ART NOTEBOOK : letsgoforit

Raw material. A poster glued to a backerboard - A1 size ( 60X84cm / 23X33"). What's next? Scrape and coat with gesso is a slow start. The board sits for months. Add some color to shape it. I like the shadows. If I could paint them, the canvas would be complete. Instead, grab a squeegee, a brush so old it sheds hair, and an old credit card. Spread leftover student acrylics and modeling paste in the pause between language school classes. On the way into the house after a morning walk, let's add white to the sky. (Seriously, I need better paint and brushes that don't shed hair = aren't cheap "house painting" quality.) The gesso and rough backer board add texture under the paint but it needs a little something something. How about "wildflower" color in the foreground? It's like adding a necklace to a plain dress.  Done. (A1 size: 23.5X33" or 60X84 cm)

Even if you're not great at it, you should try a lot of stuff. And recycling is good. I found some picture frames with olds poster peeling from the backer board. The landlord gave us permission to throw them out. Now the question is, "Toss or reuse?" The frames are in bad condition and the posters are a loss. A few weeks ago, I scraped off the posters and slathered gesso on the 18"X24" (45cmX60cm) boards. It's rough! I like one enough that I consider framing it like that. A few weeks later, I squeeze 4 tubes of acrylic (greens, blues, and white) directly onto it. After I swish the paint together with a house-painting brush and a few tissues, it looks like this. I should have left it at this stage. The second day, with yellows and reds added, it becomes "muddy," as a friend says. Agreed. A little separation and brighter yellows help. It needs its sparkle back in. I touch it once more before nightfall. If I don't like it better in the morning, we...

 I found a board backing an old 16"X24" (45X60cm) frame. The picture had long since disappeared, so I took the frame apart. After a layer gesso on the board, I sketched an outline with a black sharpie marker. Note to self - use a lighter color next time. I mixed gesso and black acrylic paint to mark the initial shadows in the face. Immediately, the portrait changed from light and airy to something darker. The next step was to put the warmest highlight on top of the darkest shadows. I left it for a few weeks and looked at it again. A mix of golds, reds, with a dab of blue for the neck, ears, and facial shadows from the emerging feather hat and earrings  ... She needed definition between hat and face, so I blocked in the outline of hair. The face began to be more rounded and shaded. The necklace got color from whatever was on the palate. Another layer, with more light and darks on face, hair, and dress. The eyes start to emerge with eyelashes and shading in the whites of the ey...

The mural process? "How did you think of it?" my friends ask. "Does it have a spiritual meaning? The vine and the branches (John 15)? The tree planted by living water (Psalm 1)?" No. Creative stuff happens in my world. Randomly. In bursts of energy, music, and/or color - which is why we have this mural. My first attempt at a project or art form will typically mean making something big or audacious ... because I don't know if I want to do it twice. What if I hate it and the process feels like drudgery rather than fun? Better to have something worth keeping (or giving away) than fooling around with little samples. I'd rather perfect a skill by tackling another project, from another angle. As you can imagine, I try a lot of big things. Have big failures and big fun, along with some keepers. For me, art is rarely planned. It happens along the way. When we rented this house (7 years ago), we noticed the gorgeous guava tree beside the porch. The bark? Heart-stoppi...

Monday, July 13, 2020 There's nothing like starting a week with a long list of "hope I get this done." I had one - and it's mostly checked off. Feels good. During the Monday study, I listen in but my internet connection is awful, so I go to the back of the yard with my computer file open and start on the weekly "must-do" list. As I swing and enjoy the garden, I edit and write. Can you see the swing tucked under the trees? Tuesday Wonderful to see our team in the morning, even if it is online. I'm almost used to meeting screen-to-screen after 4 months. But it will be nice to meet in person. I'm working in the BIC office for the first time in a long time. It's so orderly and tidy. It's also pretty quiet except when there's a seminar going on outside my window. Weather has been wonderful - hardly any rain. Not a lot of sun. So it's mild and dry most of the time. As we walk the neighborhood, most of the big homes have t...