George Stephen Murray
Stephen Murray can best be described as an intellectual wanderer with particular penchants for what is called in colleges and universities "the Humanities" and for nature. You can also call him by the more pedantic -- but accurate -- name of professional student.
His first of several degrees was a B.A. in Music with a music composition emphasis with an unofficial minor in Drama -- he had enough hours for a minor but lacked the "tech" courses such as lighting, costume design, set design, etc. His main interest was in what we loosely call classical music although he briefly played keyboard in a local rock band.
He wandered here and there before and after graduating, mostly spending time either in his home town in the South or in the Los Angeles area, working at whatever jobs came available -- mostly retail -- and finally settling in Texas.
There he decided to get a master's degree in English with composition emphasis. (Is there a recurrent theme here?) He completed his course work for his master's after winning a Best Short Story award in the university literary magazine.
Realizing that teaching in a college or university was not for him, he took a second bachelor's degree, this time in journalism. His interest was not particular in being a reporter. He was more interested in learning journalist skills for writing nonfiction books.
However, he wrote for and worked as a section editor on the student newspaper -- winning best-in-state awards for his columns and for his review of a major traveling art show at a large museum in a nearby metropolis. A position came open for a part-time feature writer at a local newspaper where he wrote for a year while finishing his degree and then for another six months as a full-time staff reporter before moving to another large nearby city.
He also worked for about seven years as a landscape painter, working in several different media, his work being carried at one point by galleries in three cities. He has always been fascinated by the techniques of art, reading widely both about contemporary painting media and techniques and the materials and techniques of the medieval and renaissance periods.
He has always been a voracious reader both of nonfiction and fiction, particularly enjoying European writers, especially the British eighteenth and nineteenth century writers. He also enjoys -- as Bertie Wooster says of his gentleman's gentleman, Jeeves -- curling up in his idle hours with a book by one of the great Russian masters, Murray's favorite being Dostoyevsky.
Murray is also an inveterate nature watcher. His favorite pastime of walking always involves long stops to watch and study insects, birds, mammals, reptiles, fish, amphibians and other animals as well as plants. He has even made friends with a variety birds, with one partially domesticated deer and with a tribe of wood bees (non-hostile bumble bees that drill perfectly circular holes in wooden beams) living on his front porch. He finds that butterflies frequently perch on him. He recently even had an amazingly beautiful, tiny, gray hummingbird come and hover for some time within a foot or so of his face while Murray complimented him on his beauty. The amazing little creature then did a little drop in the air uncannily like a bow or a curtsy, reversed directions and flew off to wherever he was migrating. Someone commented that Murray may have a touch of the nature of Saint Francis of Assisi about him. However, Murray himself rather doubts that distinction.
In short, Murray has never quite grown up but has survived tolerably well as, so to speak, a permanent child in a society of adults. One of his childlike qualities is his fondness and fascination for words in any form. He is one of those people who can't not write, and he hopes the Suite101 reader will enjoy reading his articles as much as he enjoys writing them.
Latest Articles
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Painting Reflections in Water
Although painting reflections in water is considered difficult, three simple principles allow you to paint the shapes, colors and intensity of reflections realistically.
Sep 19, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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How to Make Egg Tempera Paints
Egg tempera, one of the oldest, most permanent and strikingly beautiful painting mediums, uses the yolk of an egg as its binder and is surprisingly easy to make.
Aug 23, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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How to Paint With Egg Tempera
The technique of water-based painting using egg yolk as a binder has existed since the time of the Middle Ages and still is a valid painting medium for the modern artist.
Aug 23, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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Pigments: Historical Warm Hues
Many gorgeous warm pigments such as dragonsblood and saffron and "minium" used in paintings before the mid-1800s are now rarely used due to toxicity or impermanence.
Aug 19, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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Pigments: the Cool Colors
Artists' pigments such as the phthalocyanines, cobalts and ultramarines that produce cool hues (colors) are listed below and their nature and use is briefly examined.
Jun 26, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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Pigments: The Warm Colors
The most obvious quality of a pigment color is hue, and this article looks at warm colored pigments, showing their place on the color spectrum with notes on their use.
Jun 20, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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Carpenter Bees or Bumblebees?
Carpenter bees -- also called wood bees -- resemble bumblebees but are not as dangerous to humans even though they can damage wooden structures.
Jun 5, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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Values of Pigments in Paints
This second part of an article on the value (lightness or darkness) of pigments covers specific pigments and classes of pigments and their uses and color qualities.
May 30, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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Pigments: Light and Dark
How the painting medium a pigment is mixed into affects how light or dark the pigment look and can also determine which pigments are best in that medium.
May 30, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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About Michelangelo's Nose
When the Renaissance sculptor and painter Michelangelo was in his teens, his rival Torrigiano crushed his nose, affecting the great sculptor's life and career.
May 22, 2008
- George Stephen Murray
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