"Amen!"

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


"Say amen to something every day!" It will make you feel good...like everything is right in the world again. Try it!

This is a very, very, experimental piece of artwork. I took it to the brink of destruction several times and then decided it was done when nothing else came to mind for me to do.

It began as a mono print on rice paper that was cropped and adhered to a clayboard. It is necessary to attach it to a hard support in order to work since rice paper is thin. Silver leaf, an extra piece of rice paper mono printed, the flourished Amen, and finally some fragments of metallic leaf were adhered in that order.

The method of deconstruction was used to add interest and make the darker purple piece more integrated into the support. After I adhered everything, the darker purple piece was still damp from the gel matte medium so I lifted up an edge an tore it off as far as it would go. I did that in several other places, revealing the mono print underneath. It truly is another spontaneous technique that yields good results in situations like this.

The quote took a back seat and is barely noticeable in the upper left hand corner. Writing it in pencil also helped to keep it subtle. I can't decide whether I like the end result completely, but I am pleased at the very strong shapes that were established. The ornate lettering is an old style which contrasts well with a very contemporary look. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about. So if you're frustrated with anything today, try deconstruction. It's very therapeutic!


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Good Thoughts" (sold)

(sold))


"Good thoughts flowing through my mind create a rich patina in my soul." Testing has already revealed that angry, hateful, unforgiving thoughts can have a very detrimental effect on our health. It is far better to lay all of that aside and wrap your mind around good, positive, life giving thoughts.

This is a piece that began with a mono print on rice paper. This paper is great for creating a mono print and is quite easy to do. Begin by mixing up your choice of color (preferably on a piece of glass or smooth ceramic tile) and then roll it out over the surface with a brayer. Then pick up an old credit card, stylus, or shaper tool and create gestural marks or remove sections of the paint. Lay a dry section of rice paper over the paint and rub with pressure over the entire surface. Pick up the paper and lay aside to dry.

The other collage pieces were also printed on rice paper and all the pieces were adhered to a clay board panel. I sprayed the entire surface with spray acrylic coating and then dried with a hair dryer. The surface was then prepared for lettering by brushing on (2) parts water to one part gel matte medium.

Mono printing is a spontaneous technique that will yield unexpected results. If you choose to use this type of image as a transparent collage, simply print it out on silk tissue paper for a completely different result. Just a few more things to think about.

"Closed" (sold)

(SOLD)


"Hang a "closed" sign in your mind on any thought that sends you on a detour." Detours are never fun. It generally takes a lot of time and effort to get back on the right road again. That's why it is so important to place a "closed" sign on those thoughts that can derail us. Most of the time we don't like to see the word "closed", but in this context,  it's a treasured word.

In order to have photographic images on hand that provide a lot of interesting shapes, it is necessary to change your mind on what constitutes a good photograph to provide the first layer for this type of piece. Taking photos of the typical scenic images that might be a good source for an oil painting is a different kind of photography. For this type of piece, you need to be looking for odd images that have some interesting shapes. All artwork is made up of shapes so the best candidates for this type of image will be the ones with many different sizes of shapes, overlapping shapes, shapes of different values or colors, and shapes that have edges on a diagonal. It's quite like going on an Easter Egg Hunt for shapes rather than eggs.

This particular signage was seen hanging on the door of a store. I was disappointed that the store was closed, but quite fascinated with the hand made sign that looked like a primitive collage created mostly from newspaper. Notice the division of space created by the sign and the way it was cropped for the photo. I did create a monoprint on Arches Text Wove with Ink before printing the image. Gesso and Black Charcoal Powder helped to add interest and mystery to the piece. Just a few more things to think about.

"Lines of Choice"

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


"Life is like an aged photograph etched with the lines of choice." Choices are the most powerful tool any of us has to alter the course of our life. This is especially true in a free society where we can choose to come and go at will. It is the cumulative effect of choices that make a life rich or destroyed. It's a choice.

As a visual artist, it is impossible to run away from the power created by division of space. It doesn't seem to matter what medium it is or whether the subject matter is realism, abstraction, or somewhere in between. The fact remains that all paintings of all types are made up of shapes. Those shapes create the way the space is divided. One of the most prolific daily painters (Carol Marine...oils) has compelling images because of the way her still life set ups are cropped and painted on the support. She has a great many diagonals plus the straight forward and confident brush strokes are also laid down in many different directions creating a rhythm which is mesmerizing.

The problem with all of us is that it is way too easy to shut off our brains and not intentionally think about these things. The result is often the same old thing with a still life placed in the center with negative space all around or the shadows and draping going off of the page, but always looking at the set up from the same angle. It's time to think because if any of us finds ourselves doing what thousands of others are doing, the viewer will tune out. There are simply too many compelling visuals out there so we must consider creating work that is not seen every day. In other words, to set ourselves apart somehow....some way. It is just something to think about. The division of space in this piece was created in layers with the lines playing a key role in how the space iwas divided, but it start with the division of space created by the photograph.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"A Grand State" (unavailable)

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


"Independence gave us a grand flag for a grand state." Today is Texas Independence Day so, of course, we need to commemorate such a grand occasion with a grand flag. Enjoy Texas today!

I was going for the old, historic look in this piece. I did create a mono print and erratic pencil lines on the paper before it was printed. After spraying the image (3x) with Spray Acrylic Coating and adhering to a clayboard panel...pouring medium mixed with Golden Titan Buff was poured over the entire piece. I sprayed with water to expose the areas to be highlighted and allowed it to dry overnight. I always use spencerian script when going for a historical feel so here it is with a bit of color bleed in the flag. This often happens, even after spraying the image (3x)...especially when wet medium is sitting on it overnight. I like the effect for this piece, but if it bothers you, blot the area where you don't want any "bleed" immediately after applying the pouring medium and spraying with water.

 Just a few more things to think about.

"Balance"

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


"Balance in life is the right distribution of time in key areas." Ouch! This quote hits me square between the eyes. This is just a friendly reminder to all who care about doing life well.

Monoprint, erratic lines, photography, gesso, graphitint pencils, and lettering. That is the sequence of how this piece was done. It creates a mood and that's what I go for in every piece I create. What is the quote and how do I create a mood that fits?

The Graphitint Pencils (Derwent) are fantastic in helping create mood. I'm sure that some of you might be thinking why not use water soluble pencils. Pencils might still leave some of the pencil marks in place even after adding water. These pencils are water soluble graphite. It is soft and dissolves quite nicely into the background. Even watercolors will not be as completely integrated as these.

And just in case you are under the impression that you are looking at an image of a church. it is not. This is actually one of the many spires emerging from The Biltmore Estate. If you're ever in Ashville, N.C., you really must take a day to go. You will not be disappointed. Just something else to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"A Broken Window" (sold)

(SOLD)


"A broken window gives clearer vision." Brokenness in life has a good side if it is viewed from the right perspective. This image of an old window shows how clearly the foliage can be seen with the window broken. It's a visual metaphor of the flip side of brokenness. If you have been hurt badly in relationships or physical suffering, you are the ones who can see life quite clearly.

Windows are one of my favorite visual metaphors, especially if they have several panes. This one is especially charming since it had been sitting outside of an antique store for quite some time. When looking for just the right kind of photograph to include in your art work, don't overlook those things which are not included in the obvious choices. This image not only gave me the perfect metaphor, but it has a wonderful poetic quality with the leaves sitting in the sill and the "fogginess" of the glass. The choice of image left me with very little to do.

However, I did add some pencil lines and created a monoprint with Caran d'Ache Saffron colored ink on the paper before printing the image. After the image was sprayed with Acrylic Coating and adhered to the panel, I added Black Charcoal Powder and black erratic lines with a pointed pen. The piece was then secured with spray acrylic coating again....prepared for lettering with diluted gel matte medium with the final quote and white lines done with pointed pen and Winsor Newton Bleedproof White. And that's how it's done! Just something more to think about in transforming a photographic image into a piece of art.

"Love and Friendship"

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


"Transparency in relationship is a prerequisite to deeper levels of love and friendship." True intimacy requires not holding back. Hopefully, we all have a few relationships where we can "let our hair down", so to speak. These persons are rare. If you have more than one or two in your life, consider yourself blessed.

In this piece, I added another technique to my repertoire. I bought a set of Derwent Graphitint pencils. They are a water soluble graphite that yield neutral color when applied. They were used extensively over this photograph after I sprayed it with spray acrylic coating (3x). By first applying pencil marks where you want more of a color boost, followed by going over those marks with a wet brush, you can get the most subtle effects. The most obvious place where I used one of these pencils is in the neutral red heart on the right hand side. The berries were also given a boost with the same color. The set comes with 12 pencils ranging in various shades of grays...some leaning towards red, green, or blue.

The most obvious blue in the background was created by monoprinting with Caran d'Ache Carribean Sea Ink. Both of these techniques work very well with transparent imagery or any photo that has a lot of subtle color to begin with. Just one more thing to try or think about.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Step by Step" (unavailable)

(unavailable)

"Step by step and line upon line lays the foundation for growth." It is so natural to want to speed through the steps of learning and be automatically at the finish line. I have noticed that even though everyone knows that you must take one step at a step, there is still that hope that it isn't so and that one of us might be the exception. Even people with seemingly natural ability must go through the steps.

This is my first photography piece where acrylic paint has been one of the layers. I like the idea of covering up extraneous detail with paint to cause the viewer to focus on the main attraction. There were trees and flowers at the top and to the sides of those stairs so I simply used the same colors and painted over them starting with the green first and then the pink over that. It also helped to soften the edges with a clean sponge brush dipped in water and then blotting with kleenex.

Other layers included erratic pencil lines and lettering...brush lettering with dilute prussian blue...monoprinting with Caran d'Ache ink...and gesso plus a water brush to remove the excess.

So if you have nothing to do this afternoon, you might want to try or think about these things.

"Empty Ink Bottle" (unavailable)

(unavailablel)


"An empty ink bottle could mean that nothing more needs to be written or said." We have all been in situations where we tried everything to get a person or circumstance to change. At that point, reality is the task master. Facing reality is difficult, especially when the ink bottle is empty. It's a metaphor with an implied conclusion that reality is a friend.

Yesterday's quote was "Wishing will not create growth". Today's quote is just another nail in the coffin of "wishful thinking". For instance, we have all taken workshops that we paid lots of money for and then life gets in the way while that information gathers dust. A happy day is around the corner when the reality of that sinks in. The bottom line is that if practicing a skill is not part of your daily life, then don't be surprised if your ink bottle runs dry.

Last week I took a workshop which is why I am probably thinking about growth, skill levels, etc. It was an oil painting workshop and my skill level in that medium is at square one. But one of the things we did was paint still lifes with a strong light on the set up. The last thing we painted in each of those little "treasures" (tongue in cheek) was to add the highlights on the objects with the strong light. I was amazed at how such a little stroke of the brush could add so much. We referred to it as "bling" in the class. My point is that when working in mixed media with a dark background, white lettering and lines become the bling. Anything you do that creates that stark contrast could be considered the "bling" in mixed media. Be bold and step up the contrasts. Just something to think about.

"Refracted Light"

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


"Wisdom is like refracted light that reveals truth based on the source of light." This quote passes over the physical and spiritual realm simultaneously. Our eyes can see and enjoy refracted light when it passes through cut glass, yet it also touches the deepest parts and origin of our core belief system.

Today is the beginning of my photographic techniques slowing morphing and including expressive drawing and writing. It is quite difficult to move away from "comfort zones", but it is time.

Going into a new year is generally when most people set new goals and make decisions that take them into uncharted territory. My journey will be a slow and steady approach and my hope is that by sharing my process, you will be inspired to look again at your own process of creating art.

In this piece, I altered the image a bit more. I began by printing the photo onto Arches Text Wove after doing a monoprint with Caran d'Ache Caribbean Sea Ink greatly diluted and transferred to wet paper. That changed it from a black and white image to hints of blue.

After fixing the image by spraying (3x) with Acrylic Spray Coating, I brushed slightly diluted gesso over the whole piece. I then sprayed the image with water over a disposable plate, revealing the areas that became the focus. My next step was to introduce more color with the application of soft pastels which created the purple and cobalt blue areas. (Scrape off the pastel onto a paper plate and apply with soft brush.) I discovered that soft pastels adhere to gesso quite nicely so it is a wonderful way to add color with any gesso techniques you are already including in your process. Of course, the piece had to be sprayed again (2x) with Acrylic Spray Coating and then prepared for lettering by brushing on a dilute portion of gel matte medium. (Heat will need to be applied to the surface at the same time you're brushing on the medium in order to get it to attach to the slick surface.)

These are just a few things to think about as you make plans for the new year and think about process.


Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Transparency"

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

"Transparency is an amazing quality that describes some types of glass as well as people with integrity." This is a close up shot of a chandelier in an antique store. The contrast between the iron and glass was stunning and the whole image brought this quote to my mind. It also has a historic look and sparkle of Christmas.

The first layer of this image created the "wow" factor. I did a monoprint on Arches Text Wove, using ink instead of Walnut Ink. It is Caran d'Ache Caribbean Sea, diluted with a bit of water and monoprinted on very wet paper. The actual photograph shows the glass as clear with little or no color. It will give you quite the adrenalin rush to experiment with these intense inks so you might want to peruse through your photos and look for some transparent glass. I suppose you could accomplish this look in Photoshop, but you would not have the "random" placement of the blue.

Just in case you may not know how to do a monoprint, let me explain. Pour or mix a bit of color, using any water media, onto a hard surface creating a puddle. Spray a piece of watercolor paper (or leave dry) and lay the paper over the puddle and press over the back with your hand. Lift and there's your monoprint. You can even do it several times until you're satisfied with the print. Dry and print your photo.

There is also a lot of gradation going on in this piece...not only in the image, but in the lettering. Gradation in lettering can happen two ways. You can either change the value of the medium as you write or you can use one value to write with and letter over several different values in the image. Either way will achieve a gradated effect. (Some viewers will hate this if it is more difficult to read, but it does achieve a nice "fading out" effect.) I will say that this quote is very readable if you are holding the original in your hand. Just a few more things to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"Stairs of Life" (sold)

(sold)

"The stairs of life unfold one step at a time and no one else can climb them for you." So often we only notice how others are progressing in life. The reality is that it is does not happen through osmosis. Each person has to be willing to climb the stairs of opportunity and focus on their own gifts and abilities.

Today's piece was created much the same way as yesterday's posting so I will not repeat those steps. However, there is one more additional element added that looks like a piece of collage.

The vertical lettering was typed on my computer and then printed on the Arches Text Wove after I completed the monoprint with Walnut Ink. You could also scan sketches you've created or any other line work and print it in the same manner. It does greatly enrich the surface without adding too many elements. And some of you are like me and have sketches and odd pieces in notebooks or journals that could easily be scanned to include with just the right photograph.

The cool thing about printing over a monoprint in this fashion is that you really have no idea where it will land in the final printing of your photograph over all of this background stuff. It is just another "spontaneous" technique that surprises you with its random placement. So let me reiterate again that if you want a spontaneous look, you will most likely be able to achieve that by using spontaneous techniques. So as you experiment and observe things happening in your studio, keep your eyes wide open for this type of process. Most of the techniques I've learned have been learned by just "messing around" with materials. These are just more things to try or think about.

"Timelessness"

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

"Slipping into timelessness is to possess those thoughts not frozen in time." There are particular people, places, and things that are unforgettable and don't seem to fall off of the "radar screen" of our mind. The image in this piece is an architectural element from the Biltmore in Ashville, N.C. It is an element not frozen in time because it continues to inspire with its perfection of design. I know this is deep, but try to think of those things that stir up timeless memories for you. Those particular thoughts are not frozen in time. They live on.

As you can see, I am still "pushing the envelope" with my photographs. The same kinds of effects can probably be created in Photoshop, but you would not have the actual properties of paint or the original marks on the piece.

In this piece, I began again with a monoprint created with Walnut Ink on Arches Text Wove. This monoprint was created on damp paper to soften the edges of the print, but it is also possible to do it on dry paper just to see what would happen. I then printed the photograph over the monoprint by running the paper through my printer. Pencil marks and lines followed. Spray Acrylic Coating (2x)....followed by Pouring Medium plus Unbleached Titanium. Dry overnight. These are all the things I did in yesterday's post. But today, I added a bit of soft pastel by scraping it onto a paper plate and applying with a Hake brush. The surface created by the pouring medium receives soft pastel extremely well.

In the final stages, I sprayed the surface with acrylic coating again (to hold the pastel in place) followed by (2) coats of diluted gel matte medium to prepare the surface for writing. (Remember to secure the piece with a removable sticky square so that you can hold the hair dryer and brush on the matte medium simultaneously. The medium will not attach to a slick surface without heat.) Just some more things to try or think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.

"My Home" (Sold)

(sold)

"Other places I may roam, but Texas is my home." This time of year many people may visit other places, but those who live in the Lone Star State have a pride like no other, and Texas is their home. The star in the image is on the (5) acres we call home.

It is very easy to get locked into a particular technique and stay there forever, but real growth happens when you hold loosely to particular techniques and simply allow it to continue "morphing" into something else. This has been one of the hugh benefits of blogging every day. The process seems to spur on this "morphing process".

In this piece, I poured a bit of Walnut Ink onto my glass table top followed by the laying down of Arches Text Wove to make a monoprint. After drying thoroughly, I then printed my photograph over the monoprinted paper. I could have stopped there, but the look of Liquitex Pouring Medium plus a bit of Titan Buff has captivated me so I did that technique as well. (The photograph must be sealed with 2-3 coats of Krylon Spray Acrylic Coating first and mounted on a clayboard panel.) Pencil lines and writing were also added. I have some other ideas to try and you probably do as well. Just something to try or think about.