Silent Sumac I - A Work in Progress

Earlier this month (see post on 16 October 2018) I worked on a couple of pieces using elm leaves and today I thought I would set out sumac leaves.















I laid out a number of the compound leaves in various patterns until I was pleased with the design.

I will post this piece at a later date once it has been completed.

Abstract 45

This is the last technique we learned called a swipe pour in the Pour Your Heart Out workshop with Valerie Kent at the Cavan Art Gallery.

I used three different colours putting each one into separate cups, then adding Floetrol and water in all of them and adding from 1-3 drops of silicon.

In my first cup I used Mediterranean blue and added one drop of silicon.

In my second cup I used teal and added two drops of silicon and in my last cup I added three drops of silicon to silver paint.



















Each colour was poured onto the canvas in a loose circular coil shape much like a wave cresting.

Using a palette knife, putty knife or spatula spread the paint around and then roll the canvas slightly.

This original 2" x 2" acrylic painting and will be available with its own display easel for $25.00.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and enjoy the artwork.

Elegant Elm and Elegant Elm I - Two Works in Progress

Today I pulled out a box containing various leaves that I had pressed and dried earlier this month.

I started by picking out all the elm leaves that had been dried so I could decide how I would like to place them on a canvas for a mixed media painting.

I had two different sized canvases that I was planning to use for a series of paintings of different kinds of leaves.

On the larger one I hadn't painted the background colour onto the canvas, but on the smaller one I used a mixture of black and iridescent acrylic paint.

Next I placed the leaves onto the canvases and moved them around.

Elegant Elm

It took quite a while, but I finally found how I wanted them placed

I put the rest of the leaves away and I will have to decide what colour or colours I will paint the leaves before attaching them to the canvas.

I will post these pieces at a later date as more work on them is completed.

Thank you for coming to look at my artwork.


Elegant Elm I

ACEO - Dusk 4

Today I wanted to finish this painting that I had started last year (see posts on 08 March and 13 July 2017).

With a pale green of raw sienna and Antwerp blue, I put in the trees on the far side of the lake.

Next I added some French ultramarine blue to the green paint to darken it down and painted the three pine trees into the foreground.

Using various mixtures of raw sienna, new gamboge and aureolin I put in the grasses and growies at the base of the pine trees.

If you would like more information about ACEO please go to my post on 11 March 2010.

The ACEO shown here is an original watercolour painting using Artist quality Winsor & Newton paint on 140lb. Arches 100% rag, acid free watercolour paper. It is priced at $20.00 and sold unframed.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and look at the artwork. I hope you will return often.

Abstract 40-44

The paintings shown here were created with the run off  paint from the bottle bottom pour (see post on 10 October 2018) in the "Pour Your Heart Out" workshop with Valerie Kent at the Cavan Art Gallery


















Abstract 40 SOLD

With the larger canvas raised up off the tray with a 3" (7'6cm) block the smaller canvases were placed under each of the edges to catch the paint as it dripped down.



















Abstract 41 SOLD

As paint covered each of the small canvases I tried to remove them and replace them with a new canvas.


















Abstract 42

For the most part, other than making sure that the paint flowed over the edges of the canvas, there was very little work that needed to be done to create some interesting paintings.



















Abstract 43 SOLD

Each of these canvases were set aside to dry as they were completed, with only the last canvas not having very much of the bright neon showing in the painting.



















Abstract 44

Abstract 40 through 44 are original 2" x 2" acrylic paintings and will be available with their own display easels for $25.00 each.

Creation VI

This is the fifth technique we learned and it is called a bottle bottom pour in the "Pour Your Heart Out" workshop with Valerie Kent at the Cavan Art Gallery.

First we mixed a little Floetrol into some white acrylic paint and put a thin layer across the canvas and set it aside to dry.

With three bright colours, in my case neon green, teal and Copenhagen blue, as well as black and white in individual containers, mixed with water to make them thin enough to pour easily.

We used the bottom 4" (10 cm) cut from a 2 litre (1.76 quarts) plastic bottle of (soda) pop and set it in the middle of the canvas, with the cut part on the canvas.



















Layer each of the colours one after another, in random order into the centre depression of the bottle bottom until the paint runs down onto the canvas.

Keep pouring the layers of' paint until it reaches all of the edges on the canvas and at this point carefully lift the bottle bottom off the canvas and set aside.

If the paint doesn't move into the centre area of canvas left by the bottle bottom, you can add a little of the paint into the empty space and move it around with a palette knife.

Creation VI is an original 12" x 12" acrylic painting and will be available for $250.00.

Garlic 1 - A Work in Progress

Today I was painting with the Buckhorn Tuesday Painting Group and we had Gail Hawkins as our guest instructor.

She was going to demonstrate three different ways of painting in the negative, but unfortunately I could only stay for the first one.

In this one we lightly drew three cloves of garlic with the stems still attached onto our watercolour paper.

We wet the paper thoroughly, leaving the inside of the pencil lines untouched.

Next we brushed in various into pure colours of blues, reds, and yellows into the wet background allowing them to mix together on their own as we moved the paper to help the paint flow through the water.

Lastly, we sprinkled salt into the background before setting it aside to dry.

Once the background was dry I brushed off any access salt remaining on the paper and started to paint in the garlic.

I will post this painting at a later date once it is completed.