Those of you that know me in person, know that I almost exclusively wear black & white with the occasional hot pink thrown in. I really like the simplicity of it, its classic quality & modern edge. It works for me in my clothes, but sometimes I forget how much I like it in my work; Payne's Grey seduces me with it lovely nuance. I have recently rediscovered my love for Higgins Waterproof Ink. I used to buy it by the quart. In undergrad I completed huge works with this stuff (& by huge I mean wall sized). This ink is truly one of the materials I love, but somehow it ended up outside my repertoire for the past few years. Now it is back with a vengeance. My studio is covered with pattern pieces, large & small, all on black backgrounds with white gouache. I love it! Now I would love a gallery to show them in. Somehow white cubes make the work that much more real, for me at least. Here's to black & white! Happy Tuesday Y'all!
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I sell digital reproductions thru society6 & recently they have been expanding their product line to include not only artists prints & pillows, but also wall clocks & shower curtains. With these new options in mind, I created this black & white iteration of the oyster shell pattern. I think it will look chic on pillows & tote bags, as well as prints & shower curtains. Check it out over at society6 & use this link for $5 off + free shipping. The offer ends Sunday evening at Midnight Pacific Time. Happy Friday Y'all!
The cloud shapes for the past 72 hours have been quite striking. I am increasingly aware of how consciously & unconsciously everything I see influences/ends up in my paintings. Be careful little eyes what you see. Happy Monday Y'all!
I have been working on the watercolor over gouache technique for the Oyster Shell series because it allows for more interesting bleeds to surface. But it takes away many of the pattern-like elements I like. So I am performing a balancing act between water & pigment. Enough water & pigment to make the bleeds I love, but not enough to erase the gouache. It is proving an elusive balance, but I will persevere. Happy Thursday Y'all!
For some reason, maybe the cold, at the end of January, every year I am drawn to working with textiles. It takes different forms, baby buoy & jersey braided cowls come to mind. This year my longing for textile work decided to crush on pom poms. I was inspired by the pom pom book I reviewed a few weeks ago for sure. When I gave my mother a pre-valentine garland she knew instantly where she wanted to display it. A few days later I received this photograph. I love the conversation between her painting & my garland. They certainly seem made for each other. Happy Tuesday Y'all!
Friday afternoon I had the privilege of being out on Broad Creek during sunset. The clouds different formations reminds me of the mark-making exercise page in a sketchbook. Happy Monday Y'all!
I wanted to see what would happen if I printed the gouache first and then laid the wash on top. The effect is divergent, much more organic, not so regimented. I will play more with the different layering of these two paints. The effect is so disparate that I am not sure which I prefer or which is closer to what I want to say. Hence my continued experimentation. Hope your week is off to a solid start. Happy Wednesday Y'all!
This iteration of the oystershells contains the faintest underpainting of Payne's Grey & then a solid amount of Hooker Green. I love how the green pigment is pulled by the gouache leaving a lot of the yellow undertones visible. There is a textural-ness to these paintings that I am attempting to capture in my documentation, but have yet to achieve. I tell you this so that you can imagine it. Happy Wednesday Y'all!
I love how the gouache pulls the pigment from the darker watercolors. Because of how the brush is loaded some of the gouache is applied quite thickly & creates a temporary textural relief on the surface, while some is barely visible. This difference is really enjoyable & particularly evident when you rotate the painting thru the light.
Materials Used: Winsor & Newton Payne's Grey Underpainting Holbein Primary White Gouache Prints with Princeton Neptune Oval Wash Brush Arches Hot Press Watercolor Block |