Smerdon Toast

There are no second chances on Portrait Artist of the Year… but there are in the studio! In this episode of Smerdon Toast, we give ourselves a do-over and repaint our PAOTY celebrities — legendary film critic Margaret Pomeranz and incomparable drag queen Courtney Act. With the cameras gone and the clock no longer ticking, we talk honestly about what it felt like to be under the lights, on the spot...

In this episode of Smerdon Toast, professional artists and 2025 Portrait Artist of the Year AU (PAOTY) contestants Anne Smerdon and Seabastion Toast put the 80/20 Pareto Principle to the test in the studio. The Pareto Principle suggests that 80% of results come from 20% of effort. But how does this apply to artists making art? Can painters and creatives really work smarter, not harder? We put the...

In this episode of Smerdon Toast, artist Ben Crawford joins us to explore how collage can be used as a powerful tool for creating artwork. From paper cut-outs to digital collaging, we dive into techniques, challenges, and creative possibilities that collage opens up for painters, mixed media artists, and anyone curious about starting their own art journey. What you’ll learn in this episode: 🎨 Why...

We discuss: 🎨 How can thinking abstractly can transform your painting practice, opening up new creative possibilities even if you usually work in a realistic style. 🎨 What is “real” in art? 🎨 And why do we keep circling back to the tug of war between realism and abstraction? To push ourselves, we set a painting challenge: create a work that sits right on the edge of realism and abstraction — pr...

We discuss: 🎨 the pros and cons of going to art school 13:20 🎨 how to research the right art school for you 27:00 🎨 alternatives to art school for those that can't afford the cost or time of a degree 32:00 🎨 why learning the fundamentals of drawing and painting is so important 🎨 what secondary colours are and how we've used them 🎨 the science of colour 7:15 🎨 where you can find our foundati...

Follow along with the painting process as award-winning Australian artists Anne Smerdon and Seabastion Toast take on the deceptively simple painting challenge of painting something backlit (where the subject is drenched in shadow and the light comes from behind). What sounds easy turns out to be a technical, emotional and philosophical minefield. We discuss: 🎨 value (or tonal) massing and why ton...

Light is everything. In this episode, we dive deep into how artists see, capture, and harness light in painting. We talk about: • The struggles of turning solid paint into a visual map of light beams • Using colored light to create harmony and mood • How the shadow is essential to see light • Morandi, art historical glow-ups, and why cats with no hair deserve a place in art history • Plus, a littl...

Smerdon Toast, Australian artists Seabastion Toast and Anne Smerdon go head-to-head in a Alla Prima painting challenge. We dive into the benefits of painting wet on wet, alla prima style, why it’s an essential exercise for both beginners and experienced artists, and how it can improve your painting techniques fast. 👉 Follow along as we share our results, what we struggled with, what we learned, a...

In this episode of Smerdon Toast, Australian artists Anne Smerdon and Seabastion Toast go head-to-head in a 20-minute painting challenge. When there’s no time to get caught up in details, you’re forced to focus on honest, intuitive painting and the results might just surprise you. We discuss: 🎨 why painting small studies with a time limit is an essential exercise for both beginners and experience...