Painting

“The arts are not a way to make a living…”

| ssemchuk

May 16, 2016

“The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake.”
– Kurt Vonnegut

A little more done on this one. I’m really not pleased with the placement of the white books – I will have to somehow improve the composition before I’ve finished.

Open Books, May 14, 2016, Oil and Wax on Birch Panel, 12″ X 16″
Open Books, May 14, 2016, Oil and Wax on Birch Panel, 12″ X 16″

“In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is a hallucinating idiot…for he sees what no one else does: things that, to everyone else, are not there.” ― Marshall McLuhan

| ssemchuk

April 11, 2016

Circle Composition One, Apr 10, 2016, Oil on Canvas, 6" X 6"
Circle Composition One, Apr 10, 2016, Oil on Canvas, 6″ X 6″

Something new: I’ve decided to play around with a series of 6″ X 6″ canvases that I have been asking to be made useful. This is the first of a series that will consist of circle patterns and a limited palette. Colours used are Cadmium Red Deep, Alizarin Crimson, Permanent Green and Titanium White.

“Nobody is smarter than you are. And what if they are? What good is their understanding doing you?” ― Terence McKenna

| ssemchuk

April 4, 2016

Stencil One WIP, Mar 20, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 6" X 6"
Stencil One WIP, Mar 20, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 6″ X 6″ – photo taken after step 7.
Stencil One WIP, Apr 3A, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 6″ X 6″
Stencil One WIP, Apr 3A, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 6″ X 6″ – photo taken after step 9.
Stencil One, Apr 3, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 6″ X 6″
Stencil One, Apr 3, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 6″ X 6″ – end result after step 10.

In January I attended a demo of Golden products where I was inspired to pick up a few new items to try out. This isn’t exactly what I had hoped it would be, but I learned some things along the way. Here’s my process:

  1. Black gesso on the edges of a 6″ X 6″ canvas
  2. Golden fibre paste applied with a stencil to create a raised design
  3. Slight sanding of the fibre paste to soften the edges a bit – this wasn’t all that effective due to the spring of the canvas though
  4. Soaked the surface fairly thoroughly by spraying it with water
  5. Applied drops of Golden high flow acrylics: indigo, dioxazine purple, green gold, iridescent pearl
  6. Applied spray inks
  7. Sprayed water here and there, removed water here and there, all rather haphazardly
  8. Repeated steps 5-7 again
  9. Three thick coats of Golden clear tar gel. A slight misting of rubbing alcohol helped to eliminate the bubbles on the surface.
  10. Hand-lettered text added with a Golden marker and high flow acrylic in Indigo

Notes:

  1. As much as I tried, I was unable to get the hi-flow acrylic to bleed like watercolour. I will play with this more and see if I can accomplish it yet.
  2. I really should have taken another photo after I finished adding colour and before the clear tar gel (next time I will)
  3. I’m a little concerned that the very thick layer of clear tar gel may crack as I chose a canvas support for this one. I will try it on masonite next to see what happens there.
  4. I had wanted to build the tar gel up until it created a smooth surface, but at three coats it seemed to becoming the slightest bit cloudy so I stopped there, even though it still has uneven areas.
  5. I like the depth that is created between the background and the paint applied to the surface of the tar gel. It might be interesting to build up an image between layers of tar gel to see what that would do.
  6. Next time I clean the marker, I have to remember to remove the ball-bearings from the marker BEFORE dumping any unused paint down the drain. Sadly, I did NOT do this and my ball-bearings are now somewhere in the drain system rather than in the marker itself.

The text I chose was inspired by:

  • Austin Kleon
  • the last four kilometres of my long run yesterday in preparation for next month’s half-marathon
  • the general malaise and lack of inspiration I’ve been experiencing in my artwork lately.

I’m still working on my second experimental stencil piece and we’ll see how that one turns out.

 

“Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.” -Chuck Close

| ssemchuk

March 28, 2016

Still Life Red WIP, Mar 27, 2016, Oil on Canvas, 48" X 36"
Still Life Red WIP, Mar 27, 2016, Oil on Canvas, 48″ X 36″

I spent a little time back on my first still life of this year. I need a few more days away from it before I decide if it’s finished.

Patchwork WIP, Mar 27, 2016, Oil on Masonite, 16" X 10"
Patchwork WIP, Mar 27, 2016, Oil on Masonite, 16″ X 10″

This one came about as something to do with the extra paint on my palette at the end of a painting session. I hate just tossing it, but at the same time I have not come up with a good way to save it until next time either. This is my solution.

Today’s quote is courtesy of Who Said That. Check them out!

“Unbeing dead isn’t being alive.” -e.e. cummings

| ssemchuk

March 14, 2016

Seven Apples WIP, Mar 12, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 48" X 36"
Seven Apples WIP, Mar 12, 2016, Mixed Media on Canvas, 48″ X 36″

A bit more time put in on this image this past weekend. I decided I didn’t much care for the posterized version of the apples, so I redid them. Interestingly enough, last week, right before I put away my brushes, I thought I’d add a bit more detail to the drapery on the right hand side of the image. I worked quickly and was not at all impressed with what I accomplished at the time. Now when I look back at it though, it looks entirely different – fortunately in a good way. More evidence that sometimes it’s the time away from a canvas that allows you to view it more accurately. The background still needs work here, but it’s getting close to finished.