More Black and White and a Giveaway

I made a few more papers using stencils with a sponge roller, but also with the GelliArts gel plate.  On these I used Golden Fluid Acrylics (Carbon Black and Titanium White), and also Golden OPEN Acrylics, which have a very long working time (they dry slowly).

Here are a few of the papers I made, using 9"x12" Cheap Drawing Paper:

In this I used a stencil I made myself with Cheap Drawing Paper.

For this I used OPEN acrylic, and made the lines using a Q-tip.

For this one I used a homemade gelatin plate, 8"x8", and then a stencil over it.

 The following two images are digital collages studies.  They don't exist in actual material.  I was fooling around in Photoshop, manipulating the scale of each of my papers as I put them together in these pieces.  As I am investigating the issue of scale, I am wondering if making either digital studies or small paper studies might be useful.  I've never worked from studies, so it's a new process for me.

I am offering a giveaway of the 14-product set of Golden's A - Z Workshop In A Box, to one person, chosen at random from those who comment on this post.  Please say something about working in black and white, and/or something about scale.  I'm interested in your ideas.  Identify yourself uniquely (i.e. "Mary in San Diego" rather than "Mary").  I will post the winner on Thursday, May 28.  It is the responsibility of the winner to get in touch with me.

Winner of the OPEN Acrylics

Jan from  Green Valley, AZ is the winner of our set of OPEN acrylics from Golden (well, the giveaway is from me, but Golden makes these fabulous paints).  Jan needs them because regular acrylics dry much too quickly in Arizona.  Thanks, everybody, for participating.  Jan: e-mail me with your mailing address, and I will send them out next week.

Here are two pieces in process in my studio.  Both are 30"x44", which is WAY big for me.  OPEN acrylics are great for working large as well.

This one is probably finished.  30"x44" on paper

This is a close-up, sort of, of the above.

This one is definitely NOT finished.

Subtractive Techniques with Open Acrylics - a GIVEAWAY!

I am probably not the best person to show you this technique because I haven't used it much in my own work.  However, I found myself scratching lines through paint using various tools, and thought that Golden Open Acrylics would be particularly useful if you wanted to draw into wet paint and take your time.  Regular acrylics dry pretty quickly, which limits the time you have to work them.  Golden Open Acrylics take forever to dry unless applied in a very thin coat.  You can modify them, as you'll see in the video, to make the drying time a little quicker, by mixing them with regular heavy body acrylic paint or with a regular acrylic medium. 

I am offering a GIVEAWAY of a set of Golden Open Acrylics, plus I'm throwing in two tubes of metallic Open Acrylics. To enter, please comment on this post.  You must live in the US or Canada, and it is your responsibility to check in to see who the winner is on Saturday, May 31.  The winner can contact me via e-mail to give me a mailing address. 

Here is the set I am giving away: six tubes of Open Acrylic in a starter set, plus two regular sized tubes in Iridescent Gold and Iridescent Copper.

This is the sample from the first part of the demo

This is a demo piece using only VanDyke Brown (transparent) on a ground of Hard Molding Paste.

 For the ground I am using Hard Molding Paste, which gives you a surface like porcelain.  For more information and videos on Open Acrylics, go to Golden's web site.

"Open" Acrylics on the Gel Plate and GIVEAWAY

Many of you have worked with the GelliArts gel printing plate, and dozens of technique demonstrations are available on the GelliArts blog and elsewhere.  I don't have anything new to show you in terms of techniques.  However, I do want to show you how Golden Open Acrylics work so well with the gel plate.  They remain wet and workable for WAY longer than other acrylics, so they are ideal for gel printing, giving you time to think about and develop each print pull.

You can mix the Open acrylics with regular acrylics or acrylic mediums, and that will speed up the drying time;  for example, mix Open Manganese Blue Hue with Fluid or Heavy Body Manganese Blue Hue, and you will get a paint that dries faster than Open, but slower than regular, and at full pigment strength.  Or mix Open paint with regular matte medium or gel, and the result will dry faster than Open, and be somewhat extended (diluted).

This is the preliminary print, 10"x10".

This is the piece more developed, not sure if it is finished yet.

The preliminary print, 10"x10"

The same piece, developed further

This is a 12"x12" preliminary print.

... and the same piece with collage and paint, still in process.

 

The next three images are preliminary prints with no collage or paint added.

 

10"x10"

12"x12"

12"x12"

Here are my collateral collage sheets:

And Amelia's works in progress:

Amelia's fine chicken prints

Amelia's monoprint in Manganese Blue Hue

I will be giving away a 6"x6" GelliArts gel plate, along with a few sample Golden Open Acrylics, to a random person who comments on this post.  You must be in the United States to be eligible for the drawing (ALL of the United States).  I will do the GIVEAWAY on Monday, January 13, so check back to see if you won!

WIN THIS!! (plus some paint)

PS:  if you choose to post any of these images elsewhere, please label them as works in progress.  Thanks.