Thursday, June 25, 2009

Hooked on Painting/Collage

I'm hooked on painting and collage, something I have always wanted to try. I just finally said, "Now is the time!" After seeing a painting I liked on exhibit, I checked out a book about painting with acrylics. I bought five tubes of paint (primary colors of red, blue, yellow + white + black. Thought I could mix all the colors but learned it is difficult to mix a good brown. So here are the results after spending hours painting and repainting. It was great fun and I definitely plan to paint some more. The best thing is if
you don't like the results - just paint over it! On the right is my tubes of paint, brushes and palette knife. The second picture is my makeshift palette of aluminum foil. It worked great. I discovered you can buy art supplies- BASICS ACRYLICS SET/6 4 oz-
from Amazon. This will save me the one hour drive to town!

Here is my first effort "Flight." It is 20 x 16. Materials are acrylic paint, onion bag, thread, newspaper, ribbon, buttons, dryer sheets.

This is a closeup of "Flight." You can see the buttons, netting, textured areas done with used dryer sheets.

This is "Browns" 20 x 16. Acrylic paint, netting, threads, used dryer sheets, newspaper, and wool roving.


Detail of "Browns." You can see newspaper, thread, netting and the wool roving in the top left corner.
If you have any advice for me, please leave a comment!

19 comments:

Terry said...

Keep going. My son uses everything in the house he find that's like paint. I we leave a sharpie laying around it ends up on canvas.

Trish @TheOldPostRoad said...

Great job! Keep trying! I need some of your courage.

maya | springtree road said...

i think you have some talent! when i tried, every canvas ended up a gray mess. i think 'flight' is my favorite. :)

DesignTies said...

I think it's great that you're following your passion to paint :-)

Have you ever seen the painter Bob Ross on PBS?? He always says "There's no mistakes, just happy accidents". That's my advice to you -- have fun painting, and don't worry about making mistakes :-)

Kelly @ DesignTies

Claudia said...

I really like what you have done.

thanks so much for stopping by and posting a lovely comment.

TTFN~~Claudia ♥

Unknown said...

Love the texture and dimension you have included in your paintings.

Have a lovely weekend, and thanks for "visiting" me in Ireland :)

Anonymous said...

What a cool thing to be trying this. I think you've done a great job! Thanks for visiting me over at room remix.

Pauline Wiles said...

This looks wonderful! I particularly like 'Flight' and would never guess you have not been doing this for many years.

I went to an Artist's Open Studio not so long ago and came home with a couple of abstract pieces; Beloved Husband was not too impressed and is now making noises about having a try himself. I'll be sure to mention dryer sheets to him as we always have those kicking around and it will be great to re-purpose them! The onion bag is very clever also.

Jen said...

I love your paintings and that you are not afraid to go for it.

Jasmine @ The Suburban Sentiment said...

Your abstract art is gorgeous! Love the "Flight" picture; I'm a sucker for anything that features some red.

Hope you've got them up on display in your home for all to admire :-)

erika @ life unfluffed said...

Whoa, seriously...Whoa!
I love them both! You did amazing!

C. Stuart said...

I would love to see these in person! great textures. I actually like the vertical lines, symmetry and organic, muted tones of "Browns" better than the shocking colors of flight.

DesignTies said...

Hi Nancy,

I've tried my hand at abstract painting and enjoyed it... I really, really want to try again but with our house in constant disarray from our never-ending renovations, I don't have a designated area to work. Soon though!! We're just getting started on the basement renovation and we're incorporating an office/study for me :-) I'm happy!! Of course I'll be happier when I'm IN my work space doing fun stuff!!

You really have done a wonderful job! Of the two you've showcased, my fave is "Browns" I like your exploration of colour and contrasting lines (like tree trunks). FAB!

While I've dropped in to your blog with an agenda (more about that in a moment!), I wanted to tell you that I'm glad I'm here - I've done a quick review of your last few posts and I definitely want to read more! I also saw that you have a cute son who's an actor... so do I! :-)

Okay... my agenda... I'm here to tell you that you've won my little Ucluelet giveaway of a handmade soap and dish!! Since you came over from Julia's place to visit my kitchen you may not have realized that you entered a draw by commenting on an archived post (the entry "rule"). Well, you did!! Head over to DesignTies and you'll find the entry about the giveaway by scrolling down past Kelly's starburst mirror post. When you can, please e-mail me with your address so that I can send it your way - from British Columbia, Canada to Virginia!! My e-addy is edindesign@shaw.ca I'll be posting about the draw and officially announcing your win on Sunday (wanted to give my blog partner Kelly's current post a few days to collect lots of attention, hence the delay in making the announcement! I hope you don't mind).

Looking forward to hearing from you!
Question: Is this the longest comment you've ever had?! HaHa!!

Victoria @ DesignTies

Alea Milham said...

Absolutely beautiful! My son enjoys working in mixed medium. I am going to have him take a look; I think he will be inspired by the textures that you have been able to create. Good job capturing them in a photo - that is an art in itself!

Peg said...

I love your paintings with collage elements. Acrylics are really cool. There are also mediums that you can use to add textures and build up structural elements on the canvas. I order a lot of my materials online too... try aswexpress.com, dickblick.com or jerryartarama.com for good prices and service... and keep painting! Isn't it fun?

Troy @ I Refuse To Recede said...

Nancy, great job with the paintings.

I look at "Browns" and I am transported to a forest, I feel myself, as a young child, walking between the trees.

I always admired artists, but somewhere between what I see in my head and what I make with my hands there is a short circuit, so I always stuck with expressing myself in other ways.

Thanks for visiting my blog. Good luck with your carrots and raccoons.

Unknown said...

Thanks for stopping by my site and for listing me here. I will put you on my blog feeder, you look to have a lot of interesting interests. I love art work but am not an artist myself. I think I need to learn to relax more. Your son is very handsome. I think many of us are feeling thr pinch money wise these days, but a good life doesn't have to depend on how much money we have thankfully. Linda

Topsy Turvy said...

Nancy - Thanks for your recent comments on my blog. I just found them, after recently turning on comment moderation for older posts (because of a couple of prankster commenters.) Keep up the great work with your paintings!

–Lana

Amanda @ Serenity Now said...

Like the colors you used!! :) Thanks so much for visiting my blog. :)