"Feather My Soul"

(SOLD.......8" x 8".......on 300 lb. CP Fabriano Paper.....Presented on a 2" depth cradled board)

"Feather my soul with declarations of your love." I have developed visceral feelings about this feather so this is one of three in a series. The quote today came from my own heart and has a spiritual meaning, but it could also be referring to the love of your life.

Today's posting is an (8" x 8"). Squares still hold a special attraction for me because of possibilities of space division. It can have a horizontal or vertical feel depending on the image. This, of course, is an abstracted feather, but not so abstract that it is unidentifiable. The colors and shape are the elements that had me at first glance.

Any natural image from our created world has numerous possibilities for abstraction and playing with shape. By noting the elements of design (line, shape,size, direction, color, value, texture).....and what they are doing, you have the opportunity to abstract the image by altering any of these elements. And how much these elements are altered is totally up to the artist.

Even though I love color with all my heart, neutrals still beckon me frequently to come back and visit them again. These are the kinds of continual "returnings" that give you the most obvious clues in what comprises your art voice. And I seem to have a new found love for watercolor since its characteristics contain some of my longings for transparency contrasted with opacity and especially the luminosity.

So on it goes, the daily listening for the spirit within that originates the longing for particular techniques, moods, and all the other elements that comprise visual communication. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Layer on Layer"

(unavailable.....4" x 6".....on 300 lb. CP)

"Growth is layer on layer." In an instantaneous world...no one likes to realize that growth in any area happens layer by layer. There are so many nuances to everything that it is impossible to learn all of them at once. But oh the joy, when things do come together in a pleasing way.

This small piece represents me practicing my techniques again. And literally, the glazing technique in watercolor is layer on layer. Just to recap...the layers must be dried after each one. That's the most important thing to remember.

I did begin by sponging both sides of this 300 lb. CP (Arches) with water. That thoroughly wets the paper and removes the sizing. I then painted three horizontal lines across the wet paper with neutral tint and a tiny bit of Cobalt Violet (Turner Brand). This may not seem to be an important layer, but creates foundational values that can be seen through the transparent layers. It is best at this point to go talk a walk, throw some laundry in the washer, or make the beds, etc. and let the water and pigment do what they're going to do. If you use your hair dryer too quickly, the effect will be ruined.  Come back to the piece after about 15 or 20 min. and then finish drying with a hair dryer.

My only reference here was a plant in my studio. And I simply took the shapes of the leaves as my jumping off point and changed the colors to lighter values. After painting each leaf on dry paper and losing the edge with plain water on one side, but not with every leaf, I dried it with a hair dryer. It doesn't take long for the pigment to do what it's going to do when glazing on dry paper.

You can see that I kept the colors light and overlapped them to create an abstract contemporary look. I also used a mechanical pencil (without the lead exposed) to make lines and write in a few of the leaves while they were wet. There happen to be (11) leaf layers in this piece.

Finally, I wrote the quote in pencil running up the side vertically. This is an important technique to get under your belt if you like contemporary watercolor.   And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Variegated I" (draft 2)

(image 1)

(image 2)

Today's posting is the second image from yesterday with more layers. More than likely, there will be no more layers added except for the lettering. My quote will be...."Variegated thoughts are running through my mind."

This piece today represents me processing and practicing glazing and layering to create interesting shapes, edges, and maintaining the luminous qualities of watercolor. Like you, I am on a "learning curve" with these techniques since it has been a very long time since I made watercolor a part of my voice.

I am pleased that I did not overwork each layer by going over and over it. My mind was firmly wrapped around the idea of waiting until it was completely dry before adding more layers. Having said that, I really need to practice the ratio of water to paint. There are times when the water in the brush needs to be completely squeezed out before dipping it into more color.

And the value created by how much water is added to the pigment is also a major factor. I did exercise some control by testing my value on a "work off" piece before adding it to the actual piece. And I think this is a good practice tip, even with much experience. And I am also practicing different techniques on a 4" x 4" piece of 140 lb CP in between working on my other work.

My plan is to make notations of what I did on each 4 x 4, punch a hole in the corner, and place them on a binder ring. (They are available at office supply stores.) The reason these kind of exercises are important is to have a ready reference to make it easier in selecting which techniques to use to accomplish a specific goal. You can also cut out visual inspirations and mount them on large shipping tags and also place those on a binder ring. They also make a pretty display in a wood or decorative bowl in your studio.

So you can see in the two images today which colors I layered and in what order.  (My inspiration was the leaf patterns on an "Angel" plant....so you are seeing the top side of the leaf which is green and the underneath side of other leaves which is red.)  Planning out a layering strategy requires thinking ahead through the piece and then plotting your strategy. It's like thinking ahead and thinking backwards at the same time. You can also have no thought at all and simply paint whatever comes to mind. And that does work occasionally, but for long term success, you and I will both be better served by learning the basic techniques, color priniciples, and possible compositions before going crazy.

If you cannot recount to yourself and others what you did to create a particular look, then you can never intentionally repeat it. This means you will be starting at square one every time you paint. It will simply be a roll of the dice. Even artists who work very intuitively are thinking about a few things that are very important and making decisions as they go along. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Blessed" (draft 2)

(draft 2....8" x 10")

This piece is all about Psalm 1. The complete text will appear in the final. There is, however, a great deal of text in this second draft which is setting the stage for the final lettering. Tomorrow you will see the power of very straight script written in black and how it calms everything in this piece down without jeopardizing the energy you see now.  I also cropped it to an 8" x 10" size.

There are several reasons why this piece is coming together in a beautiful way. And most of those reasons have to do with contrasts. The first and most obvious contrast is between the textured areas and the non textured areas. When delivering thin paint like this to a surface and with a brayer, there is transparency and hard edges, but very little detail.  When the mono printed black papers were added, complex and compelling texture entered the scene. And remember that black and white plus one or two other colors works every time it's tried.

The next contrast is the color. Not only the colors plus black and white, but the fact that the blue and orange are direct complements on the color wheel. There is also a contrast of saturation of color. By mixing the two complementary colors, some interesting "grayed" down colors (or less intense) appeared. That automatically decreased their saturation and also the addition of white and a lot of water diluted them further. This is a stark contrast to the black color....even though some of those pieces are less saturated as well with a mix of some very dark blacks.

Another strong contrast appears in the static vs. dynamic lines in the piece. Static is either totally horizontal or vertical and dynamic is curved or diagonal. This is easy to achieve with a brayer and it is also easy to achieve in the mono printed papers. There are diagonal and circular lines in several of those pieces. And this is why I suggested you have a combination of both types of printed papers on hand. That circular pattern in the bottom center is crucial to the success of this piece.

Today, I dealt with values and having subtle shifts in the values of my lettering. This layering of letters also adds some subtle detail and marries the colors and shapes together by crossing over them in the same way you might stitch two pieces of fabric together. The choice of color for the brush lettering also breaks up the strong diagonal and softens the blow of such a strong line. (Tomorrow's posting with straight black lines of script will further soften that diagonal.) But that diagonal provides the underlying energy of the piece so I am glad I put it there in the first place.

The other contrasts have to do with the different sizes of lettering and the tools used. There is pencil, brush, and a Mitchell #6 nib. All of that creates a nicely textured and subtle background for my last bit of lettering. If you don't do lettering, consider line work and doodling (much like a zentangle to create some interesting value shifts and detail. (If you don't know what a zentangle is....just google it. Quite fascinating.)   And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"A Thankful Heart"

(unavailable)

"The best poetry is found in a thankful heart." To think deeply about all there is to be thankful for will get rid of negative thoughts and then a poem will emerge.

It really doesn't matter what medium an artist works in, it all seems to come back to layering. In this piece (actually, in all pieces), I think through the entire painting first. In other words, I needed to know how those pine needles were going to be done before any paint was mixed. 

It is very difficult to create thin lines with a palette knife so I used the "sgraffito" technique to carve it out of the paint rather than painting it on. It's like an inscription. So having made that decision, I then decided to paint the entire surface with a very dark green so that when I got around to those pine needles, I could simply carve them out with the sharp point of a palette knife to reveal that dark green.

However simple that may sound, it does involve holding the palette knife at an angle and not using too much pressure. Otherwise, you will carve all of the paint off and get to the gessobord. Another layering decision I used here was to lay in the background first. It seems more "convincing" when I do it that way although others do it quite differently. I began with the sky...then the mountain...and finally the water. I was then able to carve through all of the background to create the pine branch. The other foreground foliage was painted on one stroke at a time with not much pressure and wiping the palette knife after every stroke. 

Last, but not least, was the quote inscribed into the wet paint with a #.09 mechanical pencil, wiping after every stroke. The exciting thing is that these techniques are not limited to landscapes, but are easily translated to very abstract work. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Outdoor Cathedral"

(unavailable)

"Trees can form an outdoor cathedral." I have often heard people say that they feel the presence of God even more when they are outdoors. Trees, especially large ones can definitely feel like an outdoor cathedral. It's a comforting thought.

In this piece, the stately evergreens stand in stark contrast to trees that have fully turned. Capturing that with a palette knife in a 6" x 6" space was a challenge. This is a "wet into wet" technique so it is very important to have a good strategy on which color to lay down first. My plan generally begins by thinking of the piece in layers.

Whatever appears to have the most distance from my view is what I lay down first. In addition to that strategy, I also lay down a color that will reappear if I remove some of the paint. In the case of these trees, I laid down the color of the tree trunk so that this color would reappear when I scraped back some of the additional layers. It's all very risky, but well worth the effort.

One other very important factor is realizing that only one stroke can be made before wiping off the palette knife and making another stroke. The wonderful part of this is that palette knives are much easier to clean than brushes.

Last, but definitely not least is the amount of passion brought to this process. It is well worth the effort to take care in choosing what to paint because the passion will help you bring your best effort to the painting of the piece. And if you get off to a bad start, then scrape off the panel and begin again. I guarantee you will learn something with every single piece. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about. 

"Reality"

($40.00.....6" x 6"....300 lb HP mounted on a 1/8" depth clayboard panel)

"Reality is a non negotiable." We live in a world where many would like to rewrite reality. It cannot be rewritten because it is real and therefore a non negotiable.

Collage pieces are so much more effective if previous layers are "veiled". It creates depth, mystery, and a highly enriched surface. If you only lay down one layer of anything, many of these qualities are lost. Laying a collage element down and then overlapping it with an image that is translucent or transparent is the most effective way. It can be accomplished with printed images on silk tissue paper, overlays of rice paper, or glazes of lightly tinted washes, diluted gesso, etc.

In this piece, you are looking at a grid format with some of the black gesso of the support left untouched. And there are several transparent and translucent sections that add a rich patina...especially in the center of focus where the quote has been written. This piece also has the additional movement that appears in all of the purple segments. Gestural writing written into the block printing ink before the mono print was done has created this movement. It is important to include some type of movement in these mono printed areas since the obvious and mostly straight lines of this format can become static.

Also, by tearing out a corner of the center piece, I've created a contrasting edge, line, and shape. Again, the center of focus is framed out by the placement of the purple mono printed segments on all four sides, but in varying sizes. Some of these decisions are made intuitively, but it also helps by reiterating the decisions in this commentary. Hopefully, it helps you to understand my process and know what to look for in other works by different artists. The best way to learn design is by experimenting, reading, and analyzing over and over again. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Believe and Receive"

(unavailable)

"Believing is a prerequisite to receiving." Doubt, fear, and negativity will not get you where you want to go. Belief is an essential ingredient to receiving anything. 

The experiments with transparency, translucence, and opacity continue to be at the core of my work. In this piece, I have parts of the old bible pages adhered to the support with a one layer rice paper overlay. To add more dimension, I added another piece of rice paper over a portion of the other layers. And then if you want to include a word or line that would be totally readable, that piece is placed on top.

And then the transparent silk tissue paper with the line of black and bold lettering is placed on top of the previous layers with a faint image of the underlying bible page. It is the interplay of these elements that makes the piece so fascinating. Also notice the small arched window printed on silk tissue paper in the upper right hand corner. 

The experimentation with these transparent and translucent materials hold a myriad of possibilities. And even if you don't want to do lettering, line drawings of any kind will provide a similar look. You can find them in old books or create your own drawings and print them on rice paper if you like...saving the original for future projects. It's all quite fun and I hope your inspired to give it a try. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

"Recharge Zone"

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


"A recharge zone is a place of renewal." Everyone needs a recharge zone. It's that place or activity that helps you "chill out" and get renewed. If you're like me, you need more time in your recharge zone.

This is an interesting piece and was a total experiment in layering over a pouring medium piece. Because I've created and looked at a ton of these type of pieces, I am wanting to take it to another level by integrating other techniques into the process. Pouring medium is a very "charged" look and process that can also be overpowering. My desire is to bring in enough other elements (but not too much) that will create a contrast between active and passive.

For the most part, that means introducing some very straight lines to counter the active movement of the pour. I may have too much of a "counter attack" going on here, but part of my purpose for blogging everyday is to work through all of the design issues that come up with mixed media processes.

What I do like very much is the lovely texture created by writing into Speedball Printing Ink (with water)that has been applied over Silver Leaf. Of course, the silver leaf was adhered with Gel Matte Medium and then partially removed. It sticks very well most of the time, but it is necessary to reveal the previous layer so I used rubbing alcohol and a stiff brush, following by immediate blotting with a kleenex to create all of those erratic edges.

And if you don't have time for a piece every day, you might want to try doing one 6" x 6" every week. Putting a piece together is a wonderful way to learn design because of all the decisions that must be made to bring the whole thing to a conclusion. So there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Listening"

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

"A quiet and undisturbed spirit is the prerequisite for listening." In conflict resolution classes, the most important communication skill is listening. We all need to listen more intently to what others are saying.

This is a different approach to the technique of creating a pouring medium piece. The colors here are much more subdued and textures are extremely subtle.

Begin by wetting the paper under the faucet on both sides. (140lb. HP) Have a light medium and dark color premixed and ready to pour. After pouring three or four colors on the paper. Let them blend to your heart's content, holding the paper over a shallow baking dish and spraying and turning the paper until you're satisfied with your background of gradated and diffused color.

Lay the paper on wax paper laid on foam core. Now choose two colors that you used in the first pour and pour them across the paper again, leaving space in between these two colors. Take a fork, toothpick, or corner of an old credit card and run it through these two lines of color. It will not be as blended as the first pour, but will create a very pleasing and subtle texture. (In this piece, my two last colors were raw sienna and brilliant violet plus a bit of raw umber and white.) Just a few more things to think about in manipulating a very spontaneous technique.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"New Beginnings Through Faith"

($200.00....12" x 12"....mounted on a 2.0" depth clayboard)


"Faith is believing what we do not see, and the reward is to see what we believe." This is a wonderful quote by St. Augustine. Like the last few postings, this piece was created for an Easter Exhibit..."New Beginnings", now on display at Hill Country Bible Church NW.


Even though this piece was created with pouring medium and acrylics, I attempted to give it an "aged" look by doing several things. The first layer, of course, is the pouring medium on 300 lb HP watercolor paper with more water sprayed into the pour. The second layer was the Spanish Round Gothic text written on the surface after preparing with gel matte medium.

The third layer was begun by spraying with Spray Acrylic Coating (2x) to protect the lettering from the next pour. I then used a palette knife to completely cover the piece with pouring medium and Titan Buff Fluid Acrylic. The piece was then sprayed with water to reveal the text, but greatly diffused. It was left to dry overnight.

The fourth layer was created by sanding with rough grit sand paper (very hard) to remove portions of the letters to give it an "aged" look. Charcoal Powder was brushed on in various places followed by spraying again with Spray Acrylic Coating to protect the charcoal powder.

Last, but not least, I prepared the surface for lettering with gel matt medium (2 parts water to 1 part gel matte) and then finished the piece by adding the Spanish lettering in script. And this is just one of a series of things that can be done with layering techniques. So there you have it...a few more things to think about.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Change Agents" (unavailable)

(unavailable....in the permanent collection of dee day)


"Words are just words until they are applied to life as change agents." There are bits of wisdom buried in books, speeches, and sermons that have appeared in my mind like neon signs. One of them I recall quite vividly from my own pastor...."If I haven't obeyed, I haven't listened." Ouch! That one hurt a bit, but it keeps coming to mind and has actually helped me at times when I needed to do something that was difficult, but right.

Transparency is one of those elusive things in art that artists everywhere have tried to incorporate into their layering process. In this piece, as in others, I have printed onto very, very thin tissue paper. It is difficult to find, but if you need just one word or line, you might try printing on removable tape. Just be sure you lay it down into gel matte medium on your piece so the bit of adhesive is not making contact with your paper. (Over time, it can eat a hole in your paper...but acrylic emulsions do resolve that problem. I thank God for them every day!)  Also, don't forget to spray your print with acrylic spray coating or it will rub off.

If you desire to see lettering or imagery, but want it to be imbedded in your piece, diluted gesso or acrylic glazing medium are good choices. You can add water to both of these products and apply thin coats (drying in between) with a sponge brush or credit card until the degree of transparency is reached.

For those persons new to lettering or layering, it may be difficult to overcome the fear of writing or adhering something over another image. There is a strong tendency to avoid doing that and place elements on a solid background instead.  However, it is necessary to realize that layering, especially transparent layering creates depth. And if the truth be known, all art work is lettering to a greater or lesser degree. Just a few more things to think about.

"The Poetry" ($60.00)

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

"The poetry of the autumn landscape is a call to embrace beauty." It takes intentionality and time to enjoy beauty. Otherwise, we could all lose sight of the positive things in life.

Even when composing a serene and quiet piece, texture is still a provocative design element that adds complexity to a piece without clutter. Gesso, molding paste, crackle paste, pouring medium, erratic lines done in pencil, palette knife applications, brush strokes, etc....are all ways to add texture. Of course, you don't need to do all of these things in the same piece, but it is a way to give the viewer something more to look at than a single image on a blank sheet of paper. With the vast volume of imagery that crosses our eyes everyday, it is imperative to have depth and visual interest. Knowing how to do that is a lifelong pursuit, but ever so rewarding.

Layering is the logical process of achieving complexity. And the case could be made that all art is layering. I like to think of it in the same way that it is done in Photoshop. Every time a change is made, there is a new layer. It is not necessary to cover the entire piece with a new layer of paint or texture to have a new layer. The subtlety comes when the artist is very selective about where to add additional elements or techniques. Just keeping a journal of one or two techniques is a great way to keep your hands on art everyday. Just something 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.

"Bright and Early" ($40.00)

($40.00)


"Bright and early reflections fuel the day." To some of you, this may sound like an oxymoron, especially if you're not an early riser. So after you've had your first cup of coffee, think about your day and what thoughts will help you navigate through your schedule in the best way.  It makes a huge difference.

The color studies I've been creating involve changing the surface to react differently to the paint and changing the properties of the paint to create different saturations and texture.

Gesso actually creates a resist if applied to the surface before the paint.  If it is applied randomly, you can create interesting shapes because the paint reacts differently on the unprimed areas. It creates a "veiled" effect if applied over color or imagery. Technique becomes very important at this stage depending on how much or little you want to reveal of the previous layer.

Changing the property of the paint is also exciting for the same reasons. You can choose how much light you want to have by how saturated or unsaturated the paint is. If it is diluted a lot with water you will get the equivalent of a stain. If you use a thick application of pigment or add a medium to the paint, you will block out the light. It's quite like adjusting the light source to spotlight or backlight an area.

All of these effects are great experiments to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Rest" ($60.00)

(adjusted price.....$60.00....mounted on a 1.50" depth clayboard)

Saying that rest is renewal is like an overstatement of the obvious. However, I have noticed that most people, myself included, tend to think that rest can be robbed with no consequences. The medical verdict is in. Our cells need replenishment and that only happens when we rest. Join me with a new commitment to set aside more time for rest.

As you can see, I am still experimenting a lot with gesso. In this piece, I randomly painted a very dilute portion of violet on blank paper first. Then came the gesso...also randomly applied but extending from edge to edge. Cobalt Blue and Transparent Burnt Sienna (very diluted) were then applied.

What I am particularly fond of is the illuminated effect that happens when transparent color is applied over gesso. The exciting part of this whole process is playing around with the sequence of layers. Mixing acrylics and applying them like watercolor is also part of this transparency. You will actually be able to paint over a layer and not disturb the layer underneath. Golden Fluid Acrylics are made for this type of watercolor application. Just something to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

" A Clear Mind" (sold)

(sold)

It is very frustrating and difficult to be in a "creative flow" when there is too much clutter in the work space and things are not where they're supposed to be. The organizational "gurus" in the world have figured out that if our desk or work space is cluttered, then so is our mind. That is precisely why the anitque drafting table in this piece has been cleared of everything. It was done to drive home the truth of this thought. Obviously, a desk or table needs minimal items on it, but when there is so much "stuff" you can't find anything, it's time to clear the surface which in turn will also clear your mind.

When creating this piece, I did not want too many elements cluttering the space. (pun intended!) So the only way to keep it from causing the viewer's eyes to glaze over was to position the table to create some diagonal lines. It also created a lot of interest in one of the corners. The diagonals in the legs of the table also created more interesting shapes.

Depth, especially in an abstract piece, is not only created by lines, but also by layering. The vertical band on the right began with ruling pen and burnt sienna lettering. It was too prominent so out came the diluted white gesso. I applied it with a sponge brush in thin layers until I achieved the right level of transparency. The pencil lettering was written on top of that, but it was still not right until I smudged some umber and burnt sienna over it with my fingers. So goes the process of layering. If I had not placed that vertical band in the piece, the directional lines of the table would have taken my eyes out of the piece entirely. Just something to think about when designing your piece.