COMMISSION COMPLETED!

I have just completed a commission for a couple of pics for a garden room. Both are 50cms square and are done on wooden panels.  They are a combination of collage and painting.  For some of the layers I have used paper printed with text that means something special to the customer.  It is not immediately obvious, but, if looked at closely, words can be made out. Finishing touches included splattering with gold and silver metallic paint and highlighting with white paint.

GET WELL CARD

I took a break from my samples, to put together this card of a vase of flowers, for a friend who has just been in hospital.  I went to my stock of painted and decorated papers,  cut and tore out a few simple shapes.  The background was painted with leftover paint which had a layer of striped napkin glued on with matt medium.  The cut pieces were outlined with a black felt tip before being attached and the whole card was finished off with a white gel pen, gold metallic marker and a black felt tip.

BOOKMARKS FOR CARDS

I enjoy making collaged bookmarks as they make a good alternative to cards and I can try out ideas on a small scale.  My latest is to mark a friend's 60th birthday - 'Sensational at 60' on one side and a stylised vase of flowers - deliberately done in the style of Mary Quant and the 60s on the other.   I rarely work on one at a time, so also illustrated is the other one - 'Stressed spelled backwards is desserts. Coincidence? I think not!' - with another stylised floral design on the other side.

For these works, I took a photocopy of a black and white place mat to cut out the vases.  Photocopying or scanning favourite textiles, flat objects, such as, feathers, leaves etc. is a useful resource of papers to collage. The blue background is decoupage paper of jeans pockets. I could have scanned some of my stash of vintage denim for a similar effect.  For the flowers, I used simple shaped punches and hole reinforcement rings.

SWEET PAPERS

'The Pretty Things'  - mixed media on board (89cms x 56cms)

This picture, which was a commission for a local hair and beauty salon, was near completion when I looked at it and decided that it needed something to' lift it' or make it 'pop' as they say in the USA.  It already had a lot of metallic bronze acrylic on it, but it still seemed a little dull.  The answer lay in my store of bright metallic and shiny sweet papers.  I can't bear to throw bright and colourful things away, so they get hoarded away until required.

The only problem I find with sweet papers is making them stick and stay stuck!  I find that silicon or all purpose glues seem to work the best.  Anyway after a bit of fiddling, details on the vase, flower heads and stems were much improved with these shiny additions.

CLEARING THE DECKS

When I started wasting time looking for things I knew I had, it was time for a big clear up! I was in the middle of a large mixed media flower picture on board, which can be seen on my work table.  It took a while to get motivated and the task is not yet complete.  There are still drawers and boxes that need sorting, but I now feel my mind is so much clearer.  I have chucked out the dried up paints and rubbish, and discovered materials I had forgotten about!

I know I like looking at other people's studios, so here is a glimpse of mine. It still looks a bit messy but at least I can find everything now!  There is a work table, a high bench and a sewing area (you can just see my old trusted Bernina).  And the good news is I have now completed the flower picture (see below), and I am working on a new project.

'Secret Moments..Stay Forever'  (89 cms x 56 cms)

QUIRKY VASE

Sometimes it is a quirky or unusual vase that gives me inspiration for a picture, as in this case. It was bought from the Orchard Vale Trust, a local charity which provides homes for people with learning disabilities. I love the simple, naive and innocent quality of their work and always buy at their exhibitions during Somerset Art Weeks.

'We Don't Talk Anymore' - mixed media on canvas (61cms x 51 cms)

This painting features the earthy tones of clay paints.  I had almost finished it when I was trying to think of a suitable title and what to add.  A friend looked at it and said 'those flowers aren't talking'. That was it, I added some falling petal tears and the Cliff Richard song, 'We Don't Talk Anymore' popped into my head for the title. 

Some of the ceramic pieces I have bought from the Orchard Vale Trust.

DAISY TONIC

During the last few days I have had a cold and needed a tonic to help me through.  Luckily, I had been commissioned to do some large flower pictures for a local hair and beauty salon, so could concentrate on that and forget how I was feeling. I chose to do daisies as they always cheer me up, make me smile and think of summer.

'It's Great' - 89cms x 56cms

I started with a primed board, which I treated with ready to use filler to create texture, and added old letters, papers, acrylic paints and alcohol inks. The beauty of using board is that it is a good surface to stamp on.  All the daisies are created with stamps - round sponges and a cork for the centres and I made two large stamps mounted on 20cms x 20cms block canvases for the larger petals.  Using a canvas means that you can put you hands inside the back to press the design directly onto the surface.

SIZE MATTERS

Some years ago I belonged to an exhibiting textile group and we were asked to create work for an exhibition at Exeter Museum called 'Size Matters'. I wanted to do something really big, but boring practicalities, such as transportation, size of studio etc. had to be considered.  My solution was to do one picture on 9 canvases (51cms x 62cms).

'Light the Fire Within' - 160cm x 192cm

I started with a small paper and string collage - playing around with stripes and ancient pot shapes.  This was scaled up to become large and then divided  into 9 panels.  A variety of materials were used including paper, fabric, rope, paint and gold leaf.  Some of the outlines were deliberately not lined up perfectly with the next panel to give a disjointed look.  The work can be broken up as each panel works as an abstract in its own right.

The work was called 'Light the Fire Within', which is written repeatedly on one of the vessels.  It was a phrase that I kept hearing at the time ,as it was the theme of that year's Winter Olympics.

LATEST FLOWER PIC

I  have just finished this picture.  It is the largest 'flowers in a vase' artwork that I have done so far.  Painted on board, the first layer is a collage of my old letters and postcards which date back many years.  I am glad that I didn't throw them away, as in these days of text and email,  I just don't receive interesting post.  I love using them in this way.  Even though they can no longer be read, with just a few words showing through the layers, I know they are there and give me a connection with my past.  The last layer is a splattering of metallic gold paint, a contrast to the matt nature of the rest of the work.

'It's so nice' - mixed media on board. 56cms x 89cms