"Art Happens"

(sold)

"Art happens by design." There are rare moments when art seems to come together perfectly with no "snags".   Most of the time, artists need to know enough to put all of the elements together.  It is a lifelong study.

This is another mixed media piece showing how to incorporate fused glass into the piece. This particular glass was textured with glassline paint, using a palette knife and then adding powders to the paint, inscribing the word artwork before firing. Just so you know.... I did not create this piece of glass for this particular piece, but it was part of a number of pieces fired at the same time and done months ago. Fortunately for me, the colors happened to go with the colors in this piece.

Instead of using an old book cover to frame out the glass, I used some scraps of the the text pages mounted on 300lb. HP which accommodates the thickness of the glass. In fact, this whole piece is different sections of bits and pieces and I arranged them to create erratic edges of the black background. You can get more interesting sizes this way. Very often, the sizes of the text pages tend to be laid down too predictably and this cropping and rearranging method circumvents that issues. It will also inform the way you lay down papers in the future. It is the line work and edges created by the black background that gives these types of pieces so much drama. 

And of course, the old book pages turn colors even more when sprayed with Spray Acrylic Coating. The glass provides a different texture and is one of the most time honored mediums to include in your work. It's been around a very long time and has the transparency and reflective qualities that will always bring your artwork to another level. Stained glass or found pieces of glass could also be included. (It will be important to incase the glass in a book cover or like I did in this piece to keep sharp edges from hurting people who have an insatiable desire to touch the glass.) 

The exploration of paper and glass together is an inviting thought process so I would encourage any of you who are feeling adventurous to see what you can do. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about. 

"Varied Heights"

($50.00......6" x6"......Mixed Media on 300 lb. HP.....mounted on Gessobord)

"Raise the standard with varied heights." This quote is simply a play on words since I used varying heights of collage pieces to create this piece.

This is a variation on the theme of old book pages, rice paper, and mono printed rice papers put together to create a collage. By using some of the deleted portions from other pieces, I was able to adhere these disparate parts to a gessobord and then continue adding other elements.

If you look closely, you will see some other pieces mounted on top of the first layer of collage pieces. All of these mono printed papers were mounted on 300lb HP Watercolor Paper which gives them a depth very similar to the hard board used in bookbinding. So I ended up with (5) smaller pieces of these scraps adhered to the first layer and then added a portion of a book cover with a cut out and a piece of fused glass.

So this is just another way my mixed media followers can use as inspiration for shifting the emphasis to the mono printed papers and even getting more dimension with a second layer of several segments. Notice that to keep the design strong and cohesive, there are a lot of "echoes" of color, shapes, and gesture marks that make everything look like it belongs. There are also a combination of straight and torn edges....soft and hard edges. So if you have some text pages leftover from other pieces, this is a good way to come up with new combinations. In the first layer, there were three different sections adhered to the gessobord, just to give you an idea.

Just for further consideration and inspiration, you might want to check out the work of Lance Letscher who is an Austin artist who is renown for his works using old books in collages. Also, our very own Mandy Gregory (on the art team at Hill Country Bible Church NW) who uses her old watercolors and cuts them up to make elaborate collages. So be inspired, but it is best not to copy someone else's style precisely, but it really isn't necessary since there are a myriad of ways to work with these materials. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Time Share"

($150.00.....8" x 8".....presented on an easel or mounted on wall with glass brackets)


"Share the gift of time with others." This quote is referencing a different kind of "time share". And when you think about it, giving the gift of time is a rather expensive gift considering the busy schedules we all have. That makes it even more special. (This is an 8" x 8" piece consisting of three layers of glass and fully fused in a kiln.)

This type of glass work is very similar to mixed media work. The artist still has to be concerned about division of space, designing the corners, edges, paying attention to values, etc. This is called a glass collage but obviously created differently than a piece created with paper.

In this type of work, the glass is textured separately with glass powders, glassline paint, etc. and then fired in a kiln. The pieces are then cut and rearranged to form the collage and then fired again. The one line of lettering is then written and the glass is fired again at a lower temperature to keep the lettering from spreading.

The big thing to take away from this is that whether it is glass, oils, watercolor, acrylics, or mixed media, the facts remain the same. Paintings are made up of shapes. I know I sound like a broken record, but I've done enough teaching to know that some things must be repeated especially if they're important things. And this is an important thing. Thinking in shapes will keep you from many disasters. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Worship the King" (unavailable)

(unavailable)

"O Worship the King all glorious above. And gratefully sing His wonderful love. Our Shield and Defender the Ancient of Days. Pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise."

This is a (12" x 12") exhibit piece I created several years ago. As the rain began to fall early this morning, it seemed appropriate to post this piece which is in my permanent collection.  The drought has been broken!

There is much to notice about the layering of this piece. The first layer gave the appearance of an aged wall. It was create by troweling "patching plaster" over a stretched canvas. Before the plaster dried, I created some gestural marks by writing in the plaster with a stylus. After all of that dried overnight, the surface was lightly sanded and then painted.

The remaining layers were created with bits of collage, drawing, lettering, and a piece of fused glass.

The Cobalt Blue color and refraction of that color through the fused glass is the "wow" factor. Just like we discussed in the Color Workshop yesterday, if you want one color to really take center stage, surround it with neutrals. Keep in mind that a neutral is any color that has been diluted by the addition of white, black, or its complement.

Just something to think about.

"First Things First" ($400.00)

"Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need." (NLT) This piece was created for "The Open Doors Gallery" at Hill Country Bible Church in Austin, Texas. This outstanding verse from scripture truly is a priority setter. When confusion settles in and wraps its tentacles around us, this one verse sets everything in proper perspective again. The glass is mostly transparent so the text can be read and the light can bounce around and create light patterns over the piece beneath.

This piece was created with  MDF board and a fused glass overlay. (The glass sits 1/2" off of the surface.) The board was primed with (4) coats of gesso and lightly sanded in between. Acrylic paint was applied, followed by gold leaf and then lettering. Surface preparation to write on gold is the same as writing on acrylic. You can also try brushing pumice over the surface. (Click onto surface preparation at the bottom to pull up previous postings with those instructions.)

The glass is a three layer collage. The bands of black on each end were painted and stamped with Glassline Paint with gold mica powder sandwiched between two of the layers. "First things first" was written with a ruling pen and tracing black powder plus clove oil. The secret to fusing lettering on glass is to fully fuse the three layers at a high temp...then do the lettering and fire it again without going over 1250 degrees. This will retain the hairlines.

Just something to see and think about.