Banana bread anyone?!
Being relatively housebound these days, you have to get creative. Some people create amazing scenes with toys, like Frego (hint!) and her adventures. We had some bananas given to us, but they were way too many to eat, but good for mushing up and freezing for future baking endeavors like bread, or even better, pancakes.
If you follow my all-purpose art blog, Journey By Paper, you know that I have been slithering around with pastels, gouache, and watercolors as a theme for a painting called “The Slough” – sort of an evolutionary adventure. In doing so, I began to move into a kind of abstraction, painting without lines.
Generally, I tend to paint watercolors without any lines on the paper. I don’t know why, but the lines too often act as a cage, and keep me from just exploring color. I really love the way colors and water react on good paper, and I think the lines make me think I need to produce a “perfect” painting, whatever that is. So, here are some abstractions I did, all in one afternoon, in the order I did them. Comments about each panting are below them. All were painted with a 1/2 inch or 1 inch flat brush.
This one I wanted to work on contrast, saving white paper, and creating shapes with the 1/2 inch brush. I was pretty pleased with the results, but the foreground was a bit of a puzzle.
The above is an abstraction of heather. The sky doesn’t match the heather. This one I need to re-think.
I really like this one – the colors just are so beautiful (to me). I think the abstraction worked to catch trees and snow in the spring, although perhaps I could redo it more simply.
Finally, this yellow house has been calling out to me, but a yellow house is not that interesting in and of itself. But, a series of shapes to make a house became the idea after doing all those abstractions before it. Here, a 1 inch brush and a bit of thought. I like this one because it is cheery, has white paper showing through, and is showing me what I can do with pure colors.
Above is the first in pen and iron gall ink. Some watercolor, too.
First watercolor, on cheap paper. No lines.
On Arches 140 CP. No birds – they all flew away.
Given I haven’t done any watercolors for weeks, I decided to begin with pen and ink – not thrilled with results. From there, straight watercolor without any preliminary drawings or pencil lines. Got me loosened up and made me remember how much I like drawing and painting in any format except maybe acrylic and oils.
I think an abstraction in watercolor is on tomorrow’s agenda.
Processed using Nik Silver Efex 2. Taken in 16×9 perspective with the Fuji X100V. I continue to be amazed by this camera!
Every year I watch the Decorah Eagle Cam, sometimes just leaving a window open I can watch off and on all day on one of my monitors. Right now there are 3 little hatchlings, tottering and feeble, still covered with their downy white fluff. There are two cameras at least, and perspective changes and close-ups are done by the remote operators. As time goes by, of course, the eaglets grow, losing their down and begining to sprout black feathers – they are so funny looking at this stage! By June, they are learning to fly and hop from branch to branch in the huge tree where their nest is located. Mom and dad fly around, and bring them trout to eat – there is a fish hatchery nearby – and the occasional dove or hare.
Here, to me, is joy in seeing the cycle of life every year and the beauty of the world we cannot see in our own.
Ink, Yarn & Beer 