New Etsy Shop and Content

If you like my work and are interested in buying any of them, or simply checking out new pieces I have created, here is my etsy shop that I just got up and running. I appreciate your support, and am working on setting a schedule to more frequently update this blog. I have about 30 new paintings I have done since my move to Seattle, WA and am excited to share them with you. 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/SensoryIntegrity

For now, here is a couple examples of some of my new work. 

This first piece was created with acrylic inks, both colored and iridescent, which are embedded in a layer of pouring medium. This adds depth and dimension to the piece, and the interference/iridescent inks add complexity as the colors change in different lights. It reminds me of stained slides in a microscope and looks like something from an internal anatomy structure, without being directly referential of any particular structure.  This piece is done on 10in by 10in canvas with painted sides, ready to be put on display. 

This piece was created solely with the use of acrylic paints, which has become rare for me, since I love so many media and can hardly contain myself to just one. It was done during my phase of planet/galaxy interest, and  has an alien sky feel to it. It was done on 9in by 12in paper and comes sealed in an art protector.

Dripping madness

This piece effectively summarizes my passion for texture, and the texture is what caused the ink to drip in such an interesting way. This piece was colored with black acrylic in only, in different diluted strengths.

Persephone Unbound

I have not posted in awhile, being busy with a move across the country and having to abandon 99% of my collection. I am happy to have started fresh and am finally painting on canvas again. This piece was named by someone very important to me, and I am quite proud of how it turned out.

Marbled drips

These pieces were done by marbling the latex paints I worked with on the canvas as they were dripping. The canvas was held up to increase the flow of the paints, which were strung, poured, and dripped in specific ways to create the texture. The fully marbled orange piece reminds me of lava, in the intricacies of the marbling, as well as the colors. I enjoy the latex paints for their self-leveling attributes, and wide range of color choices.

Before and after

This framed alcohol ink was done with one of a two part set of frames I just got. I started with a striped teal background for the frame, then used the alcohol inks directly on the glass. I sprayed the frame teal and put it all together. This is similar to the smaller, more rectangular piece I made and sold this weekend at my art show. I will do the second frame in a similar fashion, so they may be purchased separately or in a set.

A Skull-eton and some antlers

Here are two pieces I edited as part of my practice using Photoshop. I found a fantastic blog that offers tons of free public domain images that can be downloaded and used for art. The author even encourages artists to send pictures of the art created with the images so they can be displayed. Check out graphicsfairy.blogspot.com to find some images for yourself. The first of my pieces is layered with multiple skeleton and skull images, using different opacity and blurring to de-emphezise some of them. The second was created with an images of antlers, inverted and textured, while adding color and rougher outlines. I am starting to get the hang of Photoshop's special effects, and really like the amount of choices I have at my fingertips for editing.

Custom Alchol Ink Giveaway for Following my Blog!

 



I am running my first giveaway on this blog. The first 10 people who follow my blog starting today will be entered into a drawing to receive a free custom alcohol ink abstract painting. The winner(s) will be able to choose from a number of colors, sizes and styles for the prize(s). To follow, sign up in the upper right corner of my blog and you will be entered. Thanks for playing, and have a great week .

Framed Abstract 16 x 20 canvases

I had an art show this weekend and I had my new frames painted and mounted to the 16 x 20 canvas size that I usually work with. These are the three that I had, though I hope to eventually have all of those canvases framed. They look more professional and seem more finished.

Abstract alcohol ink framed

I just made this alcohol ink abstract piece and framed it for my art show tomorrow. The color of the frame is actually turquoise, though my camera on my phone doesn't show that well. I made an alcohol ink piece (not pictured) tonight with my friend on acetate. I now know for sure that even someone who does not consider herself artistic, like my friend, can create beautiful abstract pieces with these materials with ease. Get some and try it out for yourself, it may open up the artist in you.

Spray Paint Planets

These two abstract planet pieces were done with spray paint on poster board. I just learned some new techniques for using spray paint, and couldn't wait to get some to try them out. I am excited with how these turned out, since they were my very first tries. I will make the next few a little more complex, and try out some more techniques soon.

An experiment in color

I was looking though my previously painted pieces, and came to the realization that I rarely use more than 2 colors in each piece. I do use tints and shades of the colors, but had no examples on hand of a painting with more than 3 separate colors. This is what I created while trying to remedy that. I had my tube of alizarin crimson out, which has quickly become one of my favorite colors to work with. I used as many colors as I could in this piece, by mixing some, then using my store bought-premixed version next to the ones I mixed. I used my oil painting bristle brushes to help blend the colors, and really like how this piece turned out.

Tape up that texture

This painting is a study in texture, and how one material can deceive the eye into believing it is another material. I created this texture with masking tape, crumpled and piled on top of itself. I then blended the edge lines by using regular matte gel. I gessoed over this piece a few times, to make sure to seal the tape well. I then mixed this particular range of colors with gray, viridian green, alizarin crimson, titanium white ultramarine and prussian blue. I love how the color turned out, and though I initially planned to continue painting and adding straight glazes of alizarin crimson, I have decided to leave it like this for awhile. The larger picture shows the color in more detail, and the second picture shows the texture a little more clearly.

Bubble Bubble Boil and Trouble Abstract

 

 

This is a painting I just finished today using a new technique I learned very recently. I used a heat gun on the paint as it was drying to get the bubbles and boils as a unique texture. I had tested this technique out with gesso yesterday, and am still working on finishing that painting. This cadmium red paint had been sitting in my acrylic box for over a year, since it was too thick and dry to work with when I bought it. It would not come out of the tube anymore, so I cut off the top and added water until it was a more workable consistency. I then used the heat gun for quite a long time, seeing as how the paint was still thick, it took some time to bubble. The nice thing about taking that much time was that the heat gun added all of the tints and shades I needed. The longer I kept the heat on one spot, the darker it would get, and if it was there long enough, it turned an iridescent gold, which looks great with the red. I used the heat gun in multiple stages of the paint's drying process, the more dry or thin the paint was, the smaller the bubbles and boils. To finish the piece off, I used the black spray webbing and heated that as well to add some dimension. Here are two pictures of the painting, one of the whole piece and a close up to show the texture and unique creepiness of the piece. 

Spray Webbing Abstract

 

 

This is an 11*14 paper painted with Chinese watercolors and spray webbing. I needed the spray webbing for a different project I am working on, so to test it out, I sprayed it on this piece of paper. I liked the design it created, so I decided to get some more practice with my new watercolors and paint over it. The webbing is waterproof, and gives a very unique textural look to a painting. I am quite sure I will be using it frequently in the future.

Recreation

The first picture displayed here is of an 8*10 canvas board done with alcohol inks. The second picture is of an 11*14 mixed media paper painted with Chinese watercolors. I had a request at one of my art shows to do a similar painting as the original alcohol ink one, except larger. I informed the person that is was not possible to due, as I was not sure the exact colors I had used to create the painting. The difficult thing about alcohol inks, besides their unpredictability is that when mixing them together, they tend to create their own colors. You could mix a teal and a purple, and get a bright pink, you just never know. I was using these watercolors in the second painting yesterday, and realized I had a similar color scheme happening from the original painting. Without looking at the first painting, I attempted to paint this new one to look as if it was from the same series, and the same materials. I am excited that this was successful, and am now able to recreate alcohol ink paintings with more different mediums.

Abstract Oil and Water Photographs

These abstract photographs were made with the help of oil and water. The bubbles are vegetable oil floating on water, in a glass dish. The dish is lit from underneath, with ink floating in and sunk at the bottom of the water. I experimented for awhile getting the lighting and colors right, then took a bunch of photos so I could pick out my favorite ones. This experiment was successful, and I will be doing this again soon.

Abstract ink painting on 11*14 paper

A friend of mine came over today so we could paint and create together. She had some very inspiring ideas, and while she created, I worked on this new paper painting. I started with a thick layer of acrylic paint, which I then removed some of and distressed with a spray bottle and paper towels. I then started splattering different media across the paper. I started with iridescent ink, then added some alcohol ink, acrylic ink and even fluid acrylic paint for some dimension. I let some of the colors mix and intermingle, while others I dried first before adding another layer. Towards the end I started tilting the paper so some of the drips and splatters could run. I then sprayed a spray bottle containing water thinned acrylics to finish off the whole painting. I am excited about this picture because the only editing I had to do to it was to crop it, there was no messing with the saturation needed. This photograph is the exact colors of the actual painting. I am happy to finally have a way to share my work, exactly as it appears in real life.

Edited Photographs

This photo was also taken on my new camera. It is a close up of a fur like pillow, showing the texture of the long hairs. I edited the photo in Photoshop, using the negative settings to add a more dramatic flair to the picture. I also inverted the photo to add more mystery as to what the image actually is.

Photographs

I finally bought myself a nice camera, so I can start on some photography ideas I have. I went for a compact, but didn't want the look of the point and shoot, flat camera that fit into your pocket. I wanted a digital camera, that looked like a SLR. I ended up with the Nikon, p510, for anyone that is interested. It has 16.1 megapixels, 42 times wide optical zoom, and lots of fun features I am still trying out. Here are some of the first few photos I took yesterday. They were all taken outside in the dark, thanks to my camera's wonderfully powerful flash. I am so excited to continue to use this camera, as the picture quality and clarity is so much better than the pictures I usually submit on my phone. I uploaded these pictures straight from my memory card, without editing them. Two of them are taken of a streetlamp, one with the camera moving. The third is a telephone wire, also taken with the camera moving.

Alien planet

I painted this abstract painting a couple years, and sold it at one of my first art shows. I was at the owner's house tonight, and got an opportunity to take a better picture of it than the ones I had. I did this painting with a couple layers of acrylic paint, dipping different circles in paint, and using paper towels as a stamp as well. The spikey shaped object was done with oil paint. The whole thing was sealed with varnish after it was dry.