Re-Imagining: Using Your Own Artwork for Collage

 I recently had a bunch of my paintings, drawings, and sketchbook studies printed by a local printer, to generate new collage material. I always scan my smaller work at high resolution, and my larger works I have professionally photographed, so I have high quality digital images of everything. In Adobe PhotoShop I re-sized some of the images, and then ganged them up on 11"x17" files, ready for the printer. You could do this on your own printer if you have plenty of ink.

Here are a few of the files I sent to the printer:

A few images from my sketchbook

More from the sketchbook, original and re-sized

More from sketchbook with the red pear in several sizes

Here are some paintings and studies ganged up on 11"x17" sheets:

In addition to all this new collage material, I used some found material and began playing. Take a look at this video.

 

 

I found this to be a very freeing way to play with imagery and generate fresh visual ideas.

Watercolors!

With Golden's Absorbent Ground you can make any surface into a watercolor surface. I do not primarily work in watercolors, but have been experimenting recently in using them on this Absorbent Ground, and combining with my acrylics and collage. Here is a video demonstrating Qor Watercolors on Absorbent Ground. You can win a set of 24 Qor Watercolors + a jar of Absorbent Ground + FOUR 6"x6" cradled wood panels. Buy raffle tickets here. Proceeds benefit Rupert Village Trust, a community building project.

Interview with Louise Fletcher

I had the honor and pleasure of doing an interview with Louise Fletcher for her Art Tribe subscribers. You can see it below. Louise co-hosts, with Alice Sheridan, the Art Juice Podcast. Check it out! Enjoy the interview. Thanks for visiting.

Stained Tissue Paper

 This months raffle, see image in the right margin, features all you need to make stained tissue paper for collage: a set of ten Golden Fluid Acrylics (plus I will add a couple from my own stash), a pack of white tissue paper, a 12"x16" disposable palette, and a brush. You supply the water. 

Buy Raflle Tickets Here.

Here is a video I made a couple of years ago on staining tissue paper. 

 

Recently I have been using stained tissue paper along with other materials in collage. Here are a few examples:

On the Edge #1, 11"x14"

Edging Away #1, 11"x14"

Off the Edge #1, 11"x14"

On the Edge #2, 11"x14"

Off the Edge #2, 11"x14"

I would love to get your comments on staining tissue paper. Have you ever tried it? How do you use stained tissue paper in your work?  

 

Click here to buy raffle tickets for this tissue paper staining kit.

Absorbent Ground with Resists

Here is a little experiment I did with Golden Absorbent Ground and various Golden mediums used as resists. 

I applied two coats of Golden Absorbent Ground to a sheet of Bristol, and, after the surface was completely dry I applied stripes of Clear Leveling Gel, Color Pouring Medium, High Flow Medium, and Super Matte Medium to see how they would work as resists under various types of paint: watercolor, fluid acrylic, High Flow acrylic, and Heavy Body Acrylic.

 

You can find information on all of these products on the Golden website, and purchase them at Blick or your favorite art supply retailer. Here are links to the Absorbent Ground; Clear Leveling Gel; High Flow Medium; Color Pouring Medium; and Super Matte Medium.

The vertical stripes are the mediums used as resists. The horizontal yellow stripes are the paints I applied over them. I hope you find this information helpful. Trying out new materials can be a way to get out of a rut or reinvigorate your art practice. Thanks for visiting!

Art Basics - Playing with Arylic Paints in a Sketchbook

In an attempt to reach out to beginner painters, I've been exploring student-grade paints. Some teachers highly recommend that the beginner start with the best of paints, such as Golden. And that probably is good advice for some. However, I have seen many people afraid to explore freely because of the cost of the material. It's easy to feel intimidated by high quality paint, as if your image must be worthy of such fine material. 

 

I feel it's important to get the paint that suits you and your budget. If an expensive set of high quality paints is going to sit on the shelf untouched because of fear, then get something more affordable. Student grade paints do not have the same pigment load as professional paints. That is a given. They also have different consistencies, brand to brand. The only way to really know what is right for you is to try a few different brands and qualities of paint.

My advice to beginner painters who are not ready to spring for high-quality paints is this: start with a set of student grade paints (not craft paints), and gradually add your professional quality paints (Golden being my preferred, Holbein, Sennelier are some I've used as well) as needed. One tube or bottle at a time. grow into your good paints as your art practice develops.

Supplies I am using in this video are:

Strathmore sketchbook, hardbound, spiral bound. You can see some commentary on sketchbook options in this video.

Blick Matte Acrylic White, Galeria Acrylic Paint, Liquitex Basics, Arteza premium acrylic paint, 

Disposable Palette

Palette Knife; I like this square-ended one, but I suggest you try a few different shapes. Mine is the small #7, Liquitex Freestyle Painting Knife.

Your eyes and your hands are your most important tools. Enjoy!!

Art Basics: Your Supplies

 Here is a video showing you the supplies I recommend for someone just starting out in art. You can see a list of my recommendations, and links, in my previous post.

Thanks for watching, and enjoy your art practice! Happy new Year.

Just to be clear: as you grow into your art practice you will want higher quality paints. Add them gradually as your budget allows. As many of you know, my preferred brand is Golden - they create paints in a range of formats and viscosities (heavy body, fluid, high flow, etc) and a huge variety of mediums and grounds. There are many other high-quality, pigment-rich paints available, too. But to begin an art practice, the less-expensive student-grade paints are a good choice.

Composition with Cut Paper Collage

 Join me on zoom for a Technique Takeaway, hosted by Winslow Art Center.

Friday, December 17th,5 - 6:30 EASTERN Time (2:00 - 3:30 Pacific)

Cut paper collage is a powerful tool for exploring some elements of composition. In Composition with Cut Paper Collage I will show you how to use this simple technique to better understand shape, scale, negative space, color, and value.

Find details and sign up here.

The following are examples of student work, all-over layouts, nothing glued down.

Giveaway at 'Composition as Process' workshop

 In my short and cheap ($40) online workshop next Friday I will be demonstrating this painting, narrating my compositional decisions as I go. One participant will win the painting in this giveaway!

The demo is part of Winslow Art Center's "Technique Takeaway" series. Join me on Friday, August 27, 5:00 - 6:30 pm Eastern, 2:00 - 3:30 Pacific for this workshop. You will get a link to the zoom video afterwards, so even if you can't make it to the real-time demo, you can see it at your convenience.

There will be time for questions and comments too!

 

Burning Bright, acrylic on paper, 18"x24"

Painting for Collage

 Here is a little video in which I am painting pieces that will be cut up and used for collage. It is a little different than just painting Papers For Collage, with all-over designs. 

The supplies I use in the video include: Golden Fluid Acrylics, interior latex house paint, cheap bristle hardware store brushes, a blunt stiff brush, Lyra Graphite Crayon (9B), a 2" soft rubber brayer, and a  1" flat brush. Here is the paper I'm using, and you can see the paper holder/cutter here. Links are for your information. I'm not trying to promote these particular items; they're just what I'm using.

Here are the collages I made using the pieces in the video. I used other elements as well. They are all 11"x14" on Bristol:

You can find these images and others as prints or on products at Pixels/FineArtAmerica here. Thanks for visiting. I would love to hear if this is useful, or if it is something you've tried.

Layering and Excavating: Working the Surface

 If you missed last week's zoom mini-workshop on Layering and Excavating, you can now purchase access to the video recording of it. Click here to buy it.

This is one of the pieces demonstrated in Layering and Excavating. Learn how to layer with transparent paints using a squeegee, create fog with opaque paint, carve lines through alcohol-softened paint, and more. Click here for access.

Layering and Excavating Technique Takeaway

Join me this Friday, May 21, for a Zoom demonstration of Layering and Excavating Techniques. This is part of Winslow Art Center's Technique Takeaway series, little bite-size workshops focusing on specific techniques. 5:00 - 6:30 pm EASTERN TIME, 2:00 - 3:30 Pacific. Sign up here.

This is a brief video showing some of what I will cover.

 

New Stripes

 I have been playing around with colors and lines on cheap paper. Looks like I'm still gravitating towards stripes, though that was not the intention. I love this paper - I use it for lifting paint, making collage papers, covering my work table (and then save those pieces for collage), and more. 

Here are some examples of the stripes:

Stripes in 2020

 This pandemic found me doing stripes. And more stripes. It is such a simple format, but I am finding unexpected possibilities for expression in it, as well as an opportunity to slow down and go deeper into this exploration. Here as a video about my current work.

And a few of the pieces I've made this year:

Me and my Sunshine Stripes 56"x66"

Sonoran Stripes 30"x40"

Long Stitch #2, 10"x20"

Sunshine Stripes, again, 36"x36"

Stitched Together #something, 20"x20"

Common Thread #something, 20"x20"

Painting Stripes

Here is a little bit of thinking out loud while I paint stripes.

I've been asked a few times if I would be teaching a workshop on stripes, but for now I'm just offering a little window into my own process. I'm not sure what people want to learn when they say they want me to teach a workshop on painting stripes. There aren't any tricks or special techniques involved, and it is a very slow process. Hope you enjoy!

De-Stress with Art, or at least with the fun little video

De-Stress with Art begins online next week. Read about it here. You can see some of the student work from the first project here.

Stripes to Cheer Up a Room

This is a super easy project I'm offering, as a way to relax and make something cheery (or calming) for your home or whatever personal space you are occupying. We are Painting Stripes on a Paper Bag using materials that you may already have around the house. In the video I use craft paints, one color of Liquitex Basics, and a few NovaColor paints. You can use all craft paints, or even leftover colors of interior latex house paint. I prime the paper bag with interior latex.

Use whatever you have for brushes - even sponge brushes or cheap hardware store brushes will work. I uses these Dynasty Brushes from Blick.

A couple of the craft paints I use are Blick Matte Acrylics, which are very opaque. They are a little more expensive than DecoArt - type craft paints, but still very affordable. I suggest you make a few of these, and tape or tack them to the walls. 

If you prefer an easier, but more expensive, way to introduce stripes into your home, go to my Pixels/Fine Art America site and buy a print or product with stripes.

The nice thing about prints is that you can get them much larger than the original paintings.

The Visual Sentence

I have been experimenting with a process of assembling prints (from the gel plate and foam relief plates) into pieces, which reminds me of stringing words together to make sentences. Each print has a few elements - they are not just all-over patterns - and combining them offers a fresh approach to 'composing'. I learned this process from Joyce Silverstone at North Country Studio Workshops last January. See my post about it here. Whereas in a collage, your substrate determines the boundaries of the piece, in 'scrolling' (Joyce's term for the process), you assemble the parts without a substrate and make up the boundaries as you go along.

 

Above are a few pieces that I assembled visually, and then scanned the parts and put them together digitally. These are available as prints and products on Pixels/Fine Art America.

I will be teaching "The Visual Sentence" later this year in Montreal, and next year at Hudson River Valley Art Workshops. Stay tuned to my calendar.

Making hearts is a way to engage in painting or collage without taking it too seriously. How can you agonize over your image when it is the most over-used, cliché of clichés in the realm of shapes?

For this reason I am offering a workshop on mixed media techniques in which we use the heart as the image. It is called Light Hearted, and I'll be offering it along with other workshops at Art and Soul this May in Colorado Springs. Read about it here. See my other workshop here.

In the video I am using Utrecht acrylic matte medium to adhere the collage to the substrate, and also for the top coat. It is my favorite matte medium for collage. The markers are Posca, which are opaque paint markers.

These and other 'light hearted' images are available as prints or on products through Pixels/Fine Art America. Click here for prints and products.