Something New

October 18, 2016 in Research, Botanical Art, Other Artwork

I was asked to road test some Ampersand Aquabord, a clay-coated panel for watercolour that claims to be acid-free and archival. I thought I might share my experience working on it.

I am used to working on 300gsm hot pressed paper which is very smooth, I found I had to adjust the way I worked on the Aquabord, the clay surface as you would expect behaves rather differently.

The panel surface has some texture to it and required wetting out before you commence painting to release any air bubbles trapped under the surface.

I found my paint brush traveled quite smoothly over the surface of the board.

The paint tended to sit on the surface and did not behave like it would on paper. Where paint is drawn away and may spread as it absorbs into paper, on the Aquabord it does not. This makes you apply the paint differently on the Aquabord. The fact that the paint sits on the surface means you can push it around quite a lot even after its dry. It is quite easy to build up layers of colours and you get great vibrancy of colour.

The nature of the surface also allows for amazing lift out. You can remove layers of paint to expose colours underneath or lift out back to the white of the board. This would be great for highlights and details like leaf veins. (see pics)

Being a board product no stretching or flattening is required as it is with paper.

Check it out, it's always fun to try something new.

Making a start.

Close up shows the boards texture.

Building up the image.

Finished bird.

Laying in a background.

Close up showing liftout capabilities.

Finished!

Back in the Saddle

March 18, 2016 in Botanical Art, Exhibitions, Flowers, Inspiration, Research

Holidays

It was lovely to have some time away at the end of 2015 and into the new year. We spent time on the Mid North Coast and also in rural Victoria. I was able to photograph some new and interesting things to paint and visit some spectacular scenery.

Vista from the Bago Bluff looking towards the Hastings river.

The 2016 Canberra show

I entered the Canberra Show again this year and won the Botanical section, I also sold two paintings!

It is sad to say but in my observation I think the days of the old style agricultural shows are numbered. It seems to be less about the display of the best quality produce, livestock, Art and crafts and more about the overpriced rides and show bags full of lollies and plastic. I do hope I'm wrong though!

Art in the Garden with Friends

The 9th annual exhibition of the Australian National Botanical Gardens, Friends of the ANBG Botanic Art Group opens this Friday 18th March at 6pm and runs until the 17th April.

There is a stunning diversity of work on display and is well worth a visit.

The creation of new work for the Friends of the Botanic gardens 9th annual exhibition.

Part time work

I have taken a part time job in an old friends Framing and Fine Art supplies store. I am enjoying being part of the workforce again and the nature of the hands on work.

The work is another way to apply many of my skills. An eye for colour and design is useful in choosing matting, frames and getting the proportions just right to show work off to it's best advantage.

I get to do fun things like test new paints and papers to see if they are worth stocking.

www.framingpieces.com.au

Varigated yarn

August 21, 2015 in Natural Dyes, Research, Textiles

I had my first go at producing variegated yarns with natural dyes. I have done it before with chemical dyes using a technique of painting straight onto the yarns, however this technique does not really work for most of the natural dyes as they take time to be absorbed by the yarn. Where there is a will there's a way and here is what I came up with for my first attempt.

I tried two different techniques, the first technique is more calculated, I will call it the dip dye method. It is achieved by sectioning off areas of the skein, dyeing and over dyeing, the second technique is entirely random.

Dip Dye Method

In this method I used three different dyestuffs, Turmeric, Indigo and Cochineal. The indigo over dyes the Turmeric turning it green and the cochineal over the indigo makes purple. There are areas of cross over so you may get a little blue coming through but I quite like that.

To simmer only part of the skeins I used a stick across the top of my boiler and bulldog clips to hold the yarn tied to the stick so that the right amount of my skein was entering the dye-bath.

The Random Method

My random yarns were achieved by twisting up the skeins, dyeing them, then twisting them in the opposite direction and over-dyeing, then a final dye with then skein untwisted. This process gives a dappled effect, and you never quite know what your going to get.