'time to be creative'

PART 2

so working with C & T products i got to experiment a lot . . .  and like i said in a previous post i got some good result/interesting results . . . now i just need to figure out where to go from here . . .

the finished product i want to end up with . . . i have pics so i will use them and words when need be.

ballpoint pen+ TAP on mul-tex

this is looking through the mul-tex laminated side at the painted side . . . or should i say the side i drew on then applied the TAP that had acrylic paints on it.   the side due to the heat were curling (also burned nicely with a soldering gun).  there was other melting . . . i had iron on high but the effect was very cool . .in my opinion.   shown below in larger photo of his nose area . .

then there was the more straightforward test on LUTRADUR . . . .soldering iron and acrylics with water . . . the reason i played with acrylics instead of watercolors was for the permanence . . . and i need new inks and dyes.

the mane i cut off is also shown . . . i like thepainted effects i got . . .

then there was the experiment with 2 layers of lt weight LUTRADUR . . .  and a layer of mul-tex in between  . . . the one with the scary eyes . . . here are multiple photos of the texturing i got . . . .  

i like the effects.  this would work very well with my painting styles and maybe even transfer to canvas . . . . i like the leather-look that was created . . . .

so my imagination and my artistic voice are in a brainstorming phase . . . lots of ideas going . . . its taking it to the next level . . . the finished look i want . . .  .

so these along with my learning to mold . . . may have me busy for a longtime to come . . . ahh who am i kidding . . . it would take multiple lifetimes for any artist to get what they want to get done in just their first lifetime !!!!

  

'time to be creative'

PART 1

first actual assignment of sorts in a very long time !!!  still not completely comfortable in my 'cave' . . .  though it is kinda cool !!  so i'm a little bit excited . .  a little bit nervous . . . and just a little bit hyper  !!! yea i feel like that kid sitting in 4th grade math class !!!

so totally love that i get this comment 'i hear you are a great artist ' . . .  'can't wait to see what you come up with' . . .  and here i sit not knowing where to begin  . .  all the products are new to me . . . so lots of experimenting ahead . . the artists with the CT creative team are great !  they are mostly fiber artist . . . they do very amazing stuff . . . but i don't want to do what they are doing because that is not what i do . . . somehow i need to bring these items into my world . . .

now i heard about TAP (transfer artist paper) so i definitely wanted to work with that . . . thought i'd try this new stuff mul-tex  and of course lutradur.  now the LUTRADUR  i did use in workshop with inks . . . cool effects but still wondering how i could make it me . .  .and make it a finished work of art not a study.

not a ton of supplies . . tried some small stuff to stretch it out but the final piece is only 12" x 12" and that is small for me !!!  as usual spent more $ on supplies for the project then i should or have or . . . .

all the while i am being a flake and totally missed that this foundation we have is a new wood panel  . . .  but there is only one and i ended up using it as a functional piece by mounted my project on it !!! instead of gluing it maybe i should have done my grommets and something more
creative . . .  but like i said the more i play the more ideas i start getting and it is over now !!!


well this is the piece i mounted on the foundation:   this project, itself, took only a couple hours.  it was a sunny day out and i had
a lot of fun !! but before i went in this direction i was working on molding the lutradur.  i thought it would be cool to make a mask and even bought some copper to help mold the shape with a heat gun . . .  i wasn't getting the effect i wanted and sliced my knuckle so i decided to problem solve this project at a later date.  did take some steps i liked though !!

i started with the TAP and used it on paper like i start any of my paintings from my 'works' collection. . . . first layer of TAP was a graphite and marker drawing . . . big fat soft graphite chalks and soft sharpie so as not to scratch the surface of the TAP off . . . .  another hurdle in the way is the printer is broken so every thing is done by hand !!  second layer of tap was acrylic washes.  the fun thing about this is you can move fast and the brush strokes on the TAP don't show up when transferred and the more paint the thicker texture left behind.  after that i glazed with a lemon yellow . . .

the more accurate you want to be handle it just like printmaking  . . . make templates so you can line every thing up correctly.  if you use a printer i am sure you can get  much tighter details and more solid color.  two things that may make this stage a finished stage. but being a learning experience for me . .  no way i will go until i see nowhere else to go !!!  and that is what i did.  this piece is mostly  tap layers and a few glazing layers.  more acrylic on the outer edges of the work and spread here and there.   some added graphite pencil on original lines which i wanted darker (eyes for one).  definitely more whites on the muzzle and pinks on the nose!!  matte medium and sprays for extra protection.  bookbinding glue to mount and my printmaking roller to roll out air bubbles . . . roll through out the drying process because air pockets love to pop up out of nowhere.

project 2: looks very similar . . . yes TAP to me can be the new monoprinting medium !!

now i wanted to add some lutradur in the main or out edges of the first work but it just never happened.  the textures and colors that adhered to the surface took me in another direction.  so this time around i did add the LUTRADUR.  i started differently . . . i added the drawing tap on top of paper that was stained with matte medium and acrylic paint.  a very subtle look which i forgot to photograph.  but i begun to add the LUTRADUR . . light weight 25 grams and stained with acrylic washes.  hand tore the pieces and tried to give them the flow of a lions main.  you can see the textures on the ear in the upper left corner and in the bottom corners. there are several layers of tap added on top for more texture and to transition the texture of the lions face with his mane.

the second layer of TAP was actually on top of pastel (since the pastel would tear the TAP surface i tried something new) . . .  no thrilling results some pastel sealed some didn't . . . but for me it was more texture and that is what i like !!!  i ended up painting a little more on the mane then i originally thought . . .  but it just needed it to transition more smoothly.  i detailed with color pencil for the whiskers . . .  graphite and ball point pen to define the original areas of the first TAP transfer.  the one thing i did do to the TAP is i scraped away its surface in areas i didn't want anymore texture . . esp. the eyes . .

there were some other projects that didn't quite make it to completion . . . . that is the next blog because some results were quite pleasing and since their conclusion i have done some problem solving . . . i would also like to use these textures for book arts.

but a definite future with these three products used above exists . . .  it is a very fast . . . very quick way for me to produce original art to my liking of surface texture . . . and therefore a very reasonably priced piece of art.   something that takes two hours is much easier to part with then something that takes a week or two or three . . . .  and has 50 layers as compared to 4.  then to if i run it like a printmaking session i can produce a lot more !!!

i also look forward to seeing how my pen work transfers to TAP via the ink jet printer ?
                                                                             

   

okay okay it's been a year

just can't seem to get into the blogging habit.  but now despite what feels like a very large block of uncreative time . . a lot has happened  and therefore a lot to share.

2o12 has seen the studio packed up and moved to a temporary dwelling . . .  one i like to call the cave !!!  so far i have not gotten into the habit of painting.  some sketching . . etc . . plus no teaching due to the gallery's roof collapsing in the last big storm we had at the end of january.

i have had the fortune to jump in on a couple figure workshops (it has been a while !!).  take a couple workshops from the art supply warehouse here in southern california . . . not too sunny at the moment.  one workshop was copic markers . . one was lutradur . .  and one was a strathmore visual mixed media journal.  lutradur led to an invite to join their creative team . . . and do a surface piece for an upcoming convention for them . . . that will be my next blog !!!!

and then there was the form show which two of my figurative works accepted to  . . . not bad for an artist who likes to classify herself as a wildlife artist/illustrator !!! and my puffin piece was entered by one of my supporters in a show at another gallery and there it was awarded  a prize.

well i love sharing little discoveries or big ones . . .  some may seem incidental not sophisticated enough for the art world . ..  but every step leads some where and i find that story just as interesting !!  and right now the sharing and absorbing will get the creative juices going . .. because i don't know about u but when i haven't been creating i don't feel like much of an artist . . . and it takes my best ideas longer to flow. . .

so i will end this by sharing three photos . . . 2 are from the gallery show.  then there is the third . . . . the african king study from one of the workshops i attended !!!

DON'T FORGET  . . . do NOT look at this blog for proper punctuation or grammar . . . i try to type as fast as my rambling thoughts . . .  but never can !!!  it's all a rollercoaster ride with me !!!  speaking of which  . . .  nahhhhh just kidding !!!

well next post is my creative time with CT PUBLISHING !!!!
my surface texture project !