It's been a while since my last post due to a busy few weeks filled with travel and visits with family and working on some DIY home projects. But here I am, back just in time to help celebrate the third birthday of CZT Adele Bruno's It's A String Thing blog challenges.
I haven't had much time to draw, paint, or tangle during this busiest part of our summer so I admit it took me a bit of time to warm those artsy muscles (both mind and body) back up. Here's my take on it using the string framework of three candles with a shot of the linework before shading and the final result.
I really like how the rough surface of the mixed media paper I used gave a texture to the stones of Orbs-la-dee when I shaded them. If I had chosen the smooth bristol paper I sometimes use instead, the result would have been smoother, possibly even glassy looking stones. Every little choice creates opportunities for new discoveries.
Last post I wrote a bit about expressing grief through art and art that has a voice, that speaks out, art that is powerful. Last night my oldest child and I had the opportunity to attend an art reception for photographer Jess Dugan’s project To Survive on This Shore and acrylic paintings and mixed-media artwork by the Trans Teen Art Project in Seattle.
The photographs were part of a project that combines photographs of transgender and gender-variant people over the age of fifty with interviews about their life experiences in regards to gender, identity, age, and sexuality to provide a nuanced view into the complexities of aging as a transgender person.
The paintings and mixed-media works were produced during a project to: support trans youth in Seattle with a safe space for creative self expression, build community into the future, and develop public awareness of the Seattle trans youth community.
It was a beautiful and inspiring display of self-expression, of giving voice to identity, and I felt honored to be a witness.
I haven't had much time to draw, paint, or tangle during this busiest part of our summer so I admit it took me a bit of time to warm those artsy muscles (both mind and body) back up. Here's my take on it using the string framework of three candles with a shot of the linework before shading and the final result.
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| O, Onomato, Orbs-la-dee, Opus linework before shading |
I really like how the rough surface of the mixed media paper I used gave a texture to the stones of Orbs-la-dee when I shaded them. If I had chosen the smooth bristol paper I sometimes use instead, the result would have been smoother, possibly even glassy looking stones. Every little choice creates opportunities for new discoveries.
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| Happy 3rd Birthday to It's a String Thing! |
Last post I wrote a bit about expressing grief through art and art that has a voice, that speaks out, art that is powerful. Last night my oldest child and I had the opportunity to attend an art reception for photographer Jess Dugan’s project To Survive on This Shore and acrylic paintings and mixed-media artwork by the Trans Teen Art Project in Seattle.
The photographs were part of a project that combines photographs of transgender and gender-variant people over the age of fifty with interviews about their life experiences in regards to gender, identity, age, and sexuality to provide a nuanced view into the complexities of aging as a transgender person.
The paintings and mixed-media works were produced during a project to: support trans youth in Seattle with a safe space for creative self expression, build community into the future, and develop public awareness of the Seattle trans youth community.
It was a beautiful and inspiring display of self-expression, of giving voice to identity, and I felt honored to be a witness.
