something from the past

While waiting not too patiently for a muse, I decided to upload for you the only drawing I have left from my college years. This was done in 1977.

EDM # 206

I loved the idea of cutting the challenges up and putting in a jar. So I did that today, and pulled out # 206---"Draw something that is familiar to you that you know is called something else in another region."

Meet my cell phone, otherwise known as my "mobile." I tried to show the cute leopard pattern case. Still kee;ing the format small, ATC size.

new mini-collage

Still trying to do something, anything, to break through the creative doldrums. These were fun little miniatures to do.Yupo, again, scrap pieces in ATC size. Watercolor wash, and then I added a few drops of alcohol inks. Fun to watch them reacting! I then salted them. I liked what I ended up with, but I wanted something with a more organic feel on the reverse. So I put together little collages of fabric, potpurri bits and pieces, ribbon, and lace. Some of the alcohol ink smudged on the back, which I didn't mind.

plum canyon

Right now there are flowering plums in bloom all over town. So I made one more attempt, keeping the small scale of the artist trading cards. I used masking fluid on Yupo, but was not terribly happy with the surface of the Yupo after the masking fluid was removed-- it seemed to have acquired more tooth. I ended up using the fan stippler to repaint over the areas I had masked. Not thrilled with these.

Creative block

Nothing was working. I'd start on Yupo, then wipe it clean. Tried more tiger lilies and was completely "meh" with my results. So I decided to do something, anything, different. I took some various scraps and cut a stack of ATCs (Artist's trading cards, 2.5 x 3.5 inches). I found some paper that I had gessoed, glazed, and splatter painted with acrylics. I added some fabric hearts and lined them with bronze leaf pen. I found some gold cherubs and added them, then some valentines-inspired words and finished with embossing powder. Oh, and I added some color with some oil fabric painting sticks. Maybe the small scale and not being vested in the results helped me break through. Happy Valentines Day!

working with resists

More,more more imaginary trees. The flowering pears have just bloomed along with the purple flowering plums. The first was done while waiting in a car with portable supplies, including Peterman watercolor papers. The next was started at the same time, but I wanted to play with resists and splatters so it was finished up in studio. I have not yet found the right brush for splattering....I used a toothbrush and got big spots I did not want with the masking fluid.

Next I pulled out the yupo and tried pink blossoming trees with masking fluid. I also switched back to the fan stippler, which I like more and more all the time.

Palm Tree

I wanted to revisit the trees and figure out how to do a palm tree. There are many kinds of palm trees around Southern California, from tall and slender to short with stubby palm fans.

I worked on Yupo again and started with the fan stippler, making cross hatches with the tips of the bristles for the trunk and some long trails for the palm fronds. That seemed incomplete, so I went back and added a layer of long slender individual leaves. That added some dimension to the leaves and I was happy enough with this little study.