Book review for "The complete guide to altered imagery"

I have just finished using a wonderful library book that I thought worth a post. "The complete guide to altered imagery: mixed-media techniques for collage, altered books, artist journals, and more" by Karen Michel. The title covers it all!

This book explores how to integrate photographs and images into your collage using gel medium, gesso, sandpaper, sewing, stamping, bleaching and transferring, just to mention a few. It offers easy printmaking techniques and layering of paint to create textures and a surface for personal messages.

The author uses guest artists to show their own slant on old techniques plus artist tips to inspire you. Some offer quotes that just hit the spot and helps the new ideas click.

A great book to have around to kick-start some inspiration. What makes it different from the rest? A ton of ideas in one place for putting photos, photocopies and other images into your work using all the materials you have on your art table. No need to buy anything new, just using what we've all got, in different ways. Love it!

also available through your local library.

Mind map to find life balance

I haven't finished many pieces lately but was happy with this one. The original painting is of a mind map I created to find balance in my busy life. I photographed it and reduced it to A4 and used the colour print in the construction of a shrine-like piece representing the balance (or lack of!)

Fleur helped me find the ancient piece of wood on the farm and collect the blue wren and chook feathers. We struck ownership issues when it came time to beading. Her attitude is what's mine is mine and what's yours is mine when it comes to mums art treasures. All was resolved and I used some of grannies old pretend pearls. I have found a use at last for those little wood wedges that come with cheap canvases that don't actually fit in anywhere.

Poetry in art

The 'Silver Princess' sold at the Vasse art exhibition. I was sorry to see it go as I'd spent a lot of time getting it together. Not just painting it but assembling and thinking about what that particular tree means to me. The whole creating process became quite mind consuming. In the middle of the night, these words came to me and I incorporated them into the painting. Each curl of bark is made from a vintage copy of Gulliver's travels with words from the poem glued on, then distressed and painted with sap.

 

time is written

every curl, every crevise

every crack and every wrinkle

elegant,

fragile,

weeping,

mystery

Yes well, I never said I was a poet! I have found since really getting stuck into working on my painting that my cooking has gone downhill, in fact, now I'm a lousy cook. All my mind seems to be taken up with 'cooking up' a new painting idea, or planning ways to get more painting time.

Redgum sap for painting

 Fleur has pointed out these hearts while we were out sap gathering today. We have some fine redgum trees just behind our house and we use a little knife to prise out the sap that has oozed out of the trunk.

Usually it has set quite hard so I dissolve it in  some metho and shake it every few days until it is a sticky consistency.

We also have some blackboys growing on the property and some Tasmanian bluegums and we gather that too. Each one is a slightly different colour but you can make it as rich as you like by adding more coats. I play around with paint and pastels underneath the sap to see what colours come up.

The "Silver Princess" painting has a few colours under the sap and I squirt metho on randomly afterwards which shifts the sap in unpredictable ways a bit like when you add salt to a watercolour.

 

I did quite a few experiments with sap along the way and only some made it into the final piece.

Vasse Primary School Art Award starts Easter Saturday

I've just delivered my painting efforts for the Vasse exhibition that starts this Saturday from 10am. The awards will be announced at 2pm.

I had a sneak peek at some of the entries and there is a wonderful array of styles, sizes and themes. It's on until Sunday 1st May and I urge you to pop in and have a look if you are in the Margaret River area over the school holidays.

I have entered the 'Best Westerns' and also a piece I have been working on for my art theory studies. It incorporates a poem onto torn vintage paper, sand, modelling paste and redgum sap.  

'Silver Princess'

  Vasse Primary School until end of April.

10am-5pm weekends and 10am-3pm weekdays.


EXHIBITION OPENING TIMES Weekend: 10am - 5pm
Weekdays: 10am - 3pm 

New bird species

I've created a new acrylic painting over collaged papers of some wrens in the garden. It has a wine label in the background from Best's Great Western and as the birds are a bit quirky I'm calling them Best Westerns.

I've just added this original canvas to my Etsy shop called Art From The Shed because I'm really happy with it and want to share it. Also because I haven't been very active in my Etsy shop and it's starting to seem a bit stale. I have done some more little canvases 15cm x 15cm and these will be for sale on the Kids Room Art page of Margaret River Stompers. It's a real pleasure doing these collage pieces and I love how the birds end up as individual little characters.

Best Westerns

Best Western close up

Bests label close up

Margaret River Stompers T-shirt sale

I'm very happy to pass on the news that Debbie is having a T-shirt sale. Massive 50% off until Easter. Normally $29.95, now $14.95! Here are my favourites but why not pop over to Margaret River Stompers to choose your own? I wish the girl with flowers came in my size.

Flowers on Gulliver's Travels

I have discovered this old copy of Gulliver's Travels and am tearing it up for my collages. It goes a wonderful antique colour with the gel medium sealing it to the canvas. I'm building up my layers with washes of colours over more gesso than usual and just generally having a play. School's back and I've only the chooks and the heat to distract me now. One old girl even left an egg on the art table when I went in for a cuppa!

Collage fun

I almost painted over this effort but a few friends and family have had a look and really like it so I've decided to share it and put it up for sale.

Owls

 It's only 32.5cm x 23.5cm so I'm thinking $50. The sides are only 1.5cm deep, and are painted brown.

Owls in detail

 Yes Fleur and I have been having fun but the house is starting to look unloved so....we're off to the beach. Hey, it's school holidays, have to get the priorities right!

Flower painting

Magnolia

I have started to use up some old canvases laying around and when mum presented a photo of a magnificent magnolia her friend had grown it just seemed perfect for this huge canvas. This deep sided canvas is an impressive 80cm x 80cm square. The staples show on the sides so it really needs framing but I've painted them brown for now.

I've used the music score in the background again as I really like this look. Here's an up-close look.

Magnolia in detail

School holiday painting fun

At last the school holidays have started in earnest and we are back in painting mode. Fleur was inspired first and I was so taken with this colour blue that I asked for her left-over pallet. "Sure, do you want me to mix some more for you?"

It's called "Forest Grove Road"

"Purple bowl"

I had a great time tearing indian papers, stamping and applying texture paste. It's quite a narrow canvas with exact dimensions being 23cm x 70cm, 1.5 deep. I have painted the sides in the blue/green and it's ready to hang.

"Bowl of flowers"

This one has a range of papers glued to the background first, then colours chosen for the painting from that. Lace flowers are glued on and some texture paste accentuates the bowl. I bothered this one for a few days until happy with the contrast. My favourite bit which is hard to see until up close is the music scores under the lily cream paint.

"Giraffe"

Experimenting with a stamping technique has worked nicely on this giraffe. There's a nice contrast of fun/spontaneous background with the more controlled main character. I sold a similar giraffe painting last year at the markets and have been meaning to have a go at another one but have found it difficult to do one exactly the same. I prefer this one I think.

Fleur gave her masterpiece to her dad for Christmas but I am happy to sell my creations.

Just email if you are interested and I'll think about how to get it to you.

All on canvas and ready to hang, acrylic and mixed media.

Giraffe: $70 (25cm x 61cm and 1.5cm deep)

Bowl of flowers: $150 (48cm x 65cm and 4cm deep)

Purple bowl: $85 (23cm x 70cm and 1.5cm deep)