FAQ

How did you learn to Paint?

I learned to be proficient in acrylic by taking many art classes as a child, and then learned to paint in oils during my degree at FAU. After graduating I developed tendonitis and also was living in an apartment without ventilation, so to solve both of those problems I picked up watercolor via online classes. I found that I loved the medium and so I've been using it ever since.

Heidi Willis' online courses are the main ones I used to learn to paint in Watercolor. I use many of her techniques in my work. They are available here.

I also have taken some of Katia Petrovsky's courses, which are available here.

I haven't taken Tracy Lizotte's painting courses but have followed her work for years and think they would be great choices. She has a variety of lessons not only about watercolor but also about composition, color, subject, etc. They are available here.

What are your sustainability practices?

Shipping: I use as many shipping materials as I can from Eco Enclose, a company that I think has great sustainability practices. At the moment I'm using their labels, paper tape, packing paper and some shipping boxes and mailers. For a while I was only wrapping prints in paper, but I decided in 2024 to put them into plastic cello bags instead. Some people like to store their prints and it's much better to store them in the archival bags than in paper. It also gives me peace of mind that they'll be more protected from water when shipping.  

Prints: Unfortunately, I don't yet know of any giclee paper brands, paint brands, or printer/ink brands that have sustainability practices. To prioritize print and painting quality, I'm using Red River and Epson fine art papers, Windsor and Newton paint, and an Epson P900 with Ultrachrome inks. 

Reference images: Additionally, I take great care to source the reference photos I use to create my artwork from ethical sources. Whenever possible, I prefer to take my own photos to use as painting references. I regularly explore local natural areas and keep a bank of photos of many plants and animals (If you would like to use my photos as painting references, they are free to use with attribution and can be found here: https://www.instagram.com/kimheisestock/ ). I also often collaborate with or purchase photos from other photographers, and when I do I attribute them (depending on what the photographer has requested). Other times, I create totally unique images and animal poses from my imagination and then loosely use a multitude of photographs and resources from different sources to help me bring it into reality.

My process for using photographs as references is similar to the way that the Federal Duck Stamp Contest recommends here: https://featherdust.com/duckstamp/guidetoduckstamps.html

AI generators: I never use AI image generators, or AI text generators, because I believe they have been unethically built on copyrighted work without permission. The use of these AI generators also consume large amounts of energy and resources in a way that does not align with my values or sustainability practices. I also believe that using image generation to help create compositions, even in the early stage of creating a work, blunts creativity and uniqueness over time. As machines built on a large quantity of work, I believe they generate homogenous, worse art that lacks individuality. Currently, I believe that using these technologies is exploitative, unethical, cheap-looking, intellectually and creatively stunting, and not effective.

In addition, they cannot generate images of specific plants and animal species with scientific accuracy, and the use of them to try to create such images will be riddled with inaccuracies that I believe could misinform the public and lead to a greater disconnect from local native species. 

If you require free or reduced-rate images because you cannot afford custom artwork, please contact me. I am dedicated and happy to do a certain amount of free or reduced rate commissions per year to help my local community with their commercial needs or to spread the word about native species and conservation. I'm currently looking to expand my selection of $5-$15 digital downloads with banners and border images for flyers or online use. Let me know if you have any requests!
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I gladly accept returns, exchanges, and cancellations:

- Contact me within: 7 days of delivery
- Ship items back within: 14 days of delivery
- Request a cancellation within: 6 hours of purchase

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- Custom or personalized orders

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If you have question about your order or refund, email me at Kim@KimHeise.com or use the Contact form here.