MishMash

This blog is a bit of a 'Mish Mash' of things. Hit the play button!

Abstract Landscapes Course
So this week I started developing a new abstract course which I am really excited about. It wasn't my intention to start planning a new course but it sort of just happened. I woke up one day last week and just decided it was time to start sorting through the 1000's of images of artwork I have stored on my external hard drive. So I began to sort and put images into folders and all of a sudden I just got excited at looking at some of my abstract landscape creations, I thought "MMMm I need to do this NOW". So I spent the whole day just brainstorming and writing down ideas and before long i had collected enough ideas that I could actually start putting together a new course. Not to give too much away at this early stage but a key component of the class is recycling. So YAY more about that course as it develops, I think it is going to be one of my best yet! 

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I am inspired by everything and nothing!
So today I was watching James Kalm's latest gallery show report and at 5:15 I saw an artwork which totally inspired me to race down to my studio and create this little artwork (see image). It is amazing how we can just see an image and be totally inspired to create, before that I wasn't even in the mood to make any art. Now I have no clue about how that particular artist created his artwork or what materials he used and in fact I don't want to know, half of the fun in trying to work out how they 'did it' is coming up with your own way of 'doing it'. But I had such fun playing today and experimenting with different effects and techniques that this 'discovery' has inspired a new series of abstracts. I absolutely LOVE pushing my own boundaries and it is nice to work with fabric because it opens up a whole new world of possibilities. 

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Fabric can be manipulated into any shape you desire, it can be twisted and folded into creating something amazing with really no great effort. I am all about techniques and using materials which create 'big' impact. So it will be interesting to see how i can 'marry' the manipulation of fabric with textures. I don't think I 'nailed' it with this piece and while I like the contrast of both sides, I think I have 'over worked' the white side with too much texture. Maybe it would have been more successful if the white side was smooth to balance out the folds and the 'movement' of the fabric. But really I am not too worried, this piece was experimental and so I really wasn't too focused on creating a master piece. When your working a new idea the last thing you want to do is pressure yourself into creating brilliance. Creating beauty takes time, it takes making mistakes and then reflecting. You have to play and explore all options of the medium so you understand the materials you are working with! Only then can you create something great! 

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Just for fun!
While I was playing around with this techniques I thought there is no reason why it couldn't be adapted to work with my masks. So I have a few ideas of how I can use it to create interesting little sculptures.
Speaking of masks I am pretty happy with the colour scheme of my latest face. I painted it different shades of orange using a combination of yellow and red spray paint, then I wiped it over with that beautiful dark 'Bitumen' and let it dry. Took my citrasolv and then started wiping away the bitumen to reveal the vibrant orange underneath. But I only removed enough bitumen to really emphasize the detail. You can see the mask in the slide show above towards the end! 

Plexified 
I am getting really excited about my new Plexiglass course starting on the 5th of next month. In fact I am surprised at how many have actually signed up for the class, considering plexiglass isn't the easiest medium to work with! But there are some great projects and I know the course is going to inspire those artists who take the course. (For full info about the course click HERE)

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