Buffy Sainte-Marie

Digital imaging allows both groups to rise above the limitations of mess and clutter and mechanics, and apply our talents to creating images limited only by our imaginations.

By looking at the questions the kids are asking, we learn the scope of what needs to be done.

When we draw on the tablet, the drawing shows up on the computer screen. If we have chosen to tell the computer that the stylist is to behave like a piece of chalk, or a pen, or a wet brush, it will.

The artistic process in digital art is very much the same as for making other kinds of paintings.

The paintings are transferred from my computer to a disk, and I can hand it to the printer this way; or I can modem the painting to the printer over the phone lines from my house in Hawaii.

But in the old days, visual artists used to fall into two distinct categories: those of us who created images with cameras and those of us who applied stuff onto other stuff, with brushes or other tools.

Digital art software has empowered both the painterly side of photographers, and the photographer side of painters.

It was a black and white only computer at the time, but it kept me fascinated.

Once an artist explores the vast variety of tools and features available on the great programs, we’re hooked.

The key is in remaining just aloof enough from a painting so that you know when to stop.

I work closely with the printer to get the final print the way I want it.

If I’m interrupted, it’s just a minor inconvenience, but not a disaster, because it’s easy to get back where I was: that is, the paint has not changed consistency; the light has not moved.

The time I save setting up and cleaning up probably balances out by the time I spend on output.

That is, an artist who creates lots of work probably experiences prolific days and slower days.

We also have the option of scanning in an image from outside the computer… a photo, or a sketch done with traditional tools; and we can then paint, manipulate, process, change, and further develop the image within the computer, watching our progress on the monitor.

Another time factor is output: proofing and printing. That is, getting your work out of the computer and onto paper and having it satisfy you. It can be time consuming and expensive.

Instead of kids just hearing about beads and baskets and fringe, and about what ‘was’ and ‘were,’ we present Native American culture as a living contemporary culture.

My first Macintosh was a 128k machine which I upgraded to 512k the minute it became possible.

Sixteen million colors in your palette are hard for any artist, especially a beginner, to turn down.

As a teenager I started painting and playing guitar.