In August of last year I took a class - I can't even remember by whom and what the topic was, it might have been part of Laly Mille's "Layers of Light" - where we were supposed to create a series of small abstracts with neutral colors. As you can see from the gathered papers above, my first "rebellious" act was to add a dash of color with those purple circles.
I worked on 6" x 6" watercolor paper and glued down the papers pretty much without thinking a lot. Then I added some random lines and scrolls with a black Stabilo All pen.
I found it so boring and uninspiring that I put the abstracts to the side for more than six months, until I dug them out again from my unfinished pieces (of which I have quite a bit). I had the idea that some marks might spruce up the abstracts. I used a white gel pen (Uniball Signo) and a black pigment liner (Staedtler) and with the help of a couple stencils (Stencil Girl) I drew some marks on each piece. I also used the gel pen for outlining the flowers on the dark brown paper and make some dots and tiny circles.
I think it really changed the abstracts in a good way. Now I like them.
It's interesting how stepping away from a piece and returning to it later can give new ideas and how a few marks can change an entire piece.
I'm joining Nicole for Sunday in the Art Room.
7 comments:
I agree with you. The latest views are much better and not so boring. But I think you were smart to add the purple dot because it really pops, even in the first go around. Have a super start to the new week. hugs-Erika
Hier wars genau andersrum.
Erst fand ich Collagen gut, hab sie an die Tür geklebt und dann. Nö.
Interessant wie unser Hirn und Herz Kunst über Zeit bewertet...
Ist es nicht oft so? Man steckt fest, kommt nicht weiter, möchte aufgeben. Und nach einer Pause kommt die richtige Idee ganz von allein. Und ja, mir gefallen die späteren Werke mit den Zeichnungen wesentlich besser.
Viele Grüße Anette
Carola, putting those pieces aside for a while seems to have worked well because the later abstracts are way more interesting. And, that purple dot is my favorite, in your final designs and also because it’s my favorite color.
...you put the pieces together beautifully!!!
For years I couldn’t seem to make collage work. Now I use it often in mixed media. I even have a few “just collage “ pieces.
Isn’t it amazing how a bit of line work can complete a piece?
In typical blogger fashion these days, this post has just arrived in my reading list. Well done, Carola. The time interval only improved the results. Very attractive. Big hugs - David
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