next stop: Drumheller!

I'm doing another workshop tomorrow!  Feeling quite excited about it:

Mostly I have been working with children, but this session will be all adults.  I've been envisioning how I might present my work and ideas to this group, how I might engage them in discussions about art, life and urban environments.

Yesterday I pulled out the Book of Cities and made another collage in order to photograph my process, showing how I build up the shapes step-by-step:

large broad shapes first

overlapping sheer papers

smaller, slightly denser shapes

small opaque shapes and lines

Later, I may add some drawing details to finish it up... or maybe not.  Kinda liking the simplicity of this one.

Today I will pre-cut some shapes to use for a demonstration of collage techniques.  I hope that by doing this, my demo piece will turn out nice instead of the kind of mash-up that often happens when I try to make art under many eyes!  *laughs*  

I'm looking forward to having a bit of time to further explore the town and area of Drumheller.  It's a very beautiful geography there, with cactus-strewn hills above a deep river valley.

Also, I will visit the Tyrell Museum!  Because dinosaur bones are cool!  And it's nice timing because in a couple of weeks I'll be doing a simple printmaking class based on fossils, with 7-8 year old students.  That'll be loads of fun.

In the studio these days, my recent work is under reflection.

More about that next time.  

Thanks as always for your interest, Reader.

:)

V

Circling

At first I had intended to make a few more small oil paintings.  To begin, I worked out some proportions...

... cut some strips from an old painting and laid them on the canvas.  Then I became interested in how the strips looked, the random lines and shapes created by cutting up that old painting.  So I coloured blue and purple and laid the cut strips down again, and liked it enough to go with it:

Below, the finished painting.  It's a little one, 14x14 inches:

In order to further explore this aesthetic, I plan to destroy a number of older, unfinished, unsalvageable works and re-use the stretcher frames.  Below, two paintings slated for destruction:

Above, the coloured canvas which will go onto the stretcher frames.  That portion of old painting will be cut up for the strips... I think.  We will see what transpires.

Sometimes I spend hours just shifting the cut bits around until they feel right.  Getting the base colouring to resonate can also take a long time.

Well you know: time is not for saving.  May as well spend time by shifting colours around!

Today I began in the studio about 9am, and I worked until I noticed the shadows lengthening.

Then I took a break and then I worked some more.  Although they are only just slightly different from the work that went before, I am quite excited about the possibilities with these new paintings.

Earlier this week I taught an art class in which we made a couple of group collages.  

Kids are so much fun, spontaneous and happy to try new creative processes.  They are generally not too worried about what things "should look like", and just go with the flow of wherever the process takes them.

Between doing art classes with the schools and a couple of other commitments, I have less time now for the studio.  On the flip side, when I do get into my own work I am feeling a bit more free.

Paperlings

Chez Studio Verna, 2016 has begun with paperlings: small works on paper.

I took a break during the last few weeks of 2015, then on January 1st I was back into the studio - I was so much into the studio that I did not make any blog posts for awhile!  Now it is time.

First thing I did this year was to make some wee stitched paintings on paper.

I'd found some cool little frames several months ago, not knowing what I'd wind up using them for.  Often that is a good way to go about things.

These paintings are made with acrylic paint and ink on Arches rag paper.  They are called "Vibrato".  (thanks Russell for your suggestion!)

They are small; 4x4, 5x5 and 6x6 inches.  I have not often framed my work, and I'm liking these.

I like them all together better than individually.  Perhaps because they are so small, they seem to need each other to read and breathe and live.

In between working on the Vibrato series, I played around on some other small bits of paper about 8x8 inches:

Then yesterday I began to experiment with making collograph prints: working on paper again!

Above, printing "plate" made with school glue drawing on matboard, and printed with a roller and Speedball water-soluble block printing ink on 140lb paper.

Below, fun with feathers:

It's been a long time since I made prints, maybe 20 years.  Wow.  I am remembering just how much fun printing is!  There is a magic in working on a "plate" to create an image - and then printing from that plate, which changes the image sometimes quite radically.  

So there is the beginning of the year in my studio:  A new series of tiny, framed paintings, a few little open-ended explorations, and an initial foray into simple printmaking techniques.  All using paper.

Paperlings... I wonder where they will lead?

As ever, I'm curious about this ongoing creative journey, and happy to be able to make blog posts which I hope will connect with a few people along the way.

Thank you for reading!

:)

V

winter pastime

a few sheets of printer paper

a pair of scissors

a bit of clear tape

a couple hours of your time...

...et voila:

inside

outside

This is one of my favourite winter pastimes

as far back as I can remember.

:)

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you a Merry Christmas

May this holiday give you opportunity to share your love & laughter

(and perhaps a bit of music too!)

now and into the new year.

See you in 2016!

all this beauty is in you

It has recently come to my attention about a thing called the mourning moon.  Very interesting.  Here's a link to some information and a lot of beautiful photos.

All This Beauty Is In You
acrylic on canvas, 10x10"

A few years ago I made this painting for a friend, and just now came across the image again.  How serendipitous.  It's a very appropriate image for the time of the mourning moon, aesthetically and also the title, don't you think?

Bluerock Gallery

I am very pleased to announce that my work is now being represented by Bluerock Gallery in Black Diamond, AB.  This gallery carries gorgeous textile, ceramic and sculptural artworks as well as fine paintings.  I am in good company here.

My "Resonance" series can be viewed at the gallery in person or online:
my page on the Bluerock Gallery website.

circular

Circular cardboard templates sure come in handy.

When canvas has been soaked with water, wrung out and hung to dry, it develops wrinkles.  Stretching the canvas and applying gesso does not remove the wrinkles... what to do?  Go for the layered look and make the paint look wrinkly too.

I worked on 8 of the small oil paintings earlier this week.  6 are now finished; ideally 3 more will be finished by the end of the month.

In the acrylic world:

Not sure how I feel about these yet.  Each 20x33 inches and still in progress.

And then one frosty morning I became aware of seemingly hordes of spiders living in the spruce boughs.  

This made my spirit feel very happy.

:)

V

one thing becomes another