working with new materials

new work: Mountain View

I'm not much of a chemist, but, as a mixed media artist, I am curious how materials work together.  A good part of my creative week was spent experimenting with new combinations of materials, including a client project that involves painting on polyester film and adhering the design to the wall.  Exploring new project ideas can be a little tricky, and there always seems to be a surprise finding.  I never thought, for example, that I would end up using Mod Podge for a client project!

On my latest trip to the art store, I picked up an eco-friendly paint board.  Although I love painting on wood panels, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to try out a new "green" art product.  The board, made by Fredrix, is surprisingly very light.  Its base is made solely from vegetable-based and recycled components.

The Nature Core boards are not ready-to-hang like the wood panels I use, but I found the rigid surface very easy to paint on.  I would definitely consider purchasing more in the future.

Another material I ended up experimenting with this week was Gamblin's FastMatte Alkyd Oil Colors.  I actually love working with oil paints but have found acrylic to be more conducive to my painting style and routine.  I recently heard about FastMatte's rapid drying quality (for oil paint, mind you) and was excited to test it out on a work in progress.

Remember this piece that I had deconstructed (via chipping and sanding) and created a new landscape scene on top of it?

I ultimately wanted more of a monochromatic look, so  I used FastMatte Phthalo Green and Titanium White to create different tones of mint green. 

The painting is much more soothing and calm now, don't you think?  It still isn't finished, but getting there.

Like its name suggests, the FastMatte collection dries to a chalky matte within a day's time.  Because of this quality, artists use FastMatte colors for underpainting.  Just a few weeks ago, Gamblin announced an expanded palette of 24 colors.  The 16 new colors are sure to please all the plein air artists out there!

I want to thank all of you who stopped by my show at Buy Some Damn Art.  I'm thrilled that four of the six paintings sold the first day of the show.  Sleeping Mountain (shown above) is one of the two works currently available. 

giveaway! succulents eco-journal by Jill Bliss

I love this sweet journal by Jill Bliss.  It's filled with beautiful illustrations of succulent plants [224 pages!], and it's printed on 100% recycled paper with soy ink.

For a chance to win this lovely notebook, just leave a comment below.  One entry per person please.  

A winner will be randomly chosen (using random.org) this Monday, August 29, at noon PST.  Shortly following the drawing, I will send the winner an email and post their name below.  So make sure your name links back to an email address.

Thanks again to Jill for a wonderful giveaway and interview.  Check out all of her fabulous journals here.

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Giveaway winner- congratulations to Alex!

Framed embroidery and drawing now available in my Etsy shop

PDX: Home Sweet Home

It feels great to have my first embroidery works finished and framed- a project that started several months ago.  The whole process was a new experience for me, so a lot time was spent problem-solving.   The most challenging part of the process was actually the framing.  I didn't really think through this part when working on the pieces.  I learned it would have been much easier if I had designed the fabric pieces to fit ready-made canvas frames versus designing custom frames to fit the works.  At least I found a great wood shop connection (just a few blocks away!), and the materials used for both of the outer frames was reclaimed wood.  The frame for PDX is reclaimed white oak, and the frame for Opus is reclaimed mahogany. 

Altogether I spent over 60 hours on the two embroidery works.  It seems like a lot of time for two small art pieces, but I'm quite pleased with how they turned out and look forward to starting the next one.  I'm thinking about going bigger this time, maybe a 10" x 15" piece.  (The two current works are around 9" x 9".) 

Another work that I had framed was this drawing called Sky + Forest.  I really like the minimal look of the frame; it doesn't take away from the art work.  I also like the fact that you can hang the art piece on a wall or have it sit on a shelf.

I attached wire to the new framed works, so they are all ready to hang.  The two pieces shown here are currently available in my Etsy shop.

Creating art from found materials

Whether it's worn clothes, old magazine clippings, discarded security envelops, or yellowed book pages, I seem to come across a lot more found and reclaimed objects in art nowadays.  I'm a huge proponent of resourceful living.  So, needless to say, I love the idea of giving used materials a new purpose in art.  Here are a few of my favorite recent finds. 

Lesley Bricknell

Michelle Thompson

Sarah Nicole Phillips

Blondebeard

Marie Watt's studio

One of my very favorite things to do is to visit the studio of an artist, even more so than going to a museum.  It's the place where ideas are born and masterpieces are created.  Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours in the SE Portland studio of artist Marie Watt.  I first mentioned Marie's art a few weeks ago (read post here).  Marie has this amazing gift of turning old wool blankets into stunning works of art.  She is currently working on 50+ cameos for her Forget-me-not installation.  Each piece is a meticulous process of cutting and sewing, as seen in the above photo. 

I love browsing the walls of artist studios.  Shown here is Marie's tag installation that was recently on display in a museum.  Above the water cooler are three works in progress. 

One of the reasons I stopped by Marie's studio was to see a shelving unit that used to be in my shop.  They were originally designed and built by craftsman Ben Hull. They look great in the new space! 

photographs: Tom Nutt

This is Marie's 2008 Forget-me-not: Mothers and Sons installation featuring cameo portraits of men and women who made a significant mark on our community and culture.  The display is 20' in diameter and 10' tall.  To see the complete collection of cameos, visit Marie's Flickr page here.

Creating prints of my art

Playing around with my new (used) printer.  I created some business cards on recycled paper.

When I first started selling my art online this past Fall, I wanted to focus on creating affordable original art.  But, lately, I have been thinking about making prints of my work. I started researching decent printers and eventually found a deal on craigslist that I couldn't pass up.  I bought an Epson 1900, which is a pigment inkjet printer.  The advantage of pigment ink is its archival quality.  Supposedly prints can last 100 - 200 years.

So, for the past week, I've had fun testing out my new toy.  For the first couple of days, I experimented printing on different inkjet papers.  I went to a local photo store and bought a couple of sample packets of Hahnemuhle and Canson fine art papers.  There were eight different sheets that I ran through the printer, all with the same image.  I was surprised to find that there really wasn't much of a difference between the different kinds of paper.  Although I really liked the weight of Hahnemuhle's Museum Etching paper, I eventually bought a packet of Hahnemuhle's Sugar Cane paper, which is made from sugar cane fibers and recycled materials.

The sugar cane paper has a textured and matte surface.  Yesterday, I decided to print a photo of the Columbia Gorge that I took just a day prior, and I loved how it turned out.  The photo looks somewhat like a painting (especially the background), which was the effect I was going for. 

Here's another photo I took on our trip to the Gorge.  The print is a little darker than the actual photograph, but I ended up liking the darker, muted colors as much as the original image.

Future printing projects I have in mind include postcards and notecards. I would also like to create a limited edition pocketbook gallery. The little books would be printed and assembled in my studio, so I'll need  to work on the logistics of all that.

Portland art shop and artists helping local schools

I went bridge jumping once, and all I got from it was a sore bum.  My adrenaline rush doesn't come from extreme sports, it comes from shopping for new art supplies. So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered another local art supply store called Muse Art + Design.  Located in the popular Hawthorne Street neighborhood, Muse Art + Design has an impressive concentration of professional-grade products.  The space is small, but the supplies are well-organized and easy to find. Spanning one wall are paint collections from notable companies like Gamblin, Daniel Smith, and Sennelier.  I was even pleasantly surprised to find in the store an extensive collection of Sumi-e materials. 

Yesterday I picked up a new paper pad that I had been coveting since my last visit.  It is called Canal Paper, and it is made by Saint-Armand, a small paper mill in Montreal.  Flax straw and offcuts of t-shirts and denim are used to make the paper.  The texture and color of the paper is amazing, and the oblong shape of the paper is perfect for landscape drawings.  I can't wait to test it out!

For the entire month of April, Muse Art + Design is running an event called An Artist A Day.  On each day in April, a Portland-based artist is at the shop working on an original piece of art.  The thirty pieces will then be auctioned off on Thursday, May 13th to benefit Schoolhouse Supplies, a local program that helps teachers stock their classrooms with needed classroom supplies.  For a full list of participating artists in An Artist A Day or for more details on the event, go here.  Shown above are two works just completed this week by Rachel Austin and Addie Boswell, and seen below is artist Jason Kappus working on his original piece yesterday.  Each art work will start at a minimum bid of $75, which is a steal considering the finished works are 16" x 20".  What a great way to add to your art collection and help the local school district! 

Unique sketchbooks

While we're on the topic of sketchbooks, here are a few items I have been eying.

clockwise:
Death in Art journal, the time is now 
Bookcushion, fox & bear
Pocket Notebook Three Pack, Emily Martin (The Black Apple)
Handcrafted Blank Book, Wee Bindery

Beautiful illustrations from Delphine Lebourgeois

Tiger Hills

With such a fantastic name, Delphine Lebourgeois must have known at an early age that she was going to be an artist.  Originally from France, Delphine calls London her home now.  Many of her illustrative works, which are drawn on found papers, can be seen in notable publications in the UK and abroad.  I just love the one shown above.  It seems very Rousseau-like to me. 

Pioneers

Middlemarch

Hantise des fours

Woman in White

Three new drawings on 100% recycled paper

A blank sheet of paper can be the most intimidating start for an artist.  Sometimes I find it easier to draw on tinted paper, especially when I'm using ink.  I like how I can apply white ink right onto the paper and not have to lay down a base color first.

A couple of months ago I picked up a new drawing pad that I'm really excited about.  It's Bogus Recycled Rough Sketch made by Bee Paper, a local company.  I love that it's 100% recycled post consumer waste and chemical free.  It has the look and feel of craft paper but weightier.  The surface of the paper is ideal for conte crayons, but I've really enjoyed experimenting with pen and ink on the brown paper. 

This week I completed three new drawings.  I like how the recycled paper enhances the stylistic look of the drawings.  I am inspired by the arts of many different regions and cultures, and the undyed paper seems to give the drawings a more indigenous quality.  Below are the latest drawings.  Native Land (the second photo) is currently available in my etsy shop.  (The other two pieces sold yesterday- yeah!)

O Tannenbaum has a new felt skirt

Yesterday, I mentioned making a crocheted star topper for our tree.  I ended up making a new tree skirt instead!  I had this idea of a scallop pattern made out of felt.  I stopped by the craft store to check out the felt selection and found some felt made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles.  Nice!  So I picked up a few yards and headed on my merry way home.

The first thing I did was cut out a large circle.  To get a decent shaped circle, I folded the felt square into fourths and cut an arc through all four layers.  To create the scalloped edges, I lined up half circles one row at a time starting with the outermost edge.  After pinning the shapes to the foundation layer, I sewed the layers together.  I repeated this step until I reached the inner circle.   (For a circle template, I used a CD.  Then I cut the felt circles in half to make the scalloped shapes.)

The tree skirt project took up a good part of the day.  All I have left to do is sew some bias tape as a finished trim onto the edge of the inner circle.  I'm thinking fire engine red would be fun and festive.

Update: Here's what it looks like finished!

Repurposing old book pages and forgotten letters into art

As I continue to seek ways to create art in more sustainable ways, I'm frequently stumbling upon artists who are already practicing "green" art.  UK-based Olivia Jeffries is one such artist.

Olivia takes paper that has already been printed, scribbled, and written on, and adds her own artistic elements to them.  She'll use old letters, packaging materials, book pages, and even children's drawings.

More of her mixed media works can be found on her website and Etsy shop.  Olivia is currently running a sale on some of her framed art from now through Jan. 31!

Recycling cardboard for art's sake

It's hard enough to render the human form in clay, imagine sculpting a figure out of cardboard!  Here are some amazing works from three environmentally conscious artists that work primarily in cardboard. 

Artist: Alex Uribe, www.theartofcardboard.com

Artist: Mark Langan, www.langanart.com

Artist: Chris Gilmour, www.chrisgilmour.com

Sketchbooks made with pollution-free, renewable energy

Wind is a clean, renewable, and abundant form of energy.  So when I saw Strathmore's Windpower Series at a local art store,  I didn't have to think twice about which artist pad I was getting. 

In recent years, a lot of art companies have come out with eco-friendly materials, but it's refreshing to see a company promote their manufacturing practices as well as their products.

Strathmore's Windpower Series are artist pads made with 100% renewable electricity. There are four paper options available- sketch, drawing, bristol, and watercolor; and each coming in varying sizes.  I ended up getting the 9" x 12," 15 sheet, heavyweight bristol pad for under $7.  Not bad for harnessed wind.

Painting on panels

I started working on panels this past summer.  I paint with palette knives so I like the fact that panels have no give, unlike traditional stretched canvases. 

Here's a recent painting that I did on a panel with a canvas texture.


























My mixed media works are on birch panels.  Art Media sells birch panels that are sourced locally. Plywerk, another Portland-based company, also sells blank panels to artists and photographers.  The bamboo and maple boards are made from sustainable harvested wood, and they come with keyholes on the back for easy hanging. 

A recent visit to the Plywerk studio. 

Taking the old and making new

This is what my drafting table looks like at the moment.  I've decided to work on smaller pieces for now and move away from canvases.  It's been fun to take some of my old monotypes and create new works mounted on birch panels.  I've also been experimenting with safer alternatives to conventional resins. . . will post my first trial piece soon.