Here's more color and mark-making, this time, in my giant journal.
(It's an 11"x14" Strathmore mixed-media art journal. This link has the BEST price for them!)
I originally was just using it to clean off the Catalyst tools, but then I grabbed it and started playing! Paint + my kick-ass inspiring playlist = the best warm up time ever!
Here's my set up, including my tools. I was asked what a color shaper was -- it's the one on the far left. It has a flexible tip that smooshes the paint around. It doesn't allow for very detailed work, or even much control, really, but that was the point.
I've been working on loosening up the faces I draw, getting away from mechanical pencils and small lines. I want to capture the emotions on a face, or the idea of a face, rather than the details. And this tool allowed me to be messy and general and get in a little shading. In fact, I even ventured outside my comfort zone and used purple to shade....imagine that!
The palette for this spread (and some pieces on artist's board I'll share next week) was:
- Blick Matte Acrylics: Teal Green/Amethyst/Red Violet Deep
- Golden: Neon Red& Pink (mixed together/Diarylide Yellow/Vat Orange
- Other: Primary Magenta/Yellow Ocher/Dark Titanium White/White
I kinda went crazy with colors, but was able to see which worked together well and which didn't, and also, which ones I thought I liked and which I didn't. For example, there was blue on my palette, but I put down a little bit and hated it, so stopped using it. My idea has been to use colors near each other on the color wheel, so have a few more combinations to explore.
I really love how this exercise is not only allowing me to experiment with mark making & using tools instead of brushes, but seems to be the foundation of finding what colors I'll work with for the next long while. I'm working on another little woodworking project for my gouache paints, and I discovered something important tonight: I don't need to carry/use every color I own. This makes it easier to pack, knowing which you love and which you don't, and in what situation you'd use each in, and I think will make for more harmonious paintings & journal pages overall.
Now here's the spread after I wrote on it with white gouache and a bamboo brush. Notice how opaque and matte the words are -- have I mentioned I'm in love with gouache? Cause I am!
I could keep posting pics, but don't want to overwhelm anyone! Plus, I have 30 Days of Friendly Faces starting on Monday, and that means a whole PDF to get done & passworded blog to set up. It's part of the class, but I'm thinking I may put just this challenge up as a separate piece. Are there any people out there who want to take just the guided challenge? Let me know!
And let me know if you're enjoying these posts! I'm in love with all the stuff I'm doing, lately, and am just bursting to share! I wish we had transporters so you could all just come hang out!
