"Motivation"

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"Motivation is energy fueled by ideas." It is amazing how one idea can trigger enormous energy and fuel  the possibilities behind a thought. The secret is to act on the idea before it flies away.

Creating a collage is like putting puzzle pieces together without having the completed picture to guide you. I resolve the problem by starting with a page or segment of text. I adhere it to my black gessoed surface with no thought to exact placement. Although it is good to place it somewhere where there is enough room to place papers around it.

In this piece, the second selection after the text and rice paper overlay was the largest purple section. The black and green at the top were laid down followed by the long vertical green piece. I then added a bit more text in the lower right corner followed by a torn piece of purple.

The last bits of collage printed on silk tissue paper were placed with the idea in mind to join two color blocks together. You might say they act like stitching. Placement was also determined by the lines already there. Again it is important to remember to include torn edges as well as straight edges. And if you include hand lettering, it is important to leave a section where the lettering can be written. It sounds complicated, but it really isn't if you remember the elements of design. Black, and white, plus one or two other colors in different sizes with different edges works every time it's tried. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Growth"

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"The fire of affliction creates growth." There is a caveat to this quote. Affliction only creates growth when the right attitude is displayed. The result is phenomenal!

By keeping a strong color at a minimum...it will actually have more power in the piece. All of the colors in this piece are very transparent. They are some of my favorites. Manganese Blue, Green Gold, and Pyrrole Orange are all Golden Fluid Acrylics. In this piece they are mixed with Liquitex Pouring Medium to create the pour.

In addition to the transparent color, I also used line engravings printed on silk tissue paper underneath and on top of the pour. By using them underneath and on top of the color, more depth is created. The combined techniques of pouring medium and transparency gives a similar look of an encaustic without the hot wax. It's a great look and I hope you will try it sometime. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Wings to Achievement"

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"Reading bridges the gap of failure and gives wings to achievement." Imagine what it would be like to not be able to read. Thankfully, we have technology which enables those who can't see to be able to hear or use touch to read. Of all the things I'm thankful for, the ability to read and have access to books is at the top of my list.

This was my first time to use Manganese Blue (Golden Fluid Acrylic). It is a transparent blue with tons of clarity, along with the Cadmium Orange which enables the viewer to actually read some of the words in the collage underneath the pouring medium.

The language of color is a never ending study, but it begins with understanding the three attributes of color. Of all the things I've learned about color, these three attributes are at the top of my list.

The first attribute of color is hue. The hue of a color is its name. The actual color or root color of any color will be one of the (12) colors on the color wheel. These (12) colors are the primary, secondary, and tertiary colors. The difficulty arises if the color is lighter, darker, brighter, or duller than one of these (12) colors. But the first step is identification of the root color.

The second attribute of color is value. The light-dark evaluation of achromatic colors and their relationships as depicted on the gray scale are easy to see. The problem arises when trying to evaluate where a color in all of its tints, tones, and shades falls on the gray scale. Isolating the color will help along with "squinting your eyes" and comparing your color to the gray scale until you get a match. The discipline of doing this over and over again will cause it to become automatic.

The third attribute is intensity. Intensity is the brightness or dullness of a color. Adding a bit of the complementary color to the root color will dull the intensity. I also like to use Raw Umber to knock down intensity. Intensity is also achieved by diluting the color with white.

Learning everything you can about identifying the three attributes of color goes a long way in selecting and mixing colors that you like or see in an inspiration photo. Get your color wheel out and begin to notice the hue, value, and intensity of any particular color. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Rhapsody"

($125.00.....5" x 5"...mounted on a 1/8" depth clayboard panel...floated on a linen mat in a custom frame.)


"Color performs a rhapsody in all of creation." As much as I love my neutrals such as black, browns, grays, and whites.... full bore color stops me in my tracks.   Isn't it grand!

For all of you pouring medium aficionados out there, you are looking at a piece that had some "not so lovely" edges along the right hand side where you see the black patterning. But I am completely satisfied now that the problem is resolved by placing the lace like pattern over that black edge and allowing it to spill out over the other two color blocks. The butterfly provides another pattern and emphasizes the swirl of pink at the top edge of the pink shape.

So if you have pouring medium pieces that have some areas that didn't turn out so well, this is one way to resolve that problem. You will need to make sure that if you use black line work, that you have an echo of black in the piece. Both of these images came out of Dover Publication Books and are copyright free. And most of these type of books now have a CD in which case you could print the patterns in a different color. Certainly this broadens the range of what you might do.

And many of my lettering arts friends spend all of their free hours creating Zentangles which is also an option. You will need to prepare this surface as for lettering to accomplish that, but the results would be unique and totally original. (Of course, some of my friends have way too much time on their hands, but they love this contemporary form of doodling so I wish them well.) If you don't know what a Zentangle is, just google the name. It will open up a whole new world. And there you have it...a few more things to think about.

"Longing"

($150.00.....6" x 6"....mounted on a 1/8" depth clayboard panel....floated on a linen mat in a custom frame)




"Beauty creates a longing to be transformed." Noticing beauty in creation or in the smallest act of kindness is one of the ways the longing is expressed. Beauty transports us into a realm of spiritually connecting with God and with others.

In most pouring medium pieces, I have emphasized the fact that it is wise to include a light, medium, and dark color in the pour. Today's piece is an example of not having a dark value in the initial pour, but having it in an image that is included after the fact. The butterfly was my first choice of image because of the colors in the background repeated in the colors of the butterfly and the fact that the shapes of the color blocks look like "echoes" of butterfly wings. Printing that image on silk tissue paper works far better than printing it on opaque paper. In fact, these two techniques (pouring medium and collaged elements on tissue paper) work extremely well together. Not all techniques work well together and part of creating mixed media pieces is realizing that fact. For instance, gesso techniques don't seem to be compatible with this process so I have quit trying to beat my head against a wall by forcing them to work together.

Another technique that does work well with this process is light pencil drawing or gestural writing on the blank paper before the pour is done. You can see some of these faint lines in this piece. It is another spontaneous technique because you will have no idea where the pencil lines will be visible or how much will be "cropped" out of the piece altogether.

This entire process of pouring color on paper is the most spontaneous I've ever tried and also the most compelling. But having said that, it can also become tiresome unless you have some contrast. Because the edges and flow of the color in a pour are so erratic and often diffused, it is a good design decision to include an image that falls in the realm of realism since the pouring medium is totally abstract and very contemporary. Including this contrast is important to your continued interest in this technique. Stamping is also a good option, although you will have much better results if you prepare the surface with gel matte medium and if you use Speedball Printing Ink to create the image. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"A Complete Picture"

($40.00....6" x 6".....mounted on a 1/8" depth clayboard panel)


"The edges and fragments of our lives come together to form a complete picture." It can be very easy to think about one disappointment or setback and think that everything we've done in life is negated. However, one event does not constitute our entire lives, but it's a series of fragmented parts that come together to make a complete life (or picture).

This piece could be called a study in "green". The piece began with gesso over the entire sheet of Rives BFK and then texturized with gestural marks and drips of gesso. (The raised circle in the upper left hand corner.)  When beginning a piece in this way, it is best to leave the entire thing to dry overnight or at least for several hours.  It takes a long time for think a thick area of gesso to dry completely.

The initial colors were applied with a brayer and acrylic paint. (Lime and Olive Green) I then switched to Speedball Printing Ink and applied several different greens making sure to allow some of the previous layer to show through. It could also be referred to as breaking up the surface tension. Speedball Printing Ink is very easy to modify and will give you the printed look that you will not get with acrylics or gouache.

To add more surface texture, I added some rice paper collage that had been mono printed with a deep green that was almost black. The last bit of collage was the butterfly...printed on silk tissue paper.

One of the key points in creating a layered and textured surface is to allow the previous color to break through the surface in some way. It also gives the illusion of transparency. Failure to do this will result in a look that is contrived and the pieces look like they're just stuck on and totally unintegrated. So it is very instructive to pay attention to the techniques that help break up surface tension. And that's the beauty of mixed media. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"The Library" (sold)

(sold)


"Books have the power to take you to far away places and very deep thought." Some of my fondest memories are curling up in a favorite chair and enjoying a good book. There is something very rich about holding the book in your hand....even if you have an iPad or Kindle. My library is my prized possession. How about you?

In some of my larger works, I have completed at least 6-8 pieces over the last few years that I call "library pieces". They all contained collage elements that were very old and generally they all contained small and very old books I have purchased in antique stores across the country. Some of them had a window cut out of a book cover that was filled with an inclusion of fused glass. None of those pieces are in my possession now so I am concluding that library pieces with a very traditional look are still in demand.

This piece reminds me of some of those works for the same reasons. This piece has an old book page, a piece of very old music from a hymnal, some of my own lettering printed on silk tissue paper and a stock photo of a butterfly. An excursion into a library will often have a wall piece containing specimens of butterflies or drawings of plants, etc.

Without intending to, after the pieces were assembled and shapes were formed, I looked at the piece from across the room and the orange shape from top to bottom reminded me of a book mark. The "bling" is the silver leaf. The upper right hand segment was dulled a bit by rubbing on some walnut ink and then blotting.

Another technique with Speedball Printing Ink is in the bottom right hand corner. If you brayer on the printing ink and let it dry, you can dip your pen into water and write into the ink and reveal the color underneath. Likewise, you can drop water or make a fingerprint into the ink and create some texture. I encourage you to try some of these things and see how your library pieces turn out.  And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Unfolding Dreams" (sold)

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"The reward of the diligent is the unfolding of dreams." The steady and focused attention on a particular skill is the essence of diligence. Steady means "on a regular basis"...like everyday. It is a steady observation and self critique as you work on your work. Go for it!

The foundation of this piece is acrylic paint. There is no gesso. I did add molding paste to the raw umber and retarder to all of the acrylic mixtures to extend the working time. My desire was to experiment with gestural strokes with a broad sweep across a larger sheet of paper.

The texture was mostly created with shaper tools and credit cards. I also used a brayer and alcohol to remove and soften the lines in several places. It's another exciting approach to mixed media and surface texture. The butterfly was printed on silk tissue paper and as you can see the raised texture shows up right through the paper to create a total integration with the surface.

I enjoyed writing the quote with a Mitchell #6 and Walnut Ink. It is the movement created by the diagonal sweep of color that gives this piece drama as well as the butterfly positioned so that it looks like it's in flight. And there you have it. Just a few more things to think about.

"Unique" (sold)

(sold)


"Patterns of creativity are fascinating, God given, and unique as fingerprints." After teaching a class, I am always amazed at how many different ways the same technique gets interpreted. That thought prompted the quote today. It is a reminder that all of us are unique and need to value our own creative voice.

This piece is all about drama and contrast. Notice that there is a thin ribbon of black in the pouring medium and also in the butterfly. It is wise to be very prudent when using black unless you are creating a black and white piece with variations of gray. In this technique, where the color still feels like it's moving even after it's dry, black can overpower the piece and scare you half to death. I'm not kidding! That actually happened to me and I immediately threw the piece in the trash.

The pencil lines in the first layer and the word fascinating written and going underneath the butterfly plus the quote offer a wonderful contrast to the intense color and very abstract piece of artwork. Pencil and charcoal lines show the human gesture and individuality of the artist. It seems to say....a human being touched this art piece. It was not created by a machine. It is very important to show your unique marks in your art.

Even in the act of pouring color on the paper, each person approaches it with a certain kind of movement unique to them. It is quite fascinating and I hope this gives you a few more things to think about.

"Perspective"

($40.00...6" x 6".... mounted on a 1/8" clayboard panel)


"Perspective: the ability to analyze the relationship between two or more things." Perspective is an interesting word. The accurate analysis between two or more things is also very important. In order to get the optimum benefit, it is necessary to not "over reach". For instance, if I compare one year of my experience to someone's ten years of experience and think it is equal, then I'm over reaching.

This is a pouring medium piece created in a class I taught this past Saturday. It also has two collage elements printed on tissue paper. (fine art tissue paper as opposed to tissue paper in the gift wrapping section.) It is often difficult to find. Mine was purchased at Paper Place in Dallas. I have also found it in the end pages of old books in antique stores. It is a very effective way of using collage in a more integrated way. Of course you cannot place tissue paper on the tray of a printer and expect it to go through. You must first print a copy of the image on regular paper, observing how it exits the printer. Then tape a piece of the tissue paper over the image you just printed with removable tape. Place it in the tray of the printer again so that it exits the same way it did the first time. Spray with Acrylic Coating....sponge a bit of Gel Medium on the piece (not the tissue paper) and gently lay it in place.

Collage is very tricky because it can go into visual overload faster than a dog chasing a cat! This technique will help with integration. A general rule of thumb is to not include something if it does not contribute to the main idea. Be a good editor.

The word "perspective" was written on other paper, reduced, and then printed on the tissue paper. There is no way I could have achieved that on this surface. Plus the fact that I wrote it 75 times before the final. Just a few more things to try or think about.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Success" ($60.00)

(adjusted price.....$60.00....mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard)
It is human nature to look at what someone else has achieved and think we can do likewise. And we probably can if we take all the steps that will bring it to pass and we are wired in that way. However,  there is often a gap in our thinking that assumes we can take a shorter path and achieve the same thing. Not! It amazes me how often I come up against this reality and how often I perceive it in others.

The magic of gesso showed up in this background. Until I made the decision to cover the portion I didn't like, this piece almost made it into the trash can. However, I did love the texture in the black areas, so all turned out well. The butterfly shows the power of one image with some intense color in a setting of neutrals. By including this one image, I have a "star" with a supporting cast. Keeping the lettering out of that white area and keeping it simple also helped the star of the show take the stage. Just something to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.