Propaganda for my Etsy Store!

I am getting ready to set up for art walk tomorrow, and so I've been making print ads for my Etsy store; Propaganda style!

AffirMAILtions

I have started on a series of Postcards that incorporate images with inspirational words that can either be mailed to someone, or just kept as a piece of art.

Im thinking of calling them Affirmailtions. I am hoping to make enough of them to take them to the Chase CornStock, and then later add them to the Etsy store Im hoping to get up and running by the end of August!

They incorporate bits of paper, paint, ducting tape (the shiny type for actual ducting) and machine sewing.

Cosmos

16”x20” on stretched canvas.

Acrylic paint, various papers, various fabric scraps,
used dryer sheets,diaper liners, eyeshadow, tiling grout.

Cosmos began as an experiment using tiling grout as a modelling
medium.
The resulting “ripples” reminded me of a time-capture photograph
of the night sky, and so a celestial body was born.

This piece was lots of fun to make. I started by collaging papers onto the canvas, followed by applying tiling grout (yes the stuff holding your tiles together in your bathroom!) all over. I then let the grout set up a little, and then used a toothed trowel to model the grout into ripples.

After it had fully dried, I collaged more materials (softer, flexible items that would mold to the ripples) to the piece. I then started applying washes of colour until i was happy with it. After all the paint was dry, i brushed luminescent eyeshadow powder in places to add some sheen and highlights.

It resulted in a cross between space and the ocean. It has so much yummy texture, it just sucks you right in!

Thalassic Swell

18”x24” on stretched canvas.
Acrylic paint, various papers.

Thalassic swell stems from my childhood spent on the mid-north coast
of N.S.W., Australia. The power of the waves crashing against the rocks
is something that has always left me in awe of nature. The persistence
of the ocean slowly wears away at the strength of the rocks, turning
them into the soft sandy beaches. This transitory act of nature inspires
me.

I started this piece by collaging various textured papers to the canvas. I then started washes of colour, originally planning a dawn scene, with a quiet ocean, using reds yellows and oranges. The quiet ocean didnt gel well with the large rock outcrop, so i added some waves- which in turn clashed with the sunrise in the sky!. I then darkened the sky and turned it into a blue dawn, with little flecks of stars in the sky.

I actually did alot of this painting using my fingers, applying a separate colour to each finger and then brushing my fingers lightly across the surface of the painting to apply the paint. It was alot of fun, and allowed me to "feel" the right places to put the paint.

Pelagic Dawn

Ok, so I know I have been super lazy at updating my blog, but I have been so super busy with every day stuff, that I just havent had much time to spare.

So here is one of my latest mixed media pieces, "Pelagic Dawn". It is an exercise in the Japanese Aesthetic of Wabi-Sabi (finding beauty in the imperfect, the aging and in solitude).

I started by covering my canvas with torn scraps of paper, and then painting strips of cherry, blueberry and paynes grey paint over the top.
I then went back and added muted colours, wiping back in areas to let the original colours to come through. I added bits of netted packaging, and some cheesecloth, and loose threads, before painting in the land, the sunrise, and put the detail into the sea.

I finished off by antiquing the edges to add an "aged" appearance. The texture and the layers turned out yummy, and although it appears quite somber, there are little hints of the bolder colours showing through. It is a painting that I find myself wanting to immerse myself in, to get closer and closer and revel in all the bumps and pits of the surface.

Sold July, 2010 at the Shuswap Festival of the Arts.

Shuswap Lake Festival of the arts portfolio-Pages 1&2

I had to submit my application for the Shuswap Festival of the Arts today, so I made a portfolio of the artwork i want to show, using some of the collaged materials that were used in the art as matting for the photos. I think it turned out pretty cool.

Shuswap Lake Festival of the arts portfolio-Pages 3-7