Taking the pressure off

I launched 2013 with a trip to NYC. Oh the art, the density of everything, the energy. Splendid beyond all imaginings.

When I returned home I decided to pursue my love of cardboard, thanks to an introduction to Franz West at the MOMA. I decided to reduce my materials cost therefore taking some pressure off of myself to create a Masterpiece on every canvas and cradled panel I invest in. Cardboard is free for the taking and often comes "prepped" for collage with packing tape, shipping labels and printing.

In the above piece I first laid down some acrylic paint. I then transferred a colour printout of some graffiti that I had photographed. This was followed with collage ephemera and more acrylic. Once I felt that the groundwork was in place, I transferred a black and white photo of my daughter into the composition there by creating a focal point. Lastly I further painted into the piece to emphasize or deemphasize various aspects of the composition. The final steps for this are stitching into the cardboard with my sewing machine (I so love fabric & fiber) and then applying a protective coating to seal the cardboard.

What I love about this work, and the others like it that I have subsequently created, is that my focus has shifted. I am not worried - well not nearly as much - about whether the final is art-worthy; I am concentrating on my brush work, colour blending and more technical skills. The interesting thing is that I feel more creative and freer.

If you are interested in learning more about my techniques, please feel free to comment. I will get back to you.

Comments

Anonymous Art Show

Happy New Year! I am once again embarrassed that so much time has elapsed since we last chatted. It was quite a year, that 2015. I cannot say that I'm sad to see it go. However, one bright spot in the year was that my daughter, Ruby, & I participated in the Anonymous Art Show - the North Vancouver Community Arts Council's annual fund raiser. I have attached a few snaps of our submissions. My painting can be seen on the group photo of Those-Who-Make-It-Happen (top row, second painting on the left). We had fun getting our paints out and spending some quality art-time together. Ruby was thrilled to use acrylics, as opposed to mom-friendly washable paints. If you have a hankering to gift art at Christmas, make sure you check out their site in early November to get the dates of the 2016 show. Not only will your family & friends be thrilled to receive an original canvas, but the local art community will thank you too (each canvas is $100 with $50 going to the art...

DELIVERY: You are invited

Culture Crawl

The Eastside Culture Crawl in East Vancouver BC is an annual art crawl that takes our city by storm. The hub, at 1000 Parker is a weekend event within itself with literally floors of artisans occupying an old factory warehouse building... which is perfectly decrepit and artsy. My favourite is always Jill Pilon, at Watershed Studio. Her new linear series is brave and forward feeling. Clean in a collage-messy way. She is a huge inspiration to me. Currently I am focusing on more transfer technique discovery on cardboard. Nothing more freeing that playing on cardboard. Minimal material investment = more relaxed approach. I hope that, like me, you will make the most of staying inside during the winter to create and paint. The seasons are meant to inspire; use them to the fullest! ~ Kathryn

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