Beginnings

During the course of a year (or almost), I have worked on a large canvas, which as far as I’m concerned, is now finished.    It started out as something entirely different, this is it’s story:

Early beginnings= 120x100cm stretched canvas – primed with white gesso.

I used stencils, collaged symbols that had been monotyped onto tissue paper, old Rune words, celtic designs, charcoal. It was worked in inks, acrylics and soft pastels (I used Golden pastel ground over most of the surface).  I based it on a false colour image of one of my own photos that I took of a tree in a local wood. It stayed in its ‘tree’ form for a long time, driving me nuts.

RUBY TREE – first rendition

In a fit of desperation, I painted over the entire thing one night using red paint and white gesso and left it for a few weeks before starting on it again.

For its second ‘outing’, I decided to try and recreate a similar scene to another painting of mine, this time using acrylics and watercolours (I eventually also ended up using soft pastels).

I used structure gel, modelling paste, crackle paste on the surface for the tree trunk and this is still visible in the final painting (at bottom of this post).

It was taking shape and full of colour …

It almost ended up kinda how I wanted it but something was bothering me, so after a while of staring at it with contempt, it got painted over. I looked at the surface for a long time and then got out the earth pigments – a LOT of earth pigments. I used nearly my entire stash of earth pigments and the surface is very heavily textured. Nice.

It stayed in the earth pigment state for a long time. I received very good comments on Instagram and elsewhere but I hated it. I felt it was boring, didn’t have any structure or point and was dull and lifeless. However, something in it kept calling out to me.  So today, I ‘had a go’ and managed to coax that ‘something’ out … I am now happy with it.T

This is the final rendering:

‘Beginnings’ 120x100cm mixed media and earth pigments on stretched canvas

This has gone through many stages of redaction, as well as most of the techniques mentioned in the course notes (scraping back, spraying etc. etc.).  I have used earth pigments, inks, high-flow acrylics, isopropyl alcohol and water.   The texture created when I used various pastes (including crackle paste) as still clearly visible in the sky area and further down the picture plane. I have not sealed it yet.  

What does it mean for me?

Artists are supposed to articulate what drives them to create a specific painting – what resonates with them? I am always nervous of putting forth how I feel about my work, in case this clashes with how other people see it and somehow changes its meaning. There are a lot of factors at play in my mind when I create something large like this painting.

• It is me screaming out to the world that I ‘have’ to work large and that when I do, I can create stuff that is appealing. I suppose it is a big of a desperate cry, because i do not have a studio space that in any way supports the creation of large pieces of work. It’s my way of trying to make ‘universe’ listen and send some kindly soul along who will gift (or lend) me a barn!
• I do not do ‘representational’ work, I am process driven. However, I DO want to create images of places that I half remember or have stayed buried somewhere in my soul.
• Wilderness areas most affect me and the more I look at my work, I can see these places coming out all the time – from the Highlands of Scotland, to Iceland and Norway and other places that are wild and expansive. I also have a great love for forests and woodland, there’s nearly always some sort of tree symbol somewhere in my work.
• Working with earth pigments and other things like inks, enables me to coax out abstract landscapes that I feel a connection with. I know that they have also influenced other people and this is really inspirational for me.

Stages of a Commission

I was asked if I would produce a canvas painting – the inspiration was an Internet sourced photo:

I’m always a bit nervy and unsettled when I have to do something based on someone else’s photo and ‘specially when it’s quite a complex image, as is the case with this one. That said, I really love this image and the feelings it evokes. I’ve looked up at trees like these many times, so it is a special feeling to be able to try and recreate that scene on canvas. I chose to make this painting on a 80x60cm linen stretched canvas. First thing to do was prime it in a burnt gold colour, before painting the ‘sky’. (The gold colour serves two purposes – it stops ‘painter nerves’ 🙂 and also makes the blue ‘glow’, so it’s not so flat)

Priming the surface with acrylics – first burnt gold and then blues, with texture

I added some texture while the blue paint was still wet (dabbing it with a kitchen towel, which I didn’t realise had ‘heart’ shaped motifs on it .. duh.) Once the blue was dry, I started painting the main shapes, using acrylics.

Underpainting – acrylics

For me, this subject matter works better with soft pastels. However, you cannot apply pastels to a canvas surface without first giving it some form of coating, other wise the pastels will just drop off. I discovered that Golden make a ground specifically for this purpose, so I purchased a small tub. I have never used this Pastel Ground before and wasn’t sure if it would provide enough surface grip or ‘tooth’ for the pastels but I have to say that this stuff is amazing! It is best diluted and applied with a sponge or large brush (I used a brush). I applied about three coats in various directions. It dries almost clear, so I could see the underpainting quite clearly. Then I started applying pastels.

Pastel applications being built up on top of the Golden Pastel Ground

I was still a bit unsure about the pastel ground, not knowing how much pastel I could work into it but really I am so impressed! I could also work the pastels in with a brush, using water. I included watercolour brushpens, fine markers and pastel pencils to create more definition of the shapes. I’ve resisted the urge to draw or paint in millions of tiny branchlets, as that is not indicative of my style. Anyway, I am quite happy with it, this is the end result today:

‘Look up’ Mixed media, soft pastels on stretched canvas 80x60cm

My client is very pleased with it, so I will now give it a few more coats of fixative and possibly also apply some Winsor & Newton matt spray varnish, as a final protective layer. This was great fun to do!

Framed!

I found a local framer in Norwich who did a really great job with my large soft pastel painting of the Norway Fjord and it’s now on the wall:

I is quite chuffed

Norway, fjord – coursework – soft pastels – large!

At long last I’ve completed my fourth assignment for POP1 (Practise of Painting), I am now heading into the final stretch and the bit I’ve been most looking forward to, so whoopee doo for me hey!?

I decided to do a large (the brief was for something about 90x60cm) soft pastels landscape (that was also in the brief) and chose as my subject a scene from a trip I did to Norway a couple of years ago. This is how it ended up:

‘Norway, fjord’ soft pastels on 100cmx70cm Pastelmat

I ordered special paper from Clairefontaine in a sienna tint for this work and it’s really quite large. I have had quite a fight getting quotes to frame it that are below £200 – most of the framers I’ve spoken to want up to £300 to frame it, which is a bit much. Anyway, I’ve found someone in Norwich and hopefully going to take it there soon, it will still cost me over £100 to frame but I think will b e worth it. I will take a photo when it’s on the wall with furniture so you can get the idea of scale.