Original art, tutorials, and more. One, former number cruncher's journey to find her own unique artistic style. I'm going to try it all and see what sticks!
Today I'm creating a very colorful, abstract painting on watercolor paper. This is a very easy and fun way to start a painting. You don't have to stress over what you are going to do or how you are going to do......just play.
Today, I'm working on a, mixed media, painting using acrylic paint, Gel Press prints...surprise...that's different. (haha) Actually, it is a little different. I didn't really have a plan at the beginning. I just knew that I wanted a yellowish/goldish background, but I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the flowers.
I'm going to do a little (very little) local, art festival on the 18th of this month, so I'm making some pieces to display. I'm trying to make pieces in all price ranges. I have some tiny pieces that I'll show you later this week.
But, this is what I made for today......here we go....
List of Supplies
14" X 20" wooden panel
Liquitex white gesso
Liquitex Basics - Black
Miscellaneous stencils
Gel Press prints
Pigma Micron Black Pen
Black Charcoal pencil
Mod Podge Matte
Fineliner bottle w/black acrylic paint
Golden Fluid Acrylics - Quinacridone Magenta
Today, it's bright, colorful flowers using Gel Press prints, Faber-Castell Gelatos, Big Brush Markers and a few other things.
I hope that you like it......and......here we go!
List of Supplies
8" by 10" wooden panel
Black Liquitex Gesso
Golden Molding Paste
White Liquitex Gesso
Black Micron Pigma Brush Pen
Faber-Castell Gelatos - Purple, Pink, Orange, White
Faber-Castell Big Brush markers
Black Charcoal Pencil
Gel Press prints
Decou-Page
Check out my new Facebook Group - Mixed Media Passion. It you would like to share your art, this is the place. If you would like to look at other people's art......this is also the place.
I have another video that I will be putting up tomorrow. It's a piece that I created for Gel Press. You can check out the "step-by-step" post on the Gel Press Blog right now.
And, last but not least, one of my followers won the Gel Press Blog Hop Giveaway. Congratulations, Susan, for winning the round Gel Press Plate. You will have hours of fun!!!!!!!
This week I started out by using all of the gel print scraps. I use my gel prints for lots and lots of stuff, and I just can't throw away, even the tiniest scrap. Does that make me a "gel print hoarder"? Perhaps. I made these prints on my Gel Press Mono-Printing Plate. As I've mentioned before, I usually make copies of the prints that I love, and use the copies in my collage.
As I mentioned at the beginning of the video......I had some issues. I don't know why, but my products just didn't want to work with me on this project. On many other faces, I start out with a basecoat of Ceramcoat Paint. It's sort of like craft paint....tiny bottle,....inexpensive. It, usually provides a really nice base for the Prismacolor pencils. On this one, it just gave me a hard time. The paint was too shiny/slick....the pencils just wouldn't work. The only thing that I can think of is that I did not gesso the paper first. However, I don't know why that would matter because I still would have been using the pencils over the paint. Maybe my paint is getting to old. I will get to the bottom of this and let you know.
Have a wonderful Monday and an, even, greater week!!
Today, I've created another face.....a turned face. I've been working on my 3/4 faces. This one is more like a 7/8 face (maybe not....fractions have never been my strong suit).
I started with a colorful background. Just playing around with various stencils, mark-making tools and colors. Then I used a stencil that I bought online from Gary Reef, a very talented artist. He sent it to me online and I cut it out myself on a plastic file folder. I've used this stencil many times with various mediums. I'm pretty sure that it's Audrey Hepburn....but I just used the general shape and painted my own face with acrylic paint and Prismacolor pencils. If you are interested in wonderful "face painting info", check out Jane Davenport. She does the most beautiful faces. I purchased one of her DVD's a few years ago and it was wonderful. All of a sudden, I could paint a face! Now that I'm thinking about it, I think the first encounter with her art was a $1.99 video that I downloaded from Interweave, where she did a face over a decorative napkin. (and yes, I did one too, see bottom)
For all of you, gelli plate, enthusiasts out there, this could have been created using a gelli print for the background. I've done that before. Actually, I mean't to do it this time.....then forgot.
List of Supplies:
Strathmore Bristol Paper
Golden Fluid Acrylics - Turqoise (Phyalo), Quinacridone Magenta, Carbon Black
Americana Paint - Citron Green, Carousel Pink
Liquitex - Cadmium Orange Hue
Liquitex White Gesso
Prismacolor Pencils - various colors
Pigma Micron Black Pen
White Gellyroll Pen
Montana Paint Pen - White
Black Charcoal Pencil
Various Stencils for background
Catalyst Scraper for markmaking
My "napkin" face from a few years ago. I still have this piece and I have always referred to it as "Butthead". It does look like she has a butt on her head, doesn't it??
I, definitely, need a different camera. It doesn't matter whether I use one of my digital cameras or my Iphone 6 camera. They all seem to be blurry. I do realize that my eyesight is not what it used to be, but this is ridiculous. If anyone has any suggestions, I would welcome them. Oh well.
I finished my bouquet this morning. I painted the background and vase 2 days ago. I developed a fear of flowers and couldn't finish it until today. I watched tons of videos on painting flowers, but was afraid to actually paint them on the canvas. I, finally, decided to cut the flowers out of paper, attached them to the canvas, then painted them. I don't know why that was less scary.....but it was. I need to, immediately do another one. Face the fear!!!!!!
I mentioned a few days ago that I was taking an online workshop, Tracy Bautista's Art Journal Play Live 2015.
After the first two lessons, this is what I've created. The first lesson was Circle Abstract Patterns. Basically, she was teaching how to use the brush freely, play with different colors, etc.
The second was Floral Prints and Patterns. I didn't have all of the supplies that she used for this tutorial. It would have been better when Golden High Flow Paint. She also used a paint applicator with a very, very thin tip to draw the outlines and miscellaneous marks in black paint. My applicator was slightly larger, so I ended up with some thick lines and big blobs of paint. Oh well!
I'm enjoying this and getting some, much needed, inspiration.
I was, actually, making it as a Christmas gift for my mother. She likes birds. However, I don't think she's really that crazy about the style of my art, so I gave her a gift card instead.
I covered the substrate with a decorative napkin, sealed it with gel medium, drew the bird using a stencil, then painted the rest with, watered down, white gesso. I finished it off with some stamping and charcoal pencil around the bird. That's it.
These would make cute cards. Maybe I will try that next. Although, I am always saying that I'm going to turn everything into cute cards.
