"Untitled" (final)

(image 1)

(image 2)

This morning's studio session has been interesting indeed. I have now decided that this is the end of this piece and will share what I learned from this particular layering process.

My idea from the very beginning was to introduce some gesso at the end and integrate it with the watercolor. And the beauty of taking photos after each layer is that I can now see where I wish I had stopped. So instead of feeling sad, I am elated because now I know that it is not necessary to even use the gesso since the white of the paper and the interplay with the watercolor and mark making is quite enough to carry the piece.

Now I have visuals to guide my next process. And this is often the case. It is absolutely crucial to take pictures as you work, if you want to take your artwork to the next level. Artists from time immortal have made the mistake of going too far and wished they could go back. With technology at our fingertips, it is totally possible and advisable to document the whole process digitally. I am now quite excited to begin a new piece and stopping before I ruin the whole thing.

So what you see in the first image today is where I wished I had stopped. What I do like is the interplay between the watercolor, the white of the paper, and the gestural mark making. Even though this piece is totally abstract and non representational, it is entirely possible to have created a soft realistic image tucked away in one of those shapes created by the watercolor. That would give the dynamic of having a strong contrast between the abstract and realism.

So the big "take away" today is......document your process with a digital camera! Process is everything....and just to quote myself from another posting....."Process is the breath of creativity." And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Common Denominators" (final)

(unavailable.....4" x 6"......mounted on masonite)

"Common denominators create patterns." Common denominators in art are the same thing as repetitive elements. In this case, it is repetitive lines and color.

Since yesterday, I drew some erratic lines over the watercolor with pencil. I used several different values of graphite. The piece was then sprayed with water on both sides and extra water dabbed off with a sponge.   It is important not to wipe the excess water off since the watercolor has not been fixed with an acrylic spray.

A light glaze of sepia was brushed on with a flat watercolor brush and then I wrote into the wet paper with an empty pointed pen. You can clearly see that effect in the tiles.  The piece was dried with a hair dryer. Diluted white gesso was then applied with a sponge brush and pushed around with a credit card.  

The piece was then dried with a hair dryer and then bleedproof white gouache was applied with sponge brush on damp paper. The beauty of bleedproof white is the ease at which it can be blotted and removed or pushed around with a credit card. The piece was dried again and some of the white gesso removed with a stiff brush dipped into alcohol. After that was dried, I added a bit more yellow and blue watercolor.

Another technique I used througout these last layers was blotting with a kleenex lightly. All of these techniques combined create an "aged" and mysterious looking surface with a lot of depth. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Emerging Spring"

(unavailable.....6" x 6".....experimental piece)

"Spring emerges from the thaw." Of course this quote is not applicable to Austin in terms of having snow and ice. I took some liberties because of the background I was experimenting with. It is true, though, in other parts of the country. Thank you God for planting me in Texas!

This is a pouring medium piece deconstructed with a sander and gesso. If you have some pouring medium pieces you are not particularly fond of, this is a way to change it into something else. First, you must adhere your piece to a gessobord or clayboard or masonite. It needs to be on a hard surface and dried over night. (Do not try to sand it immediately after adhering to the board or you will have a "hot mess" on your hands.)

The following morning you can sand the piece with an electric sander and rough sand paper. It will take a lot of sanding to take off some of the detail in the pour because the color is all the way through and not just on top of the paper. You will not be able to get it to the lightness you see in this posting just by sanding. 

The next stage is to apply gesso in thin layers with a sponge brush and then dip the brush in water and keep brushing the piece. The gesso will be dilute and very "sloppy". Hold it up and let it drip onto a paper plate or other surface and then dry with a hair dryer. You will repeat this process several times until you are satisfied with amount of pouring medium being revealed. 

In the last gesso application, I kept it undiluted and pushed it around with a credit card to get the more solid areas of white. Dry completely and spray with Acrylic Coating and then prepare for lettering or leave as is. Part of my experimentation was with the values of the lettering. I wrote in several places with pencil...followed by gray gouache...and then the actual quote was written with Moon Palace Sumi Ink. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Blast From The Past"

(unavailable)

"A blast from the past is often a step into the future." This old hardware store is symbolic of things in the past that often prompt new thoughts and ideas for the future. Creativity and invention keep us moving forward.

This piece is a sketch created with a fine point pen of a very old hardware store in Boone, N.C. It is a historic landmark in the area with an old gas pump and screen doors that have withstood the test of time. 

Sketching is a simple impression of a scene or subject that gives the artist a more emotional "feel" of the subject. It does not have all of the shading and other characteristics of a full scale drawing, so I added text pages partially covered with gesso to enrich the surface in the background. 

There is a lot to be learned by sketching that will enhance the scope of work that any artist wishes to create. Sketching journals have been around for a long time, but I have personally found it very difficult to carve out time just for sketching. It may just be that it needs to be viewed as a foundational part of the art process. So my encouragement is to have you join me in a commitment to pick up pen or pencil everyday and sketch at least one thing. It may even become addictive and spawn a whole new direction to your artwork. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Empty to Full"

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




"Thanksgiving transforms empty to full." Thanksgiving is a reverential act that gives all of us the full life we want to experience. Making a mental or actual list of the many things we can be grateful for is a very good start.

When I think of overflowing abundance, my visual memory takes me back to the outdoors and the colors I experience in that environment. This piece is a "nod" to the dominant colors in most landscapes such as trees and grass and leaves. Texture is something I have also been experimenting with and Glass Bead Gel has been my ally along with Speedball Printing Ink.

I have already discussed the layering process of this particular technique in previous postings, but it never hurts to be mindful of shapes, division of space, corners, and edges. What I have noticed is that a straight edge has a very stabilizing effect on a chaotic surface. Just make sure there is a contrast by adding a substantial amount of erratic or uneven edges. I did add a piece of collage made from a cowhide image to give me one of those straight edges. It's hard to tell where it is, but it did achieve the desired outcome. And the goal in most of my collage work using this type of background is to integrate it so well (color wise) that it is barely discernible.

If you like texture, this type of layering is very addictive and compelling and I would encourage you to do your own experiments. The water soluble printing ink is fabulous because it will stick to any kind of surface and writing or imprinting with water following by blotting will reveal the previous layer...which goes to the heart of integration. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Neutral"

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


"Put your life in neutral to calm chaos." There is a contrast in this piece between neutral colors and chaotic texture. In life we must all find ways to put our life in neutral in order to stay sane and keep from spinning out of control. Whether it's taking a walk, sitting with a friend, or reading a book, we all need to put our life in neutral for part of the day.

This piece was created much the same way yesterday's posting was created. I simply chose to use neutrals. After the solid acrylic color is placed over the entire surface of textured gesso, it is important to start thinking about creating shapes.

All of the other layers of colors after the dark turquoise were Speedball Printing Inks. They were applied in this order...white...brown + black....orange + brown + lots of white and a bit of turquoise. The very last color was turquoise added to the peach mixture.

what makes this and all other types of layering work is the ability to break up the surface tension in a convincing way. Thinking in shapes will help, but then you must break up the surface in some way to reveal the previous layer. In this piece, I used a pointed pen, a ruling pen, and water, followed by blotting.  The initial raised texture of the gesso and several places where glass bead gel was applied also helped achieve the revealing of a previous color. The shapes give it the structure and without that structure, the human eye does not know where to look.

Other ways of breaking up surface tension could be sanding, gouging, transparent paint or collage elements, blotting, etc. The most obvious way is simply to leave a portion of the previous layer untouched. However, this is not as subtle or convincing and may create too many hard edges and if all your edges are hard, your work will be very difficult for people to view. So there you have it...a few more things to think about.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Quit"

($60.00.....6" x 6"......mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard panel)


"If something doesn't work...quit doing it!" It sounds obvious, but I am still amazed at my own ability to continue doing something for a long time before realizing that it's not working. Maybe today will be the day that all of us quit doing at least one thing that no longer works.

This piece is layering and texture to the max. If the colors are too bright for you, this look can also be achieved with neutrals.

The first layer was gesso applied to Rives BFK with a sponge brush and applied much thicker in some areas. An old credit card was used to make gestural marks that you can still see after several layers. The key is to have the gesso thicker in some places and then to let it dry overnight. (Drying with a hair dryer does not get the inside of the thickest gesso dry and you will find this out when you try to paint over it.) I also added some Glass Bead Gel (Golden) to several areas. You can see it at the top in the persimmon color.

The persimmon color is acrylic and was applied with a sponge brush over the entire surface and then a brayer was used to remove the excess. After the acrylic was thoroughly dry, I switched to Speedball Printing Inks for the remaining layers. The first layer was black and applied with a brayer, not bothering to cover the entire surface. The glass bead gel created enough of a raised surface to leave a larger area of the persimmon untouched. Before sealing the black ink, I took a point pen and wrote into the ink and then blotted it to create some of the texture you see. After sealing the black with Acrylic Spray Coating, I added the turquoise color, being mindful of creating shapes. I wrote into this color with water followed by blotting before sealing it. The last color was the dark yellow, also written into with water and sealed.

The last bit was the collage element in the lower right hand corner which gives the piece more shapes,  form,  and a touch of Mexico. The quote was written after the surface was prepared for lettering. And that's how it's done! Just a few more things to think about.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Deep Longing"

(unavailable)


"Solitude is a place of deep longing for the only One who can satisfy." Many pursuits can give temporary satisfaction and take up hours of our time, but we were created to have an intimate relationship with God. That is the only thing that can truly fill the deepest longing of our soul.

This piece is another venture into contrasting opacity with transparency. A good rule of thumb is to choose equal pieces of opaque collage elements and transparent elements. By arranging them various ways, you will eventually find the right overlap and placement for each piece. The wonderful thing that happens is that you can see every layer in the piece. It is one of the most effective ways of achieving depth with layering.

The initial background was begun with gesso with some areas having a lot of texture. That, too, will add another dimension to your collage. Cadimium Orange was painted over the entire gesso surface with a solid application. Speedball Printing Ink came next, leaving some of the orange peeking through. At this point, you must spray with acrylic coating because the printing ink is water soluble. Silver leaf was then adhered one section at a time over gel matte medium straight from the jar. If the silver leaf looks too solid and static...simply apply some gel matte medium to your brayer and roll over the surface. The stickiness of the medium will pull more of the silver leaf from the surface.

All in all, this is a wonderful way to create a collage. It also helps to have some silk tissue paper (the most transparent paper I've ever found) and be able to print it on your printer. Simply make a copy of the image on regular paper...watch how it exits the printer...use removable tape to tape the transparent paper over the image...and send it through the printer again in the same way it went through the first time. Spray with acrylic coating and you will be ready to adhere it to your surface. And there you have it...a few more things to think about.

"Texas"

(unavailable)

"Texas is my home." There are a few images that have a direct association with our fine state. One of those images is one head of cattle or an entire herd. Ever so often, I must return to those images in some form or fashion since I am a native Texan. If your birthplace doesn't happen to be Texas, then I extend my deepest sympathy and regret. But I am glad you got here as fast as you could!

This is not a complicated piece, but it does require several steps with drying time in between. The first layer is gesso on Rives BFK paper applied with a sponge brush and texturized with a credit card and gestural writing. It has to be applied moderately heavy to receive the texture.  This was left to dry overnight (or all day).

On the thoroughly dry surface, I painted a substantial layer of Cadmium Orange straight out of the tube. This was allowed to dry all day. In the evening, I applied Black Speedball Printing Ink with a brayer. Complete coverage was not my goal since I needed some of the orange to be peeking through. The ink was dried with a hair dryer and sprayed with Spray Acrylic Coating.

I then applied the silver leaf one section at a time. Be sure to purchase the kind that has a backing attached and cut each page into four sections. Brush Gel Matte Medium (straight from the jar) on one small section at a time and lay the leaf down. Press over it with your fingers and allow to set for about a minute or two before removing the backing. Leave some space between the sections. By the time you're through, you will have formed a grid like pattern over the entire piece.

The surface was prepared to receive more paint by brushing on (2) parts water to (1) part gel matte medium. I mixed up my acrylics for the "steer" with some retarder to extend my working time. The "steer" was then painted with acrylics and a palette knife. This was allowed to dry overnight. Lettering was added this morning. And that's how it's done! Just a few more things to think about.

"Freedom"

(unavailable)


"Persons who forfeit responsibility are not free." There is a difference in truly needing help or simply forfeiting responsibility. Those who forfeit responsibility are enslaved by their own apathy. I choose freedom!

This is probably the simplest composition on the planet. I did vary the horizontal bands that look like a cropped version of the American flag. They aren't absolutely straight or the same width. Those slight variations and the scratching through the silver leaf add more textural interest to something that could look very static. (The paint was applied over a textured gesso base.)

It also helps to add a focal point with a contrast of line such as the word "freedom" as well as the quote written in spencerian. The final touch was charcoal powder brushed along most of the edges.

So whether you're composition is simple or complex...it still boils down to division of space, designing the corners, breaking up the surface tension, transparency, and lots of contrast of line, values, and color. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"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.

"Enter In"

($200.00.....12" x 12".....mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard)


Today's posting is a 12"x 12" piece created for an exhibit at Hill Country Bible Church NW. The verse is from Psalm 100...a favorite of many Christians. It was inspired from a similar layout in one of my "6"x 6" postings. (June 10) Enjoy and have a wonderful day!

It is a good practice to work on a smaller piece and then take that same piece...expand the concept and translate it into a larger work. Going from a 6" x 6" to a 12" x 12" is good because the proportions are the same. So it is wise to use the same proportions going from small to large.

It is very easy to figure by drawing a diagonal line from the left bottom corner to the right upper corner. You can then figure out a proportional size by selecting a size where the upper right hand corner lands on that diagonal line. It may sound confusing, but is really very simple. (e-mail me if you can't figure it out)

Another way to work on a composition is simply to divide a space into black and white shapes or divisions in a thumbnail size and create as many variations as you can possibly create. It doesn't require placing in all the details, but gives you a strong direction for a foundation of your value arrangement. Then when you actually begin your piece, you will at least have a strong beginning and then you can place intermediate values and details such as imagery or lettering where you choose.

Today's posting was made much easier by having a smaller version first. The lettering was different, but the main elements were the same. And there you have it...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.

"Marching Time"

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


"Time marches on and stands still for no one." Some might think that silver and gold are the most expensive things in the market place. In my estimation, time is the most expensive commodity. No one can manufacture more of it and everyone has the same amount. It's a wise person who thinks about how their time is being used.

Most people think that neutrals consist of black, white, and brown. But anytime your palette is moving towards less intense and more "grayed down" color, you are moving into the realm of neutrals.

This is a neutral piece with a predominance of black and white. All the papers are transparent except for one. Using neutrals and transparency together is a winning and timeless combination. In a world that is hectic and often chaotic, most people will gravitate to neutrals because of their calming effect. This is something to contemplate when creating your artwork. Even bright colors are best showcased when surrounded by neutrals. Too many bright colors everywhere is disconcerting.

Again, you can see here how many interesting shapes can be created with collage elements. Most of the edges in this piece are straight with a few erratic lines in the gesso and torn edges on two of the collage pieces. It is very important to have the contrast between straight and erratic edges. So don't be afraid to have straight edges. And there you have it. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally ti inquire about this piece.

"Receptacle of Love"

(unavailable)


"Collect your tears in a receptacle of love and the sun will soon shine again." Today's posting is lovingly dedicated to some friends of ours who lost a grand child over the weekend in an accidental drowning. We are crying with them. We pray for the receptacle of love (Jesus Christ) to wrap them completely up in His empowering grace.

The background in this piece was cropped from a larger sheet I created as a background behind a kiln formed piece of glass. It began with textured gesso on Rives BFK paper. It was then painted black with Speedball Printing Ink and a brayer. After that layer dried and received a coating of Acrylic Spray, I applied gel matte medium (one small section at a time) and laid down the gold leaf. It might be necessary to wait a bit and let it become attached to the gel before removing the backing from the gold leaf. Some of the leaf naturally pulled up creating the exposed black areas.

The look of gold covering an entire surface was a bit bright so I applied (2) parts water to (1) part gel matte medium with my right hand and held a hair dryer right where I was brushing to cause the gel to attach to the leaf. This is a very important step because my intention was to brush on charcoal powder to dull the surface and it will not attach to a slick surface. It is also necessary to spray again with Acrylic Coating to fix the charcoal powder in place. You can then prepare the surface for lettering and painting the bowl with a palette knife.

The last bits of gold were applied before lettering and create a contrast between the two values of gold. To paint with acrylics and a palette knife, it is necessary to add a retarder to the paint to give yourself a larger window of working time. So there you have it. Just a few more things to think about.

"I Owe You"

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


"Every success can be attributed, in part, on the influence and help from others." Whether knowingly or unknowingly, we all affect or have been affected by the influence of others. Every conversation and action has the power to impact someone else negatively or positively. Let's go for the positive!

This piece is essentially an experiment in learning more about how to create complex textures by breaking up the surface plane and focusing on extreme contrasts.

It began with gesso that was texturized and left to dry overnight. This morning I applied black Speedball printing ink with a brayer...dried it with a hair dryer...and then brushed over it with a sponge brush dipped in water. That action was followed by blotting with a kleenex. The operative word here is blot. Wiping would kill the printed look that you can get with this ink. After being satisfied with the texture, I sprayed with acrylic spray coating. Silver leaf was applied to areas that had been brushed with gel matte medium. To break up the surface of the silver leaf, I removed parts of it, especially around the edges to create the erratic texture seen under the letters "i...o...u..". White Speedball printing ink was applied and also dried, rewet, and blotted to break up that surface.

Learning how to break up a surface and allow the previous layer to show through is a key component of integration. Remember also, to have distinctive shapes, contrast of solid and broken edges, and something different in the corners. And there you have it. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"A Travel Diary"

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


"A travel diary records the personal details of your favorite places." Even if you don't call it a diary, most of us do record the details of places we visit with photos, sketches, writing, painting, etc. It's fun and that's the nature of a trip to your favorite place!

This piece is another venture into playing around with opacity and transparency. The key elements are gesso, acrylic paint, collage on rice paper, and collage on silk tissue paper. It is extremely helpful to keep your scraps of lettering practice, stamped designs, and then have a great collection from your iPhoto album.

All of these pieces can be used in this type of piece. I've posted several in the last week so you can look back and see other possibilities using the same materials. The process then moves to design. It is imperative to establish some shapes either in the background paint or placement of the collage elements or both. Using transparent layers over opaque pieces of collage will help give depth and tie everything together...especially if there is some of the dominant color in that transparent layer. You can see it in this piece with the gestural marks carved out of blue paint and then printed on the silk tissue paper. It overlays the yellow right above the train.

In fact, some of your mark makings on other papers might not work in their present state, but might be the perfect thing if printed on transparent tissue. In the spiritual realm, it's called "line upon line" and "precept upon precept". In the art world, we call it the layering process. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Framed in Time"

($60.00.....6" x 6".......mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard)


"There is space, framed in time, for a good friend." A person with no friends is living in poverty of the soul. We all need to make space for our friends.

In this piece I am experimenting, once again, with slight diagonals and transparency. The piece began with a blank sheet of Rives BFK. Using an old credit card, I covered the surface with gesso and spread it around. The gesso naturally "pools" where ever you stop moving the gesso around with the credit card. Some of the underlying lines are raised areas of this gesso.

I then printed out several different scrap pieces from my files of lettering and printing from long ago. Because I wanted some sharp color contrast, I chose to print over the gesso with a hand carved stamp and Blue Speedball Printing Ink first.  Most of it was sprayed with water and blotted to subdue the color. After drying and spraying with Spray Acrylic Coating, I was then ready to arrange and adhere the transparent layers.

The last step was to prepare the surface for lettering, think up a quote, and write. It still amazes me how sitting across the room from the piece almost immediately sparks the idea for the quote. There is no way I could have told you what the quote was going to be before the background was done. It really is the best way to work! Just a few more things to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Beauty Heals"

($60.00......6" x 6"......mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard)


"Beauty heals and helps restore the shattered soul." There are many who dismiss beauty as something frivolous or something you enjoy when everything else is done. This attitude must be rejected so that the wounded souls among us can experience healing through beauty. Make beauty a priority in your life.

This is yet another piece in developing depth and mystery with over lays of collage printed on silk tissue paper. You can create a variety of gestural marks and letters on other papers and then print them on tissue paper. The collage then becomes a richer surface and very integrated by allowing the viewer to see the layers underneath.

The "B" in this piece was originally written with white gouache on terra cotta Canson. When the same "B" is printed on the tissue paper, it is transformed into a beautiful transparent. The yellow in this piece was monoprinted on transparent paper, but not silk tissue paper. I honestly don't remember what it is. The key is to keep your eyes open for any kind of transparent paper (generally they are Japanese or Chinese papers). Check the transparency by laying it over some text.

The main underlying design idea in this piece is an emphasis on diagonals. When applying the black printing ink with a brayer, I made sure I was creating a diagonal, but then I also printed some straight vertical lines as a strong contrast. The diagonals are "echoed" in the gestural marks and some of the imagery on either side of the "B". The only reason I point these things out is to reveal my thought processes which are extremely analytical. It really is a habit worth developing because you will notice things that you might otherwise have dismissed. So there you have it. Just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Remembrance"

($60.00......6" x 6"......mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard)


"Remembrance leads our thoughts to the eternal." This quote is a veiled reference to communion where believers in Christ stop to remember the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ by partaking of the symbolic unleavened bread and wine. Every day is a good day to stop and remember.

This piece shows the complexity that can be achieved in mixed media. The first layer was erratic ink lines on a black sheet of Rives BFK. Black Speedball Printing Ink was applied over that with a brayer in a very select area going edge to edge. The third layer was white gesso applied with a credit card. That technique formed the veiling effect over portions of the black and the very think lines of texture.

My experience in kiln formed glass guided me through the layering of the collage and the decision to include one opaque section with two pieces that were printed on silk tissue paper. This is the same effect that happens when combining opaque and transparent glass in a three layer collage. (Check out the website of Kari Minnick to see the beautiful effects of contrasting opacity with transparency.)

The piece was then prepared for lettering by spraying with Krylon Spray Acrylic Coating and then (2) parts water and (1) part gel matte medium brushed over the surface.   You might also be interested in how the opaque piece of collage was created. I created a monoprint on Rice Paper and then printed the imagery over the monoprint. The ochre color created the warmth needed to contrast against all of the black. This is an example of the power of combining techniques and lots of contrasts to create a piece with depth and complexity. So there you have it. Just a few more things to try or think about.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.