OIL & ACRYLIC PAINTINGS, ABSTRACT & NON-OBJECTIVE

PAINTINGS NOW AVAILABLE ON ETSY

MY SHOP IS CALLED "GUHINP"

https://www.etsy.com/shop/guhinp?ref=search_shop_redirect 

Glossy acrylic, 9 x 12 x 2"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oils, 9 x 12 1", "The Bridge"

Primary colors, very Mondrian-like. Oils. 9 x 12 x 1"

These paintings are all cradled, 

with good quality materials, and the design for each

does carry over the sides, so they are ready for hanging. 

 

MIXED MEDIA COLLAGE - PAINTING ON CANVAS

I WOULD LOVE A NIFTY TITLE FOR THIS NON-OBJECTIVE WORK.

GOT A TITLE SUGGESTION 

FOR THIS NEW, MIXED-MEDIA WORK?

STEP-BY-STEP FROM SKETCH TO FINISHED PROJECT

MY ORIGINAL SKETCH...I thought it would be horizontal!

I wanted a limited color scheme of cream, light and dark gray, and cool red in a variety of values. I used acrylic paint, textured papers, my own decorated papers and more.

The photo shown below is in progress.  I goofed by leaving a very dark area in the center.

At this point I hadn't yet decided to finish the piece as if it would hang vertically.

The finished work.

Note (above) the several small, brighter accents as focal points. 

Please comment if you have a good idea for a name for this. 

Or if you like it!   THANKS!

ABSTRACT COLLAGE - PAINTING with TERRIFIC TEXTURE

ROCK, PEBBLES, SAND

...and Water!

Neutrals rule! I've always liked neutrals: tans, beiges, cream, ivory, white, Payne's gray, brown, khaki colors, rust, warm stone colors. In clothes, shoes, art, and more.

Neutrals, or natural colors, are not bold or vivid ones. They can be light, medium & dark, & of course you want a contrasting combo of values in your work. 

Texture is an art element I'm fond of, too. Some areas were made more textural with handmade, ridged art paper adhered to the surface.

TIP: If any of you wonderful readers plan to work with heavy texture, DO use a board: if not an actual wooden or Masonite board, then at least a canvas panel. You need a stronger support than a stretched canvas!

I wanted an abstracted effect of clean, clear water over rounded pebbles or river rock. Wet stones are the most beautiful!

Close-up detail

The clear or frosted beads are called river pebbles, glass gems, or even fire pit pebbles. I found a mixed bag for cheap at the thrift shop: some translucent, some opaque, even some iridescent.

My original sketch for the artwork.

DecoArt also makes Sandstone Textured Acrylics, which I employed in a brown, a tweed, and their Terra Cotta (in the Grand Canyon color). Burnt Sienna & Van Dyke Brown acrylic paint were dabbed, stippled, & rubbed selectively to get a stone effect.

 
For an abstract stream, I first thought of ModPodge.
It's self-leveling, so I needed barriers to hold in
the very fluid medium. To form "walls" to prevent
the runny ModPodge from going everywhere, I
used DecoArt Texture Stucco (see the white line below).

Unfinished. Detail. The white you see is actually a short barricade to hold in the fluid medium.

The finished artwork.

Spattering would be good for a rock-like effect, too. Can you spot the fine, dark lines as well? I always enjoy a bit of mark-making!

With this abstract acrylic painting with collaged elements, I set out originally to  use ONLY neutrals, but decided the brighter orange was necessary. I think it contrasts nicely with the (complementary) blue-gray areas. More contrast is seen in the smoother, shinier areas versus the matte. The entire piece turned out warmer than my original concept. But then I always love rich, bright color, don't you?

COLLAGE with PHOTO SCRAPS

THIS MIXED-MEDIA PROJECT CAN

HAVE STUNNING RESULTS!

If you're like me, you have a stash of many, many photographs to use in your collage work. Heck, you can even use magazine papers for this "painting."

 

First, select a color scheme and find photos with those colors. Be sure to find textures and patterns as well as solid areas of color.

While you could cut the pieces, my preference is to tear the edges for a smoother look when finished. NOTE: You want a variety of sizes and some change in shape for added interest.

You do want a number of values, too.
See the different sizes?

Second, arrange the pieces on a sturdy background with some overlapping. A canvas panel, archival mat board, or your usual support. (I have even adhered a large, unwanted photo--in related colors--to the support before beginning the arrangement!)

 

This is not done! The arrangement has been glued down.

Go for balance, contrast, movement, unity...all that good stuff. My visual texture came from photographs of rusted metal.

When the collage (some would call it a photo-montage) is dry, get out your small, fine brushes and acrylic paints. I like the white, torn edges to show in places, but I also want to add shading for a dimensional effect. So I brush on dark colors as if a light source were shining from one corner and shadows falling away. I use water to dilute the edges of the painted shadows as they move away from the "light."


Pure black isn't as desirable, usually, as a mixed color.

Finally, if desired, stamp or print, letter, spatter, do any

of those fun things should the composition call for it.

I added some small dots, tiny squares, and a few other

 enhancements.

The finished piece. I hope you like it!







 

SOFT PASTELS ON GESSO-BOARD

The board I used had enough "tooth" to grab the pastel pigment easily. I chose to create a simplified tree-scape.


Rembrandt brand pastels are the best!

I used harmonious colors to draw in the shapes formed by the negative space (the background). Then I began to fill in the shapes.

Note in the finished work, below, that the brightest colors are balanced out with more neutral ones. Also notice that there is a sense of equilibrium.

TIP: Use a variety of values from dark to light!

 

COLLAGE (& PAINT ) WITH PHOTO SCRAPS

Have you saved some of your "bad" photo prints to use in your art-making? Here's a great way to use them up and make wonderful collage - paintings at the same time!

Either cut or tear the photos into various sizes and shapes.

Find photo images that go with each other, all in a particular motif--such as these botanicals, above. This is a complementary color scheme, with recognizable plant forms. See the finished piece coming up! 
With this piece, since it was far too "busy" already, I obscured some areas with dark green and black. My intent was to unify the artwork, tying together the parts.

The finished collage - painting.

Only scraps of photos were used in this unfinished project.

Blue and orange also make a pleasing, complementary color scheme. See the unpainted example here.

Add a traditional image into the layered, shaded mix! Leave space for one striking picture that fits in nicely with the colors or textures of the other shapes. Or insert a piece of text or written material, as shown in the example below.

Can you tell I am obsessed with earth colors?Note that a few edges in this artwork have been cut, not torn. 

MIXED MEDIA : Combining Words with Images and Textures

Pictures and text together can make a powerful collage. Add textured art media to the mix and...YES!

1. Decide on a theme, if desired, and pick colors of type, images, textured papers, fabrics, handwriting, etc. that look good together. 

"Time" is a motif here. I plan to color some of the papers.

2. On a canvas panel or other sturdy substrate, you might begin by painting the background.

I used acrylics so they wouldn't bleed later.

3. While the background dried, I added washes of color to some of the papers (especially those printed black on white).

Use paints, chalks, inks, you decide!

4. Try several arrangements first, & when you're happy with the 
composition, begin by adhering the largest piece first or the one 
farthest back, often one and the same. 
Use matte medium if you wish to avoid a shiny appearance.
(TIP: I leave acid-free papers unsealed if I don't want the 
plastic-y look.) I apply acrylic medium to the canvas and 
the back of the paper, let it get tacky, then glue down. 
Press the bubbles out thoroughly.

The finished piece.

5. Finally, accent or touch up with paint or other art media as desired.

IDEAS FOR COLOR SCHEMES

Half a dozen color harmonies for you to try!

I won't always use the "official" name for a hue, tint, or shade, but I hope you'll find several combinations that you like. What are YOUR favorite palettes?

                                                                                                                                       

Cadmium yellow deep, cadmium
red light, navy blue

Neutral gray, cadmium yellow medium,
& navy blue

Burnt umber, burnt sienna, ivory, black.

Cream with  light & medium red,
medium & dark gray.

Cadmium red light, yellow green,
& a few true green accents.

Bright aqua green, yellow oxide.

THREE COLOR SCHEMES AND A CONTEST!

A Triadic color scheme is made up of three colors that are found an equal distance apart on the color wheel. The three primaries are a triad, as are the three secondaries. But don't stop there! In the example below, done by Geri Greenman, three intermediate colors have been used (red-orange, blue-violet, and yellow-green).
  

Triads are equidistant on the color wheel.



A Complementary color scheme, like the one below, uses the two colors that, uh, complement each other! They are pairs of colors found opposite each other on the color wheel. Below, the intermediate red-violet is complemented by yellow-green. 

This example of color harmony was done in gouache.

 An artwork done in warm colors reminds us of fire and sunshine.

Now for the contest portion of our program: If you're a follower of this blog, kindly leave a comment below this post if you wish to win a brand-new copy of the latest issue of Cloth Paper Scissors magazine! It's the September/October 2012 issue with my essay!

 

  

Color Scheme of Golden Ochre and Teal: Two Artworks

I'm often drawn to yellow ocher and blue-green color harmonies in my work. The two pieces shown here are variations on that scheme.

This wall-hanging (left), Iron Man, is based on a vintage, very large anatomy chart. I added rusty bits, imagery, acrylic media, string, and much more. The texture is extremely palpable. Do you find it to be creepy and disturbing, or interesting and thought-provoking?

The collage/painting directly above, Abide in Me, is to honor my step-father, Cal Schultz, who was a very talented artist and a great dad. (He's the little guy being held up by his brother.) Cal had been stricken with polio, and wore a leg brace all his life. He was a model of courage and perseverance.

Here are links to more posts about color schemes! http://mixedmediamanic.blogspot.com/2012/08/three-color-schemes-and-contest.html  and http://mixedmediamanic.blogspot.com/2012/04/how-to-use-split-complementary-color.html   and http://mixedmediamanic.blogspot.com/2011/09/looking-for-great-color-scheme-try.html