Indian Block Print - #ARTifacts October 2017

Art journal page for October 2017 in collaboration with thealteredpage.blogspot.com.au/2017/11/artifacts-october-2017.html

Honolulu Museum of Art - #ARTifacts Journal page for May 2017

#ARTifacts - March, Rust & Cactus.

 #ARTifacts art journal page for March, collage mixed media.

 Rust experiments on calico.

Learning to paint Cactus in acrylic on canvas.
Just some of the arty things I tried in March.

#ARTifacts - The Velveteen Rabbit....

Progress takes time.
 No matter how long it takes, keep going.
(raylee).

#ARTifacts - Collage/Mixed Media Art Journal Page

A collage/mixed media page from my #ARTifacts journal.
Keeping a monthly record of work & mediums used. Trying new things like rub on lettering,  crackle paste & a paint marker with stencils.
(raylee).

Tex - Mex Collage/ Mixed Media

'Little Bird' - Gel Skin Medium Transfer/Mixed Media

(raylee)

Most of the time I like to experiment just to see where it takes me.....After reading about Image Transfers thought I would have a try with a black & white photo.

After all the backing paper was removed it was a little bland & ghost like.

 Which I liked but  decided a darker background was needed to bring the image more into focus. Black gesso over used watercolour paper & a bird stencil over the black with white gesso made a much more interesting background.

 When the image was placed over the black & white it  created more depth, pushing  the old   building back & making it more ghost like, and this brought the girl riding her bike forward. 

 Once on the canvas it still needed something else.

 A colourful frame..... acrylic painted over old used watercolour paper, collage frame image & a border stenciled with markers. Two subtle bird image transfers, some branches with buds & text transfer & a spotty transfer on the top at the sides to finish.

The marker line border was made with this stencil from Stencil Girl Products designed by Seth Apter.

Australian Mixed Media Roadshow - Art is You.

(raylee)

 Two collages exercises from the workshop with Seth Apter (click the link to see his blog for up coming tutorials/workshops ).
These were fairly quick exercises as we worked almost non stop except for a lunch break & morning & afternoon tea, most of our class skipped the afternoon cuppa.....trying to get our stencils & collages completed.

 A couple of the stencil exercises using different mediums & techniques.

Do you read art magazines?
Do you  look at all the tutorials & think there is one little piece of the puzzle missing?
You do everything step by step but it doesn't quite look like you think it should.
Me too!
So when I heard the Art is You Mixed Media Roadshow was coming to Australia.......to Queensland.....to Tewantin !! I booked two workshops with Seth Apter, mixed media artist......
Seth is a very generous tutor, he was more than happy to fill in all the missing gaps & show the class how he makes art step by step to the very end.
If you are interested in any of his up coming workshops go have a look where he will be teaching.
Lots of information on his blog www.thealteredpage.blogspot.com
(raylee).

Making Art Personal Through Images

 Just four weeks ago this was a blank canvas (48" x 36").
When someone asks me to " paint something for them", the question starts racing through my head: WHAT??.....Paint what?.....Not such a dilemma when you know the person well, as I did in this case.
Once the size & colours were agreed on I was pretty much left to make the subject decision myself.
I knew roads were a favourite with this person. My interpretation of this road is located very close to her birthplace of Cooma NSW. (Australia).
 First thing to do was cover the canvas with yellow acrylic, draw a basic composition for the road & the Poplar trees. Sort through the paper stash to find images of her hobbies, likes, memories & start tearing the suitable images to make a start.

 These papers become part of the grass, the colour of the knitted bits are the colour of the dry grasses around the Monaro.

 Sheep & wool were a part of her childhood living in the country.

 Filling in spaces with paint & torn paper collage. Trying to find suitable colours & textures for the composition.

 A visitor taking refuge from the rain.
The sky is becoming a mixture of blue sky images, fabric, feathers & knitting...... my favourite part so far. The yellow Poplars are standing tall reaching for the light.

 "We are all mad here"......not just the sheep!!

 The butterfly represents her new venture into sewing & creating her own business.

 "Blood Lines"= Family.

 All the images blend & complement each other to tell her story.

 Towards the end some of the images have been cut to give them more definition.
Layers of paper & paint all come together to create  this painting of happy memories, & maybe some
fun discovering the relevance of some images.
(raylee).

Intention...becoming a reality

Collage & acrylic on canvas. (raylee).

Image transfer/mixed media

"This is what she wrote......"

 Image transfer on old book page with gesso undercoat & cobalt blue acrylic around the edge of the pages.
I found this image a long time ago in a National Geographic magazine.
When I paint I brush excess paint onto old book pages etc. As I did this I noticed the words " this is what she wrote" at the top of the right hand page....this page just so happened to be the one I had chosen for this image transfer........so this was my inspiration for this artwork.

Drawing over a dry watery coat of burnt sienna with pen, added some colour to the drawing with watercolour pencils.

 Collaged a paper border with printed handwriting on it onto the canvas board.

 Then added the book page with gel medium. When it was dry I added the corner collage pieces.

  Last of all crayon which I smudged with my fingers to soften the overall appearance of this picture.

(raylee).

Sharing the Blues

a recently completed collage/mixed media on canvas.....

 now hanging in the one restful space in my art room.

a bit of cleaning happening on my desk.
(raylee).

Red Roses - Collage & Acrylic on Canvas

 starting at the end...... red roses painted with acrylic & a palette knife over old painted book pages......& the beginning.........painted book pages glued onto  a 24"x24" canvas with gel medium, ( when i paint with acrylic paint i like to wipe the excess paint from my brush onto old book pages or note books to use in  future collage paintings).....

....some paint  & splatter & drip layers .......

 the original inspiration......red  roses in a glass coffee jar......

 adding acrylic with a palette knife, leaving bits of the first layer of the book page images showing through the paint....

.....a lot of trial & error with the composition of the roses & getting a shape to resemble a rose without too much detail.

(raylee).

"Does Your Mum Like To Knit Too?

having a bit of fun mixing the old with the new.
 it's hard to tell what these two are really saying or thinking.
i couldn't resist colouring that jumper with fluoro  pink & orange.
found a couple of old knitting books at the op shop.

layered the old photo from the knitting book over a page of knitting instructions from a new  magazine, painted with acrylic & water soluble crayon.

stamped a border using a cork &  fluoro orange acrylic....

went over the orange with some fluoro pink & olive  green stamped  with a hex nut & a palette knife.

the joy of wool?........i say the "joy of paint"!
(raylee).

Vintage/Retro Style Collage/Mixed Media

following on from my last post.......i have added some more paint to these collages......

 stamped more red spots......at the top & the sides......

a bit more blue  paint over the dots,

& i think they are finished.
i started with a black book cover as the base, old torn book pages, sewing pattern paper, magazine pages & torn painted book page paper (black squares), cardboard packaging with circle cutout as a stencil for the red dots & a paper doily as a stencil with gel medium to create some texture,  an old wine cork as a stamp (broken red shapes), all paint used  is acrylic.
(raylee).