It has been an odd week this week. Public holidays and migraines, web design and artwork, red and indigo. Most of the weekend was spent juggling between a website deadline and making time for the kids who have been on school holidays, home with Daddy. Mummy has been at work a lot lately so I’m […]
I had a great day today. I held a paper mosaics workshop at Goodwood Library. Eleven eager artists attended and had a good time. I gave a quick rundown on tools and materials and let them have at it 😀 It was great fun to see the different interpretations and experimenting going on and I […]
An art book recommendation, a watercolour palette, a new painting, a thunderstorm encounter and inspiring sea glass. It has been an interesting week.
Earlier this year I was introduced to the concept of an art journal. I’ve kept sketchbooks of my work all my life, but art journalling is slightly different. In March I started a journal of my own. A simple cheap bound sketchbook that within its pages I have permission to royally stuff up with abandon. I’ve been using it to experiment with my watercolours of late and that is where you will find all the originals for my Life Inspired series. I’ve found it extremely liberating to have this place to just play. I’ve never painted in a sketchbook before. All my paintings have been big events where I have tried to create something that will grace a wall someday. I can’t tear pages out of this book.
Do you remember string painting in primary school? Where with a lot of glue, string and mess, you make a picture out of gluing string to paper in patterns. If I recall correctly it was sometimes used to create a print as the string created a raised surface.
One technique I’ve found very inspirational is to create a background or texture, just slap in down, and create a piece of work from that. Half the challenge is taken once you have something on the canvas/page and textures are fantastic for doing that.
Several days ago I was rifling through the Net looking for a way to make my own stencils. My sister has been experimenting with stencils and moulding paste and has gotten some interesting results, so I wanted to try it out for myself. But although I have a handful of stencils here, mostly lettering stencils, I didn’t really want to be confined to other people’s creations, I wanted to make my own.
Do you remember those fun paintings we all did as a kid in school – blob some paint on a piece of paper then fold it over, rub, and open it up to see some pretty butterfly shaped random compostitions? Well, these are what I’m calling butterfly paintings. I used to love them as a kid and I’m loving playing with them now.
This is a technique for creating marbled/semi-blended backgrounds (mostly) on canvas that takes advantage of the slight three-dimensionality of self-leveling gel and its ability to semiblend colour and catch it in mid-motion.
Tonight I went to my first ever art group. It was great! A small group, just the way I like my groups ::grin:: with a fully qualified lecturer, Drew Harrison, on hand for all those curly questions. And boy, was it great to finally have someone to ask in person some of those technical glitch type questions that have had me haunting YouTube time and time again.
