"White As Snow" (draft)

(unavailable....6" x 6".....Cropped Portion of a Larger Piece)

"Though your sins be as scarlet, they can be as white as snow." (Isaiah 1:18 NCV) This is a cropped portion of yet another 12" x 12" piece for an Easter Exhibit. The meaning of the cross is spelled out in this passage with a comparison that even a child can understand. (The complete piece will be posted tomorrow.)

The interesting thing about working with mono printed rice papers, old book pages, and plain rice paper is the ability to adjust the values as you create the piece. Some of the sections in this cropped version might change a bit before I finish. 

This piece also represents a culmination of mixed media techniques I have been experimenting with in smaller versions. Even this piece is the precursor for another one that is 12" x 36". I am using the same materials in both pieces and have been working on the elements for both simultaneously. 

The raised areas are pieces of balsa wood painted with white gesso and then wrapped in mono printed papers, text, and plain rice paper. There will also be several smaller pieces of the solid transparent turquoise glass fitted inbetween the balsa wood pieces like a puzzle. The idea is to use more of the mono printed papers (all neutral colors) than the text pages. To create continuity, I also hand cut a zig zag stamp which appears randomly in the mono printed papers and is also etched into the glass paint before firing. 

This type of a repeat is a unifying factor and provides rhythm in the piece. The take away from all of this is an insight into process. There are many steps to completing a piece of artwork and working smaller first is an important step. And every piece is a learning process in which many decisions have to be made. So take a deep breath and work methodically and consistently to accomplish your goals whether it is in art or some other area. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.