How do you do that? I get that a lot when people look at my abstract work. I use three methods of attachment for collage materials.
Glue- I like Yes brand. It is about the consistency of peanut butter and I apply it with a
palette knife. It is pH neutral and makes a very secure bond. Found in art supply stores.
Tacks, nails - if the support is a wood panel, I often use glue AND nails. The nails are usually
incorporated into the design.
Embedding - When I use acrylic modeling compound, I can embed anything into it before it
sets up and becomes hard. This is a good method for attaching metals to canvas, since
you cannot put nails in stretched canvas. On my website, the cover painting (Industrial
Chic) for the abstract section has aluminum pieces and little square brads that are
embedded in modeling compound on canvas.
Your comments are important to me. When I do a painting that is realistic and has a recognizable subject, I KNOW when I've nailed it. Abstract work is a whole different animal. There is no reference to guide me - it is pure creativity. The painting EMERGES from a seemingly hodge-podge bunch of materials.
I have to try many things, arrange and rearrange materials, stand back and look at it, look at it in the mirror. There are endless decisions about colors, composition and materials. It's hard to even decide when a painting is DONE!
That's why your first impression (favorable or not) about one of my abstracts is important. I want to create a painting that instantly grabs the attention of the viewer, and then rewards the viewer, on closer inspection, with surprising and interesting details.
Showing posts with label abstraction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label abstraction. Show all posts
Split Personalities
The May, 2008, edition of Southwest Art has an article entitled Split Personalities. Sub title: Some of today's top artists divide their time between realism and abstraction. This article fits me to a T (I don't know why they didn't feature me in their story....lol).
I have always struggled with style, meaning do I paint realistically, impressionistically, or abstractly? For me, it's whatever creative muse moves me at the moment. I bounce back and forth between realism and abstraction. I used to consider that a negative, but I can't help it, so now I choose to consider this a profound positive.
Experimentation is the key. Let the creativity FLOW. I do admit, however, that I am subject to "operant conditioning." I read about operant conditioning in Robert Genn's weekly newsletter (http://www.thepainterskeys.com/). I saved his article from 11/29/07 because I thought it applied to me. Operant conditioning means the consequences or outcome predicts future actions. Actually, it applies to all species of animals. If you get a favorable result, you're probably going to repeat the action.
My gallery told me a large horse painting of mine sold yesterday. So, immediately, I start researching a future horse painting. If it had been a landscape, or floral, or abstract, I would be pulled in that direction. This is how artists become stuck in stylistic ruts. "Success breeds sterility" as Picasso said.
My point on this rather lengthy rant, it that I feel empowered by my versatility. I will continue exploring different artistic styles. Maybe, some day, there will be such a demand for my (floral, abstract, landscape, animal - choose one) paintings that I will have to limit my efforts to one area, but I doubt that would ever happen. Meanwhile, I'll just continue my split personality.
I have always struggled with style, meaning do I paint realistically, impressionistically, or abstractly? For me, it's whatever creative muse moves me at the moment. I bounce back and forth between realism and abstraction. I used to consider that a negative, but I can't help it, so now I choose to consider this a profound positive.
Experimentation is the key. Let the creativity FLOW. I do admit, however, that I am subject to "operant conditioning." I read about operant conditioning in Robert Genn's weekly newsletter (http://www.thepainterskeys.com/). I saved his article from 11/29/07 because I thought it applied to me. Operant conditioning means the consequences or outcome predicts future actions. Actually, it applies to all species of animals. If you get a favorable result, you're probably going to repeat the action.
My gallery told me a large horse painting of mine sold yesterday. So, immediately, I start researching a future horse painting. If it had been a landscape, or floral, or abstract, I would be pulled in that direction. This is how artists become stuck in stylistic ruts. "Success breeds sterility" as Picasso said.
My point on this rather lengthy rant, it that I feel empowered by my versatility. I will continue exploring different artistic styles. Maybe, some day, there will be such a demand for my (floral, abstract, landscape, animal - choose one) paintings that I will have to limit my efforts to one area, but I doubt that would ever happen. Meanwhile, I'll just continue my split personality.
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