When I'm not sure what to do in my groups sometimes I will go back to the materials. Last week, we explored chalk pastels. The only thing I don't like about chalk pastels is that you can't just stop working on a piece and be done with it. The chalk will get everywhere - forever and ever - if you don't fix it somehow, either with hairspray or a spray fixative. It's very frustrating. This extra step, which seems so simple, almost never gets done, and so every time I touch it I alter the image. Especially when you have a big group, this can get very messy very quickly!
However, I love how chalk pastels can really seem to come alive. The colors glow and shimmer as they are layered and blended.
Also, lately I've been working almost exclusively on black paper in these art groups. I like using the black paper because the brightly colored pastels (oil or chalk) really pop from the page. It also helps a little with the anxiety of a big blank sheet of paper, since it somehow doesn't seem to have the same expectation and intimidation of a white page.
When we were talking about our pieces, people said mine looks like someone reaching out to give a hug. An open circle. I like these ideas... I should actually explore some of my scribbles through poems and more artwork but lately I haven't really wanted to revisit my thesis!
No comments:
Post a Comment