.

6. It Will Not Look Like Bob’s

Every painting is different, and most likely, your painting will not come out like the one you see on TV. Just because it is not perfect does not mean it is not a good painting. Hang it up! Be proud of your work.

7. You Will Make A Mess

It’s the nature of painting, be prepared. I ended with paint on my face and all over the bathroom sink.
Make decisions, not wishes
By: Mao Mao
Tags: Motivation, Productivity, Digital Ar, Depression, Painting

The most powerful way to turn your life around is to ask high quality questions to yourself. When we are facing a challenging situation, it is hard to see anything good that comes from it, but in reality, there is always something positive you can take from that challenge.

Asking questions such as:

“What can i learn from this?”

“What can i do so that this never happens to me again?”

“Does this give me a new opportunity to start over”

“How can I overcome this? Is there any help I can get from someone? Can I do it by myself?”

These type of questions will often give you with a clear guide on how to get out of that situation. But more importantly, you will be creating a new person for yourself. To reinvent yourself, you need to become a new person. Because the old one, would do the same mistake again. In order of someone new to be born, the old one must die.

There is a great quote from Michael Jackson’s mission statement where we wrote it the day he decided to transform himself:

“MJ will be my new name, no more Michael Jackson I want a whole new character A whole new look I should be a totally different person People should never think of me as the kid who sang “ABC”, “I want you back” I should be a new incredible actor, singer, dancer that will SHOCK the world I will do no interviews I will be magic I will be a perfectionist A researcher A trainer A masterer I will be better than every great actor roped in one I MUST have the most incredible training system To dig, to dig, to dig, until i find I will study and look back to the whole new world of entertainment and PERFECT IT Take it steps further where the greatest left off”

This is merely a simple wish, it is not a simple “I want to be a great artist”. Notice the words he uses, instead of just simple wishing he is demanding himself that he MUST do all these things. He MUST become a new person. He knew that the old one would be never be able to make it.

The day of our life changes when we DECIDE we will do something, instead of wishing.
Merry Christmas ~ Dutch pour technique ~ Acrylic pouring ~ Fiona Art
By: Fiona Art
Tags: Christmas, Videos, Acrylic, Art, Painting

Merry Christmas

I want to wish you all Merry Christmas with this Dutch pour with festive colours. Thank you for all the love and support .

Technique: Dutch pour

Colours:

- Amsterdam oxide black for the base

- Amsterdam expert series permanent red violet

- Arties colours cadmium red deep

- Pebeo iridescent precious gold

- Cadence metallic white gold

Material:

- 12x12 inch canvas

- Acrylic paints mixed with pouring medium and water

- Hair dryer

- Palete knife

All my paints are mixed with Boesner Guardi acrylic binder and acrylic emulsion.

Merry Christmas ~ Dutch pour technique

Heart Shaped Split Funnel Set comes as a bundle with a total of 6 pieces. Two 6-slot top inserts (rising arch and swirl shaped).

Link to the store and Coupon code FIONA15 for the discount:

https://splashncolor.com/

I’m glad to provide you with a new 10% off coupon code FionaArt5

My Arteza affiliate link:

For USA:

http://arteza.com?utm_source=postaffi...

For Europe:

https://arteza.co.uk?utm_source=posta...

Please understand that I am in no way responsible for the way you use your paint and mediums. Follow all safety instructions of the manufacturers, I can not be held liable.

Be careful and use the proper materials for your safety.

You can’t use any content on my channel, unless I give you a permission!
Ingemar Härdelin — New Abstract Paintings
By: Exposition Art Blog
Tags: Fine Art, Abstract, Abstract Expressionism, Art, Painting

The official website of the Exposition Art Blog www.milenaolesinska.blogspot.com
A Sole Sail
By: Saloni Patel
Tags: Painting

4 inch by 4 inch canvas with Artist Loft acrylic paints (Mars Black, Brilliant Blue, Light Blue, and Titanium White)

The painting above was inspired by the gloomy, rainy weather present on the day I painted it. A lone ship on seemingly tranquil waters awaits for what may come next. Similarly I had aimlessly ambled around the silent house, pondering what to do next. Finally I came to the decision to paint and drop at least thirty minutes from the monotone day.

A few minutes passed as I browsed the web in search for a muse. At last I decided to paint a minimalistic scenery on a relatively small canvas that I discovered at the back of the paint cabinet. Since the canvas was little, the scenery would have to be simple. For my muse I had found a painting of a boat. From this I decided to paint a simple background with the silhouette of a boat.
Swipe, balloon dip and flip cup ~ Never give up! ~ Acrylic pouring ~ #StayCreative
By: Fiona Art
Tags: Acrylic, Balloon, Art, Swipe, Painting

Swipe, balloon dip and flip cup

I had a lot of paints mixed with silicone left and I had to use them, so I decided to do a swipe. I didn’t like the result, so I tried to do some balloon dips and still didn’t like it. At the end I did just a simple flip cup and finally I was happy with the result. Today’s lesson is “Never give up!”.

TECHNIQUE: Swipe, Balloon dip, Flip cup

MATERIAL:

- 10x12 inch canvas

- Acrylic paints mixed with pouring medium

- Split cup

- Silicone oil

- Palete knife

All my paints are mixed with Boesner Guardi acrylic binder and acrylic emulsion.

My mixing paints video:

https://youtu.be/ltyiLgQ_Tso​

Heart Shaped Split Funnel Set comes as a bundle with a total of 6 pieces. Two 6-slot top inserts (rising arch and swirl shaped).

Please understand that I am in no way responsible for the way you use your paint and mediums. Follow all safety instructions of the manufacturers, I can not be held liable.

Swipe, balloon dip and flip cup

Be careful and use the proper materials for your safety.

You can’t use any content on my channel, unless I give you a permission!
2021 Paint Colors of the Year
By: Micah Iverson
Tags: Paint, Painting, Paint Colors

2021 Paint Colors of the Year

With 2020 coming to a close, it’s time to start thinking about 2021!

The top paint companies have started talking about color paint trends and so we thought we’d highlight the colors for next year.

First up we have Benjamin Moore…

Intriguing, balanced, and deeply soothing, the Benjamin Moore Color of the Year 2021, Aegean Teal 2136–40, creates natural harmony. Celebrate the simple pleasures — think the faded rumple of linen sheets in the morning and perfectly ripened fruits on the windowsill.

Full 2010 Benjamin Moore Color Palette

Gray Cashmere

Atrium White

Muslin

Foggy Morning

Amazon Soil

Silhouette

Kingsport Gray

Beacon Hill Damask

Chestertown Buff

Potters Clay

Rosy Peach

Tap into nature with a hue whose warmth and comfort breathe down-to-earth tranquility. Our 2021 Color of the Year, Urbane Bronze, captures that simple sophistication every space is searching for. Urbane Bronze might be a color rooted in nature, but it also has a unique ability to ground a room through organic appeal.

Behr has announced a 2021 color palette with a range of colors.

The BEHR Color Trends 2021 Palette is a curated selection of hues to create a desired mood that complements your style in any space.

They have grouped their color palettes into several categories…

Casual Comfort: Light, Warm Neutrals

Calm Zone: Restorative Blues and Greens

Subtle Focus: Soft, Gentle Hues

Quiet Haven: Rich, Evocative Colors

Optimistic View: Bold and Saturated

Outdoor Escape: Easy Curbside Appeal

This year’s trendiest colors are all about making you feel cozy and comfortable. Our color experts present you with 12 fresh and familiar colors that are on-trend now and easy to love forever.

Blissful Blue — This muted indigo taps into the organic tones of a morning mist.

Soft Candlelight — This mature yellow lights up a space with a golden glow.

Granite Dust — Inspired by the protective qualities of natural stone, Granite Dust allows you to create your own personal haven.

Cherry Taupe — Cherry Taupe is a botanical neutral that adds rich sophisticated softness.

Arizona Dust — This modern apricot shade with a bold twist evokes our desire to embrace vibrant tones from nature.

Garden Flower — Modernly classic like the beauty of white roses, this natural tint is soft and simple setting our mind at ease.

Academy Gray — A deep blueish gray that promotes the importance of time spent at leisure, allowing us to unwind and relax.

Unforgettable — A shade with no time restraint, this white has warmth to soften rooms and lend an elevated sophistication.

Gallery Gray — Embodying minimalism, this fresh shade of warm gray inspires a feeling that is modern and natural.

Dusty Lavender — Dusty Lavender creates a soft but unexpectedly dynamic feel that is warm and inviting.

Maple Leaf — A warm camel shade that has an authentic quality, embracing our appreciation for a handmade craft.

Lucy Blue — Familiar and calming, like the waves of the ocean. We look to blue to bring a playful happiness into the home.
Why is Paint by Numbers for Adults a Necessity of Modern World?
Tags: Paint By Number Kits, Paint By Numbers, Painting

In this modern era, life has become nothing but just a hustle and bustle to earn a living for ourselves. But it is time to sit and think hard that are we even living the life that we are supposedly struggling for?

Are we having even a shred of the peace of mind that is crucial for a living creature? It is time to realize that pursuing our hobbies is as much important for inner peace as pursuing our careers.

All of us could have millions of different things that we love to do in our leisure time which make us really happy but I bet that you couldn’t agree more to the fact that making something beautiful with our own hands and feel like a real artist is a hobby we all would love to possess. When you get back home after working the whole day for someone else, there must be something that you would love to do for yourself. Adults Numbers Painting can be that thing for you. Rather than wasting time on scrolling feeds on social media or watching unrealistic series of events on television, you can devote your time to make a living art out of a piece of paper and some colors.

You can be an artist too! All you need to do is choose from one of the Best Paint by Numbers for Adults and leave the rest to us. You will be amazed to see what can be achieved with the combination of acrylic colors and some enthusiasm. With our Easy Paint by Numbers for Adults, it is not that hard to be a painter anymore.

All of us have those pleasant moments which we do not want to forget ever, but the truth is that with the passage of enough time those memories do start getting blurred whether we like it or not. That is the reason we try to capture those moments into a photograph so that whenever we feel lost, we could always go back and dive right into those moments by just looking at that one photo. What if you could get the chance to relive that moment again? Wouldn’t you take it? Our Custom Paint by Numbers for Adults helps you do just that. Just upload that photo and we will give a custom canvas to you to paint on. Fill the colors in the canvas and relive that moment with every stroke of the brush.

At some point in life, we all would have thought that we will never run after opportunities blindly and we will always spare time for ourselves. It is time to honor that wish and devote some of our time towards unleashing the artist inside us.
The Velaslavasay Panorama
By: Ryan Schude
Tags: Velaslavasay, Panorama, Museum, Art, Painting

Sara Velas established the Velaslavasay Panorama in 2000 at the Tswuun-Tswuun Rotunda on Hollywood Boulevard. The museum’s name combines Velas’ last name with her mother’s maiden name, Asay. In 2004, its original venue threatened with demolition, the Panorama moved to its present location at the Union Theatre.

Sara has traveled around the world to investigate the panoramic art form and for over the past decade has been focused on researching the contemporary creation of panoramas in Asia. In June of 2019 she unveiled Shengjing Panorama — the first ever US><China Collaborative 360-degree panorama.

When interviewed in 2016 for the journal Museum Futures, Velas noted that: “A few times, I suppose I’ve not been the ideal interviewee because folks would ask me ‘Now that you’ve done this, what would you like to have happen?’ Getting at a higher pinpointed truth or ‘secret meaning.’ My genuine answer is that I want to keep working on it, tending to it and aligning its growth - similar to a garden (and also literally a garden).”[5]
Christmas flower ~Cup bottom Reverse flower dip ~ Acrylic pour painting
By: Fiona Art
Tags: Christmas, Acrylic Pouring, Flowers, Art, Painting

Christmas flower

Christmas is not far away and today I did Poinsettia flower with Cup bottom reverse flower dip acrylic pouring technique.

PROCESS:

- Pour your base on canvas

- Put your FLOWER SHAPED CUP on the canvas with bottom up

- Pour paints on the bottom and use PEARL WHITE or some metallic paints between each colour to create petal — lacing effect

- Take off the cup

- Use SKEWER to draw some petal shapes

- Gently put PAPER NAPKIN or towel on canvas ( You can use dry or damped napkin)

- Lift one corner at the time and then gently lift it (the middle last)

- Torch it for air bubbles and to activate pearl white and metallic paints

- And here is your flower :)

TECHNIQUE: Reverse flower dip with paper napkin, Cup bottom pour

COLOURS I USED:

- Boesner black for the base coat

- Arties colours cardinal red

- Amsterdam carmine

- Arties colours cadmium red deep hue

- Amsterdam expert series permanent red violet

- Decoart extreme sheen gold

- Pearl white

My pearl white mixture:

1 part Vallejo pearl medium

1 part titanium white

2 parts pouring medium

All my paints are mixed with Boesner Guardi acrylic binder and acrylic emulsion.

MATERIAL I USED:

- 10x10 inch canvas

- Acrylic paints mixed with pouring medium

- Flower shaped desert cup

- Paper napkin or towel

- Wooden skewer

- Palete knife

- Torch

Please understand that I am in no way responsible for the way you use your paint and mediums. Follow all safety instructions of the manufacturers, I can not be held liable.

Be careful and use the proper materials for your safety.

You can’t use any content on my channel, unless I give you a permission!
Paint Me The Truth
By: Emery S.
Tags: Relationships, Love, Poetry, Art, Painting

If you were a painter how would you paint me?

Would you draw me side by side with you,

Or just me standing alone.

Would you paint me a view?

Or only an empty sky

Would you use long steady strokes

Or tight thin lines?

Would you remember how to draw the joy in my eyes,

Or would you put two brown orbs, and call it fine.

If you drew me how you saw me…

What would I find?
Caravaggio, The Calling of Saint Matthew, 1600
By: Benjamin Júnior
Tags: Caravaggio, Art, Painting

Caravaggio employed close physical observation with a dramatic use of chiaroscuro that came to be known as tenebrism. He made the technique a dominant stylistic element, darkening shadows and transfixing subjects in bright shafts of light. Caravaggio vividly expressed crucial moments and scenes, often featuring violent struggles, torture, and death. He worked rapidly, with live models, preferring to forgo drawings and work directly onto the canvas. His influence on the new Baroque style that emerged from Mannerism was profound.

The Calling of Saint Matthew is a masterpiece depicting the moment at which Jesus Christ inspires Matthew to follow him. It was completed in 1599–1600 for the Contarelli Chapel in the church of the French congregation, San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome, where it remains.

The painting depicts the story from the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 9:9): “Jesus saw a man named Matthew at his seat in the custom house, and said to him, “Follow me”, and Matthew rose and followed Him.” Caravaggio depicts Matthew the tax collector sitting at a table with four other men. Jesus Christ and Saint Peter have entered the room, and Jesus is pointing at Matthew. A beam of light illuminates the faces of the men at the table who are looking at Jesus Christ.
Stone MOSAIC look with FLUID ART ~ Acrylic pouring Open cup technique ~ #StayCreative
By: Fiona Art
Tags: Videos, Acrylicpouring, Art, Mosaic, Painting

Stone MOSAIC look with FLUID ART

For this Stone MOSAIC look acrylic pour painting I used one part of the Heart Shaped Split Funnel Set.

TECHNIQUE: Open cup acrylic pouring technique

COLOURS:

- Amsterdam oxide black

- Amsterdam pearl white

- Pebeo iridescent precious gold

- Pebeo iridescent copper

Heart Shaped Split Funnel Set comes as a bundle with a total of 6 pieces. Two 6-slot top inserts (rising arch and swirl shaped).

Link to the store and Coupon code FIONA15 for the discount:

https://splashncolor.com/

Stone MOSAIC look with FLUID ART

MATERIAL I USED:

- 12x12 inch canvas

- Acrylic paints mixed with pouring medium

- Open cup

- Palete knife

- Cake spinner

- Torch

- Silicone oil

Please understand that I am in no way responsible for the way you use your paint and mediums. Follow all safety instructions of the manufacturers, I can not be held liable.

Be careful and use the proper materials for your safety.

You can’t use any content on my channel, unless I give you a permission!
Techniques of Painting Religious Icons
By: Russian Icon
Tags: Religion, Icons, Christianity, Orthodoxy, Painting

Painting religious icons requires from the iconographer great skill and incredible faith within since an icon is a manifestation of the spiritual image, a link between humanity and the Heavenly World. In ancient times, there were specific “rules” of icon painting and special techniques that iconographers had to adhere to when creating any spiritual image. Centuries have passed, but these canons continue to guide contemporary iconographers through a difficult and delicate process of creating an icon.

Painting religious icons: basic techniques

The process of creating an icon is inherently sequential. The first step is to prepare a panel on which the image will be applied. Then comes the preparation of paints and gold coating. Painting of an icon is the final stage. Now let’s consider each step in detail.

1. Panel

The icon is created on a sturdy wooden panel of poplar, mahogany, or linden. Most panels are constructed with an indentation on the front side, which protects the image from potential damage. The panel is covered with a piece of cloth (pavoloka) soaked in glue, which is a bit larger than the panel itself. The final stage here is to apply gesso to the pavoloka.

2. Paints

To prepare the paints, iconographers usually use natural ingredients, including minerals mixed with water and egg yolk. Minerals give religious icons an effect of light radiating and produce an impression of transparency.

3. Painting

Icon painters paint the background first, then the details of the landscape, and finally the vestments and images of the saints. Painting religious icons requires using dark and light tones to create a transparency of the holy image. The final stage is applying inscriptions and covering the icon with oil varnish.

The symbolism of icon painting

When creating a sacred image, an icon painter fulfills the will of God, becoming the creator themselves. The iconographer first creates the light (the background), then depicts the earth and the waters, and, finally, creates the man (holy figures). Natural colors in the icon symbolize the animal and mineral worlds.

Due to the unique technique, the manifested image seems to appear on its own rather than being created by a human hand. This symbolizes the spirituality of Orthodox icons and their presentation as material objects through which one can get to know God’s world.

Thus, painting religious icons is a truly superior craft that not everyone can master. It is an amazing art filled with spirituality and the deepest faith in the Most High!
To the Circle
By: Janaka Stagnaro
Tags: Dreams, Spiritual Tree, Poetry, Painting, Spirituality

POETRY/SPIRITUALITY

To the Circle

Artwork by author

Into the world of dreams you navigate

O Jiva, traveler of worlds and times,

Where is it you go this night?

What memories fill your sail?

Can you hear the incantations?

Shimmering in the glow of the moon?

Can you hear the hum of the stones?

Calling you to come,

To take your awaited place?

Remember, dear Soul, remember:

Times past and times to come

When to the circle you must go.

— Janaka Stagnaro
Clarkson Frederick Stanfield, Mount St Michael, 1830
By: Benjamin Júnior
Tags: Painting

Clarkson Frederick Stanfield (3 December 1793–18 May 1867) was a prominent English marine painter. He was briefly apprenticed to a coach decorator in 1806, but left owing to the drunkenness of his master’s wife and joined a South Shields collier to become a sailor. In 1808 he was pressed into the Royal Navy, serving in the guardship HMS Namur.

An accident forced Stanfield to leave active service, but during his voyages he had acquired considerable skill as a draughtsman. In August 1816 Stanfield was engaged as a decorator and scene-painter at the Royalty Theatre in Wellclose Square, London. Along with David Roberts he was afterwards employed at the Coburg theatre, Lambeth, and in 1823 he became a resident scene-painter at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, where he rose rapidly to fame through the huge quantity of spectacular scenery and (moving) dioramas which he produced for that house until 1834.

Wikipedia
Gazmend Freitag — The Artist’s Life
By: Gazmend Freitag
Tags: Gazmend Freitag, Impressionism, Art, Painting

Comtemporary Albanian Painter! I’m a Kosovar artist living and making art in Linz, Austria. I was born in Pataqani i Poshtëm, Republic of Kosovo on 25 May 1968.
BENEFITS OF KITCHEN CABINET PAINTING IN DUBAI
By: Home Renovation Services
Tags: Home Painting Services, Remodeling Contractors, Home Renovation, Home, Painting

Kitchen remodeling projects have a tendency to get very expensive very quickly. They also tend to take a bit longer than expected, which can be incredibly inconvenient. Cabinet painting and refinishing is an alternative way to give your kitchen a completely new look without all the hassle. There are many benefits to choosing cabinet painting over a full-scale renovation:

Home Paint Services In Dubai

Professional Painters

Home Paint Service

Villa Paint

Much faster than demolishing old cabinets and installing new ones

More affordable than installing new cabinets

Allows you to keep the same layout as your existing cabinets

An eco-friendly option — avoid throwing out perfectly good materials just for a new color

While you might not think a simple coat of paint can make such a difference, you’re in for a real surprise. You’ll be amazed at the dramatic change you’ll get from painting or refinishing your existing cabinets. The proof is in the pictures — check out these dramatic kitchen transformations featuring cabinet painting by WOW 1 DAY PAINTING.
Eat, Sleep, Paint, Repeat
By: James Tate
Tags: Lockdown, Contemporary Art, Meditation, On Kawara, Painting

Left: On Kawara, MAY 20, 1981. “Wednesday.” New York. From Today, 1966–2013. Acrylic on canvas. 18 x 24 in. (45.7 x 61 cm). Pictured with artist-made cardboard storage boxes. 24 5/8 x 18 5/8 x 2 in. (62.5 x 47.3 x 5 cm). Private collection. Photo: Courtesy David Zwirner, New York/London. Right: On Kawara, DEC. 29, 1977. “Thursday.” New York. From Today, 1966–2013. Acrylic on canvas. 8 x 10 in. (20.3 x 25.4 cm). Pictured with artist-made cardboard storage boxes, 10 1/2 x 10 3/4 x 2 inches (26.8 x 27.2 x 5 cm). Private collection. Photo: Courtesy David Zwirner, New York/London.

On Kawara started his Today series — more often known as his ‘Date Paintings’ — on 4 January 1966, and completed his last in 2013. Each painting features the date of its creation and took the artist a single day to produce: if a painting wasn’t finished before the day was out, it was destroyed. When not being exhibited, the completed painting is stored in a handmade cardboard box lined with a cutting taken from a newspaper that day.

Some of the paintings are black, some blue. A few, around the 1969 moon landings, are red. Only the artist knew why. He marked each day that he produced a date painting on a vast One Hundred Years Calendar of his own invention using a system of coloured dots.

Alongside the I am still alive telegrams that the artist sent friends, or the I got up postcards that he sent every day to people all around the world, On Kawara’s Today paintings would seem to place him firmly in the Conceptual Art movement of the 1960s. Certainly, his One million years, two books that list every year between 998,031 BC and 1969 AD, and 1993 AD to 1,001,992 AD, would suggest the cerebral and systematic approach seen in the Minimal, or ABC art movements of the time.

But unlike the sole-function cardboard boxes that the artist made for his paintings, ‘movements’ are mostly clumsily-packed archive boxes designed to allow uncomplicated study. The corners of On Kawara’s Today paintings rise up and prevent the lid on the Conceptual Art box from lying flat, to the annoyance of many.
Edward Hopper, Automat, 1927
By: Benjamin Júnior
Tags: Art, Hopper, Painting

Automat, 1927

Automat is a 1927 painting by the American realist painter Edward Hopper. The painting was first displayed on Valentine’s Day 1927 at the opening of Hopper’s second solo show, at the Rehn Galleries in New York City.

The painting portrays a lone woman staring into a cup of coffee in an automat at night. The reflection of identical rows of light fixtures stretches out through the night-blackened window. As is often the case in Hopper’s paintings, both the woman’s circumstances and her mood are ambiguous. She is well-dressed and is wearing makeup, which could indicate either that she is on her way to or from work at a job where personal appearance is important, or that she is on her way to or from a social occasion.

She has removed only one glove, which may indicate either that she is distracted, that she is in a hurry and can stop only for a moment, or simply that she has just come in from outside, and has not yet warmed up. But the latter possibility seems unlikely, for there is a small empty plate on the table, in front of her cup and saucer, suggesting that she may have eaten a snack and been sitting at this spot for some time.

The time of year — late autumn or winter — is evident from the fact that the woman is warmly dressed. But the time of day is unclear, since days are short at this time of year. It is possible, for example, that it is just after sunset, and early enough in the evening that the automat could be the spot at which she has arranged to rendezvous with a friend. Or it could be late at night, after the woman has completed a shift at work. Or again, it could be early in the morning, before sunrise, as a shift is about to start.

Whatever the hour, the restaurant appears to be largely empty and there are no signs of activity (or of any life at all) on the street outside. This adds to the sense of loneliness, and has caused the painting to be popularly associated with the concept of urban alienation. One critic has observed that, in a pose typical of Hopper’s melancholic subjects, “the woman’s eyes are downcast and her thoughts turned inward.” Another critic has described her as “gazing at her coffee cup as if it were the last thing in the world she could hold on to.” In 1995, Time magazine used Automat as the cover image for a story about stress and depression in the 20th century.

Wikipedia
WATERCOLOR SNOWY LANDSCAPE
By: Alain Guidetti
Tags: Tutorial, Landscape, Watercolor, Art, Painting

Watercolor landscape starring a dramatic sky and snowy hills. All the phases, condensed, detailed and narrated about the realization of this painting.

Please subscribe to my channel!

Materiali usati / tools : Acquerellli / Watercolors Winsor&Newton serie “Cotman”

Colori / Colors:

Blu oltremare / Ultramarine

Blu di Prussia / Prussian Blue

Grigio di Payne / Payne’s Gray

Cremisi / Alizarin Crimson

Giallo Limone / Lemon Yellow

Terra di Siena bruciata / Burnt Sienna

Carta / Paper: Canson Heritage 100% cotone, grana fine, 300 gpm, cm 37 x 37

Pennelli sintetici / Synthetic brushes:

Tintoretto Vaio Feltracco 1407 n. 12–6, 0
Watercolours | Oils | Acrylic Colours
By: Everything Cj
Tags: Brush, Watercolor, Acrylic, Painting, Oil

Watercolours | Oils | Acrylic Colours

The Most Important Difference Between The Three

Watercolours | Oils | Acrylic Colours

Watercolours , oils and acrylics are the most used types of colours in art by professional and beginner painters. Depending on the technique used, the material to be painted and the time you want to give, you can opt for one of these colour categories.

What are the most important differences between watercolours, oils and acrylic colours?

Drying time

It is the main difference between the 3 types of colours. Among the fastest drying are watercolours, followed by acrylics and oils. The latter offer a longer time for mixing colours and applying shades on substrates, while acrylics need additives to slow down the process of water evaporation.

The technique used

This dictates the choice of colour type. For paper, watercolours are indicated, for canvas — acrylics and oils. If the watercolours require drying before adding any other colour, to avoid soaking the floor with water and thus breaking it, the oils allow the easiest combination of colours, while acrylics prove to be the middle ground between the first two.

Cleaning

For children and beginners, the most recommended are watercolours and acrylics because they can be easily removed from the workspace and brushes. Oils, on the other hand, require toxic solvents to clean working tools.

Durability over time

Depending on the material being worked on, the durability of a work is higher or lower. So the least resistant are the watercolours used on paper, followed by acrylics and finally oils, on canvas, which can persist for several decades, becoming fragile instead.

If you liked this piece why not check out some of my other pieces here.