"Paz" (draft 4)

(draft 4)

"The Lord will give unyielding and impenetrable strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace." (Psalm 29:11..Amplified) As you can see, I am still working on lettering. I thought about waiting until I was completely done, but decided it might be instructive to see the white charcoal pencil layout before it was all inked in.

Because of the value of the background, I chose white bleedproof gouache for the lettering. It echoes the value of the silver leaf and provides a readable, ethereal look to the text.

In order to write with a charcoal pencil on this type of surface, it is necessary to sharpen frequently...sharpen even more on a sandpaper block...and hold the pencil completely vertical. The nice thing about charcoal is the fact that it is easy to erase after all is finished.

The process has slowed down tremendously with the lettering so it will probably take me another day or two. It always pay off in the end because the scripture that speaks to the scribe will more than likely speak to many others.

I am actually writing the First Century Versals with a pointed pen (in case my lettering friends want to know) and then I plan to write the verse in Spanish and Spencerian Script. And there you have it, just a few more things to think about.

"Paz" (draft 3)

(draft 3)

Almost there. The script and Spanish Round Gothic is to come. The lettering you see today is "paz" (peace) written with black enamel paint from a bottle with a tip.

I must say that I am quite in love with enamel paint now. When it dries, it is very shiny and smooth. Of course, now I am anxious to add white to my repertoire. It is a wonderful counterpoint to the lettering written with gouache or Fluid Acrylics. The surface was prepared for lettering with (1) part gel matte medium to (2) parts water mixed together with a palette knife and applied to the surface with a chip brush.

You can also see that I altered the edges of the fiber and adhered the silver leaf to the canvas. Edges are very important in any piece and the edges you see today are far more interesting than having the same amount of silver leaf coming down the entire length of an equally straight piece of fiber. By removing some of the fiber on both sides, I created some interesting shapes with the silver leaf peeking out rather randomly. And random is a word that is closely aligned with spontaneous. To quote myself...."It takes a spontaneous technique to create a spontaneous result."

The edges created by the chevron stamp are also important. By sanding part of the stamped image, I have created lost and found edges and a gradation with the color of the fiber with a "fading in" and "fading out" effect. The other random technique used was painting black gesso on the back side of this fiber. The sanding produced a deconstruction of part of the fiber and that black gesso then seeps through to the top side. This is much more effective than trying splatter specks in a random fashion.

So the "take away" for today is a study of edges. Try looking at lots of other artwork and see how different artists deal with their edges. It can truly make or break a piece. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Paz" (draft 2)

(draft 2)

You are viewing the deconstructed fiber piece laid over the support which is a 16" x 20" canvas. There is also some silver leaf behind the fiber peeking through. The final will contain the text from Psalm 29: 11.

Today, I will set this piece on an easel where I can see it from across the room. It also looks good in a horizontal format and viewing it from a distance will determine that decision. There is also silver leaf that has yet to be adhered, and my decision now is whether to tear the fiber a bit more and have some silver showing around the edges as well.

Since yesterday, I applied Super Heavy Gesso with a palette knife. The same chevron stamp was used, but I applied a thin layer of the gesso so you don't see a solid imprint of the stamp. Another little trick about stamping into this type of "gooey" texture is to spray the stamp with cooking oil with each stamping. This keeps it from pulling the gesso up and creating an ugly texture. Once it's dry, alcohol will remove the cooking oil and then you can proceed to paint. This also works if you want to imbed a texture like a "key" just to get the imprint into the medium. Once the medium is dry, the key or other object can be removed. Clean the surface and paint.

Another tip if you want the first layer of black gesso to show when lightly sanding the final top layer of paint is to mix the black gesso into the Super Heavy Gesso before applying to the support. You will then see nothing but black when sanding the top layer to reveal some of the texture.

Again, I made a sample of this fiber with the color mixtures to go into my journal.  The color vibration is particularly appealing to me and I know I will need to jog my memory by looking over my notes should I ever want to do this in a different format.  And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Paz" (draft 1)

(draft 1)

The Spanish word for peace is "paz". The quote you will see in the final is from Psalm 29:11. There is nothing quite like soothing blue colors to capture the spirit of "peace".

The previous couple of postings with a tighter weave (muslim) did not yield great results. That piece of fiber is now in the garbage and I returned to my lightweight linen type fiber with a looser weave. And for those who say..."You could have saved it; why did you throw it in the trash?"....that is not always true.

To create these very textural kinds of looks by deconstructing fiber, it is very important to have a fiber that is deconstructable. Otherwise, you can "beat a dead horse", but it will not be revived. It's dead!

So I began this piece with black gesso on one side and allowed it to dry thoroughly over the weekend. This morning I sanded it, and the deconstruction yielded some nice frayed areas and a few holes. And that is excellent, because I plan to adhere silver leaf to the area of the support where this will be placed and that silver will come shining through.

The next step was to spray the fiber with Palette Wetting Spray (Liquitex). The spray is different than simply spraying water because it consists of a polymer emulsion that is designed to keep the acrylic paint wet for a longer period of time, but it also helps blending and moving the paint around. (I have found that "chip brushes" are the very best brush for applying fluid acrylics to fiber.)

The mixture used for this base color was Cobalt Blue, a bit of Raw Umber, and a lot of White. (Fluid Acrylics) This dilute color causes a color vibration with the more intense colors stamped over this background. Cobalt Blue (straight from the bottle) and Cobalt Turquoise + White are the colors of the chevron pattern. (Color was brushed onto the stamped with a chip brush.)

And just in case you haven't noticed, chevron patterns are the rage right now. So let me take this opportunity to give a "shout out" for my daughter Alice, who is creating some fabulous wrist bags and tote bags, and also makes custom t-shirt quilts.

Check out her products at http://www.etsy.com/shop/ChevronBagsUnlimited. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Fiber Preparation" (draft 1)

Today's posting is a "process piece" in preparation for a 16" x 20" canvas. I know from my own experience that it is instructive to see some of the very first steps in a process. It doesn't look like much today, but by tomorrow it will have full blown color. Never despise small beginnings...just keep going. 

My desire at this point is to move away from too much uniformity with horizontal bands. So in this piece I am shaking it up a bit by having random patterning and color. This is also a tight weave and lightweight muslim. I brushed black gesso on one side followed by drying it with a hair dryer and then sanding. To give it more stability, I repeated the process on the back side.

And then I began to ask the "What if..." question which led me to swiping some Super Heavy Gesso on a portion of the fiber. If you look closely, you will see a chevron pattern stamped into the gesso. The gesso is receiving the stamping in different ways depending on the thickness of the gesso. By tomorrow morning all of this will be "bone dry" and ready to paint. There will be a marked contrast in the way the fiber without the gesso and the fiber with the gesso receives the paint. 

In the meantime, I am continuing work on two other large works. It takes many days for layers of paint to dry and prepare the fiber. And that is the beauty of working on more than one piece at once. While one thing is drying, you simply go to one of the other pieces. 

My large journal will now have another addition (with notes) after I finish the piece of fiber you see today. And then I will switch to the actual piece, select the text, allow for drying time, and post the process as it goes along. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Work It Out" (3) (Process Piece)

It is quite amazing how much preliminary work has to happen in order to create a large piece. Today's piece is my color selection for a 30" x 40" which will eventually have this type of fiber treatment included. Text will be from the Bible, but I haven't made the final decision.

Today's process piece tells me several things. Do I want to paint the back of it with black gesso and take a chance of too much of that black color seeping through the fiber? Probably not, so I will need to be selective in where the black gesso is placed or do it before the exposed portion is completed.

Another important thing I was wanting to test was lettering done with fluid acrylic and an #6 Automatic Pen. It holds a lot of pigment and the writing is done on the corner much like a ruling pen. I did find out that the fiber has to be sealed on the back and prepared for lettering on the front.

The other techniques on this piece were created by writing into the dull brown color with a mop brush dipped into the yellow green color. I then cook a commercial stamp and dipped one end of it into the paint and stamped onto the background. These are textures that are now recorded and will go into my large journal as a reference.

My hope is that I've convinced others who like to do experimental work the efficiency of making notes. Another favorite way of notating "work off" pieces is to cut up some watercolor paper into a small size (i.e. 4" x 4")...glue the sample on the paper....punch a hole in the corner and place on a binder ring. It takes up very little space and provides a ready reference for all of your future pieces. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"New Leaf" (Part 1 of 2)

(Part 1 of 2)

The quote will come tomorrow, but what you are viewing today is a few pieces of watercolor paper with texture created with heavy body acrylics, a palette knife, commercial texture stamps, a handmade leaf stamp, and the sharp corner of an old credit card. What I will be posting tomorrow will be a finished 6" x 6". I obviously have way too many pieces, but the idea is to have a multitude of options. 

The piece I completed yesterday ("The Coast") is now being displayed at Solas Gallery in Salado. There is a range of my work being displayed there with Photographic Portraiture, since it is a Photography Gallery. What the owners of the gallery and I have discovered is that abstract work with very realistic photography is a wonderful mix.

Today I want to share a few things I've learned about the "color block" pieces I've been creating. One of the primary decisions that will help to feature the blocks with more detail or strong color is to surround those particular ones with neutral colors or blocks with minimal detail. For instance, "The Coast" had a featured block that was actually a small painting that could have stood on its own. What I did was surround that particular block with colors and texture that complemented the featured block but did not compete with the fact that it was the feature.

Since many of you have experimented with pouring medium, you would not want to place blocks of pouring medium together that all had swirling color. Some of those blocks might need to be solid colors that complement the one or two blocks that had several colors.

Another example would be the large piece I created for "The Psalms". All of the old text pages, and rice paper, as well as the hand lettering of the first verse of Psalm 91 were all placed within the gray/black or neutral blocks. The yellow/green and blue/green blocks had no text...no rice paper...and minimal texture.

So it is these kind of decisions that will help to create a successful "color block"....should you want to give it a try. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Bravo" (Part 1 of 2)

(image 1)

(image 2)

There will be an original one line quote tomorrow. Today, you are looking at a detailed version of the process that has been streamlined since working on the very large piece.

This new way of accomplishing this type of color blocking has made it much easier. This whole process began last night. I delivered heavy body acrylic paint to the support and several larger pieces of the undercoat colors that I wanted to be revealed with the sgraffito technique of mark making or scratching into the top coat. The light gray pieces were remnants from the large piece I just finished yesterday. It takes about 20-30 minutes to apply paint to the pieces and support the night before. It greatly speeds up the process by having these pieces bone dry the next morning.

So this morning I began to cut and place the papers. I had a general idea that I wanted the bright colors from top to bottom with grays and black on the sides. After cutting each section, I used painter's tape to secure it to the support. After all the blocks were cut and taped down, I used a light and dark charcoal pencil to number all of them. I then took a photo which served as my map when determining how to reassemble after painting the top coat.

As I took each piece off of the support, I wrote the number and color of the topcoat on the back. This enables you to know where everything goes at the end. So what you see today in the second image is all of the pieces laid on the support, but not yet adhered.

I will allow it to dry all day and then determine if any color changes need to be made. And I can already tell you that the darker gray areas will need to go darker and probably to a black with the dark gray showing through. I left them as is so you can compare the image today with the final tomorrow. Values do make a hugh difference! And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"The Secret Place" (final)

(final)

($400.00.....24" x 36".......Mixed Media.......Mounted on a 2" Depth Clayboard)

"He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty...whose power no foe can withstand." (Psalm 91:1...Amplified) And here it is....totally finished!

Most of the changes from yesterday you cannot see because they involved finishing off the edges and spraying with spray acrylic coating. You will see the quote in one of the rectangles. And that's another thing I learned since doing my first piece like this. It is better to keep the final lettering in one of the geometric shapes. It is more integrated that way.

The lettering was written with a Leonardt Principal Nib and Moon Palace Ink....after preparing the surface for lettering. (2 parts water to 1 part gel matte medium brushed on with a sponge brush) The lettering style is definitely influenced by Spencerian Script, but done in a "choppy" and expressive fashion and weighted differently than normal scripts.

I must say that after trying many, many techniques and approaches to mixed media this one is my favorite. Even though I want to throw in some smaller works now with no drafts, they will be mixed in with more of this type of mixed media pieces.

So for now, I have concluded that I love heavy applications of paint with the palette knife being the method of delivery to the surface. And that's what happens when you work on your work everyday. You will eventually have a large body of work and notice what it is that you like well enough to pursue it for the remainder of your life. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"The Secret Place" (draft 8)

(draft 8)

All of the color blocks are now in their places. The entire text of Psalm 91 appears in various places three times and all text was cut from old bible pages. Tomorrow you will see the first verse written in one or two color blocks.

So much has been learned through this process. When I do another one, I will paint the undercoat on larger sections of paper (enough for the entire piece) and allow those to dry overnight. It will then be a matter of cutting up all or most of those sections and placing them on the support.

To prevent the dilemma of where to place the sections again after taking them off to paint the topcoat...I will number them on the top and back side and take a picture of the section or whole piece (depending on the size) and this will create a faster process.

Another thing that I did on this piece was change the value of a few of the blocks after they were adhered. I did this by taping off the surrounding areas and applying black with a palette knife. The brayer and alcohol were used alternately to lift the paint and create a texture that reveals part of the previous layer. In my case, I needed darker color notes sprinkled throughout the piece, but the reverse could also be true. This technique is good for any color change that's needed at the end.  And very often, it is impossible to tell until everything is adhered to the support.

I would encourage anyone to try this at least once. It is much fun and infinitely engaging. If a large size is way too intimidating and you prefer immediate results....try working on a 6" x 6" size or even smaller. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Orad Sin Cesar" (final)

($150.00.....8" x 10"......Mixed Media....Mounted on a 2" Depth Clayboard)

As you can see, I have changed the title of this piece again. It is a Spanish title and translates into..."Pray Without Ceasing". The handwritten verse in the piece is from psalm 55:1...."Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; hear me and answer me."

The quote was written as though it had been scratched into metal which goes along with the technique I used to make all of the other gestural marks. I also deconstructed the letters a bit by sanding with fine sand paper. It is so true that the art wants what the art wants!

I remembered that I had carved a stamp using my ruling pen letters as my guide. (The stamp was actually carved back in the mid 90's.) And that's the beauty of hand cut stamps. They can be used again in a dfferent work. I used Speedball Printing Ink for stamping and pressed very hard since I was stamping on an uneven surface. It immediately looked like the right touch because of the weight of the letters. It provided yet another contrast of weight in all of the lettering...including the text pages.

And that was when I discovered that it made sense to change the name of the piece. Besides all of that, we have a Spanish church within our church and it's nice that they can read some of the words in Spanish. So this is a good example of allowing the piece to guide you along the way. It also became apparent that the lettering needed to be "sketchy" and fit into the mood and look of the piece. So that's the capsule version of my though processes this morning.

It has been a fun piece to work on.  As always, I learned more things about technique, subtlety, integration, shapes, etc.  And that's why it is so important to create as much art as possible. Each art piece is like practicing all of those etudes and scales. It's the way art is learned! And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Mi Camino" (final)

($80.00.......6" x 8".....Mixed Media.....Mounted on a 2" Depth Clayboard)

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." (Psalm 119: 105...NIV) This is a very familiar verse that has been put to song and hidden in a lot of hearts. It's still a favorite and hope you like seeing it in a different way.

The motif of this background was chosen because it implies growth and gives a hint of the pastoral scenes that come to mind with many of the Psalms. And even though I had no idea which verse I was going to do, it became apparent that the black papers with white letters and a hint of the background showing through did visually describe the path being lit.

The layout is fairly traditional, but there are many who still gravitate to this straight forward treatment of the quote. My personal inclination is to be a lot wilder and less readable, but I conceded that point in this piece.

Those of you who are playing around with mono printed rice papers might want to try laying your chosen color(s) out on a table or even the floor and then begin to pair them with some of your black papers or even a darker value of another color. You really will have better success if you have light, medium, and dark values represented.

Your layout can resemble papers laying on top of each other and then cropped or you can work in a more complex way with a horizontal band layout. Parts of old book covers also make a nice inclusion. And I hope you have not forgotten that delivering paint to your surface with a brayer and using one color on top of another is another way to begin your piece. You can then selectively choose some mono printed papers to include in key areas.

The technique of brayering first before adding papers will give you some little windows and areas to showcase a particular image or texture. Perhaps I will do that for tomorrow's posting. Never the less, there are many different ways to design with your papers. And the good news is that everything you're using is archival and well protected with mediums and sprays that contain acrylic emulsions of some sort.

You could also brayer with watercolors if you want more transparency to work with. It's all very exciting so I hope you will be hard at work creating your own pieces. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Mi Camino" (draft 2)

Today's quote is the same verse from yesterday. Even though I had hoped to post the final today, I made the decision to give myself some more time to work on the weight and placement of the versals. Psalm 119: 105 is written in Spanish (Spencerian Script). The versals will be in English.

Some mediums require the artist to finish the piece in one sitting such as working alla prima in oils. Being able to pause and allow some time to explore all the options is definitely an advantage with mixed media.

One of the most important processes for me...especially when writing in layers...is knowing how to protect the previous layer and prepare the surface to receive more layers. In light of that, there are two products I simply cannot live without. One of them is Gel Matte Medium (Golden). The other one is Krylon Spray Acrylic Coating.

All mono printed rice papers must be sealed before adhering to your support. If there is an exceptionally heavy area of ink, I would spray it 3x and dry in between with a hair dryer. One coat is quite sufficient for lighter applications of ink.

After adhering all of the rice papers and other collage elements, you will need to spray your piece with spray acrylic coating again. This act will cause the rice papers to become translucent where there is little or no ink and will also bring out the patina of old text pages or images.

If you are a lettering artist or if you want to add a drawing directly on your piece with pen and ink (or gouache), you will need to prepare your surface for lettering. Rice paper is very porous and the spray acrylic coating resolves that issue, but then you have the dilemma of trying to write on slick paper. Gouache and ink will not adhere to this type of surface.

You will need to mix up (1) part gel matte medium to (2) parts water by mixing in the water a little bit at a time with a palette knife on a disposable foam plate. You will then brush this over your piece by holding a hair dryer in your left hand and a foam brush in your right hand. This has to be a simultaneously activity (at least for the first coat). The gel medium will not attach to the slick surface without heat...especially if there has been a heavy application of ink or paint in the first layers.

So that is what I did to this piece this morning. After it was prepared for my pointed pen and bleedproof white gouache, I marked my base line in the black area with a sharpened white charcoal pencil. This is the best way to get your guidelines onto a dark surface. When your lettering is totally dry, the charcoal lines can be easily removed with a stiff brush or a kneaded eraser.

One other thing I added this morning was some of the background stamp printed with white Speedball Printing Ink in the black area. To make it more integrated and not so overpowering, I blotted part of the print with a kleenex dipped in a small amount of water. This is much more subtle and creates an echo of that image. The neat thing about trying this is that you will be able to completely wipe it off with water if it doesn't please you.

I ended up my work today by spraying this entire piece with spray acrylic coating (2x) and drying in between. This will ensure that when I prepare it for the remaining lettering, I will be able to completely remove any letters that don't turn out well without disturbing the previous layer. I hope this makes sense. Knowing how to seal a surface and prepare it for the next layer is absolutely critical information for the mixed media artist. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Fearfully and Wonderfully Made" (Final)

($150.00......8" x 10"....Mixed Media....Mounted on a 2" Depth Clayboard)

"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made." (Psalm 139: 14...NIV) So here it is with a few more text pieces, some silver leaf, and the verse. We are indeed fearfully and wonderfully made. I deliberately made this piece extremely complex to visually describe the intricate nature of the human body.

Today is a recap of all that has taken place since Monday. Please know that I did not spend hours each day on this piece. Most days, I spent app. (2) hours studying, placing, deciding, and then adhering.

The initial mono printed papers inspired the selection from psalm 139. I learned long ago that it is much easier to be inspired by the image first rather than trying to create a piece based on preconceived concepts. Of course, this is not always possible, but if you can possibly work by allowing the piece to tell you what to do next...I have discovered that it works better, looks less contrived, and I learn a lot from all of the unexpected surprises.

Since yesterday, I added a few more selected verses from Psalm 139, using text from a smaller bible which adds another contrast. Those additional pieces were adhered yesterday afternoon.

This morning, I decided on the placement and size of the text, prepared the surface for lettering, (2 parts water + one part gel matte medium applied 3x) After the lettering was completed, I decided the piece needed some silver leaf.

The beginning decision to have a cut edge and a torn edge on every piece of mono printed paper and then the silver leaf adds unity and rhythm to the piece. Deconstructing the additional colored mono printed papers was also a unifying factor that also contributed to the rhythm. By making these kind of decisions, I have created a piece that looks like a weaving. It reminds me of fiber art and the truth be known...I was probably influenced by the beautiful art quilts I have seen at the International Quilt Show in Houston.

The one thing I did leave alone (almost completely) was the dynamic gestural marks in the top half of the piece. I added just enough elements that were in the bottom half to create an echo, but not too much. All in all, I am happy with the piece. You can look back at the last (3) days of postings and see for yourself if you would have stopped before arriving at the piece you see today. And that is a good thing about photographing a piece after each layer or two. It helps to inform your decisions about future pieces.

Are there things I would have done differently? You bet, and that too, is part of the process. Every artist I know might have (1) out of a 100 pieces that they would not change at all. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Fearfully and Wonderfully Made" (Draft 3)

This, of course, is the third draft of "Fearfully and Wonderfully Made" from Psalm 139: 14. Tomorrow I will be posting the final.

As you can see, I have added another color. To fully integrate this color into the piece, I used the same textural stamp to create some more mono printed papers. The application of these blue printed pieces was deconstructed by adhering them to the support...waiting a few minutes and then deconstructing them by lifting up an edge and pulling the paper off. This is one of my favorite techniques because the "pulled up" edge becomes very thin and drifst off into nothing, revealing part of the previous layer.

The blue prints were made by pouring a small bit of Cobalt Blue (Fluid Acrylic) onto the printing plate and then spraying with water. This creates a puddle of color which is then suitable to lay the rice paper into. It will take a little while to dry and may be too wet to hang up. This type of printing is best done with a hair dryer. I only use acrylics to get a particular color that I like,  but I always use Speedball Printing Inks for fine printing. You can see the beautiful print this ink makes in the black portion in the top half of the piece.

I also adhered some bits of plain rice paper in areas where I felt like the value was getting too muddy. And then more bits of plain paper were added on top of the previous ones. By allowing the edge of the previous papers to show, you can achieve a gradated effect which appears throughout the piece.

Tomorrow, I will probably adhere a few more bits of the printed text in key areas and then letter the quote in the white area just above center. It will be written in very informal versals with Moon Palace Ink and a Mitchell 6 nib. There have been many changes since the first two layers on Monday. I hope this helps those of you who are tip toeing into the world of mixed media.

This is only one way to work so look at work by other artists working in mixed media and soon you will be finding your own voice in this provocative medium. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.