Thursday, November 20, 2008

TEXTURE AND COLOR EXPLORATION!


This is a quarter sheet of 300 lb hot press watercolor paper that was a failed painting. I was anxious to try some of the new ideas I have been reading in the new books I purchased recently. I spread some gesso over the ugly painting then I took some white wrapping tissue and gessoed it onto the page in two large areas and let it dry. Next I took Golden's fiber paste and a credit card for a scraper and troweled the paste over a stencil to get a raised relief image. I then took the stencil and laid it down on another area of the painting and ran a brayer over the back in order to transfer the residue paste creating a negative of the stencil. When the whole thing was dry, I used the triad of Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna and Paynes Gray to paint the page.

In Critique session this morning, Jane Ferguson had done a bunch of great little artist's trading cards. They are 2.5 x 3.5. I decided to divide up my page into these rectangles. If I want, I can cut this page apart and have lots of Artist's Trading Cards. As it stands now, this is a study page for some textural techniques and the range of colors I can achieve with this triad. I really like the colors and want to do a portrait with them.

This detail shows the number stencil I used and the metal stencil that I scrubbed out the color with a toothbrush .




This detail shows the fiber paste through a metal labyrinth stencil. I also used a few of the Derwent Graphite colored watercolor pencils to enhance some of the shapes.





Here you can see one of the metal stencils used in three different ways; fiber forced through the openings, residue pressed onto the page and color lifted by scrubbing with a toothbrush while stencil is held to the paper, then blotting.





Here is the positive and negative fiber paste stenciled. Looks like pressing the fibers through the stencil smooth it out. I like the bas relief effect.



This was a fun little project. Tomorrow I will try to do another 1/4 sheet with a different texturing idea and a different color scheme.

11 comments:

Watercolor Wendy said...

Myrna, your blog is inspiring. Any tips on scheduling time for art on a daily basis? How often/long to you paint each week?

Myrna Wacknov said...

Wendy, painting or drawing everyday just has to have a higher priority than other stuff. Eric Maisel says "drop everything" when you are inspired. I rarely watch tv anymore and I can put dinner on the table in a half hour, 45 min. tops. I have arranged my schedule and my life around what is most important to me. I try to spend at least an hour a day painting or drawing. Some days I get to spend more time, others none at all.

cathyswatercolors said...

Thank you for sharing the details of your painting projects. I love that color palette as well.

Judybec said...

This textured painting is wonderful--you did some amazing things --I love it and plan to give it a try -- I've got plenty of "failed paintings" :)
Your demo on the post below is very intriguing too. Wish I could have seen it in person.

Anonymous said...

Myrna, Like Wendy, I find your blog inspiring. I enjoy your experiments and today's is not exception. What cool textures!

Anonymous said...

O. K Myrna ,after crit yesterday I went straight out and got the book Altered Surfaces .I love it and am excited to try it out .See you next week with our discovered gems.I cropped yesterdays painting and have some cool stuff.Guess there is no house work for me today!!!

Evolving Expressions said...

Thanks Myrna for sharing with us how to schedule time for painting and drawing, this has been my problem for a long time, I think from now on I will follow your advice.
By the way this is a gorgeous design and inspiring as always.

Myrna Wacknov said...

Keep in mind, my children are grown so I don't have the activities that go with caring for them. Just the worries which never go away as a mom!

carolpete said...

I find your blog very inspiring. I hope to try some of these textures and processes soon.

Pablo VillicaƱa Lara said...

Failed experiment? I think it's fabulous! We always focus on what didn't go right in our paintings when the viewer, unless you tell them always see something different.

Sandy Maudlin said...

What a gallery of beauty! Love what you created!

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