Friday, March 13, 2015

"And Then Comes Spring"

"And Then Comes Spring"
Acrylics and Mixed media on Canvas
16" X 20"
Living in Southern Alberta, Canada poses some problems with the Weather.
The Winters can be unpredictable and  oftentimes they tend to drag on.
But when Spring finally arrives,
 what a joy.

I celebrate our diverse weather
We have been known to have
Snow in September, Sun tanning days in the middle of December
snowflakes on a hot day in August 
and
nothing, no matter how unusual
tends to surprise us.

Spring brings green.
Fresh breathable air without frost
sunshine and a sense of well-being.
I created this work in honour of
The Season of re-birth.

 I base-painted the canvas with a deep blue and affixed 
Silver metal leaf squares.
I then colour washed over the silver another wash of blue.
the blue was applied in splotches, 
let sit and then gently buffed off 
so as to leave a hint of the colour and tone down the silver.
All colours are "Golden Fluids"

Once the blue dried, I did the same thing with Green Gold.
creating a fabulous contrast.
when everything dried fully, I then scumbled over the whole canvas

distressing some of the paint down to the silver and through that at times.
then I washed over the whole thing with random Blues & Green gold.
the base was finished.
I used a template and Molding Paste to add the vines
let them dry and over painted the plaster a few times to get
a not too perfect colour.


Detail:


 I had fun creating this work.
I do hope you see the joy in it.
~~Kathleen

Friday, February 13, 2015

Happy Valentines day. (a wee break from the norm)

For Valentines Day, I send a special message to you all.
Japanese art of Kintsugi follows a different philosophy.
Rather than disguising the breakage, kintsugi restores the broken item incorporating the damage into the aesthetic of the restored item, making it part of the object’s history.
Kintsugi uses lacquer resin mixed with powdered gold, silver, platinum, copper or bronze, resulting into something more beautiful than the original.
~~
For all my friends that may have been "Broken" at one time or another I send you hope.
I send you the hope that you will know that now you are more valuable and treasured.
If you have never been "Broken" please know that in my heart
I will try to be there and patch you up
with Gold if
 it happens.
I treasure you all.
~~Kathleen

See how this person made Kintsugi work for her when a whole shipment of Pottery arrived broken.
http://www.moraapproved.com/blogs/news/7799489-the-new-kintsugi-repair-kit-turning-tragedies-into-opportunities