"White As Snow" (Draft 2)

(unavailable.....12" x 12".....Mixed Media and Glass on Balsa Wood attached to a 1.50" depth Clayboard)

"Though your sins be as scarlet, they can be as white as snow." (Isaiah 1:18 NCV) Just in case you think I am posting the same thing everyday, this is the completed background of a 12 x 12. The only thing missing is the lettering. So what I have been doing is showing you the piece as a progression. Tomorrow will be the last posting on this one....I promise.

As I said yesterday, I am actually compiling the elements of two pieces at once. There will be a 12 x 36 of the same type. Actually, I am glad I did this 12 x 12 first because I noticed some things....even after posting. Since none of the pieces are adhered to the board yet, I will remove them and paint the board that has no rice paper with white gesso. You can now see the black gesso and I'm have come to the conclusion that there is too much going on. My preference (I think) will be to tone down the background even more with white peeking through and allowing the glass elements to really take center stage.

In the larger piece, I will have  minimal elements showing through from the board underneath the glass. The power of this type of work is to keep the colors neutral and reveal only bits and pieces of texture and lettering. What I did like about my collage papers today is that there are enough of them to create an encaustic effect. The plain rice paper adhered over text or mono printing looks like it's covering it all up...until you spray it with Spray Acrylic Coating. That causes the rice paper to become translucent and consequently reveals part of the text or texture underneath. (Much in the same way that encaustic wax does when poured over an image.) 

Another thing I decided last night was to fire some of the transparent turquoise glass to create some more spots of color throughout the piece. It probably wasn't absolutely necessary on this piece but it will be necessary on the larger one.

One more thing for those who are creating assemblages or pieces with adhered elements on the board...it is very wise to install your screw eyes and wire and information on the back before you attach everything. The advantage (especially when you're down to the wire) is that you will have no worry about elements getting damaged or no time to have adhesive dry sufficiently). And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.