I haven’t posted any artwork in quite a while. This month I haven’t done much with my 6″ square collage a day work, instead I have focused all of my time and energy on this new collage series.
I began with drawings from my Tuesday night life drawing sessions. For these drawings I used oil pastel that is blended with Copal medium. Each drawing began at with a 20 minute pose. I focused on capturing the pose and the proportions of the figure without worrying at all about the background. Once home, I weeded out the less successful drawings and reworked the better ones, finishing the shading and the details. Then I cut the figure out. Working on 14″ x 20″ board, I placed the figure and began working on the collaged background.
10-21-12, “Slippery When Wet”, 20″ x 14″, mixed media on board
The first one I completed was “Slippery When Wet”. I began by collaging cut pieces of found and stained papers for the background. With this pose, the model had a cane in her hand that I didn’t really like, so I replaced it with the purse. The “Slippery When Wet” sign was a photo I had taken 7 years ago in Hawaii, I remembered that I had it and decided that it would work well amid the lush background of the collage. I added the cast shadow and the bird on her shoulder. With this first collage completed, I decided that I wanted to continue including a bird and a photograph in the next 2 collages.
10-25-12, “Remembering the Hills of Cerrillos”, 20″ x 14″, mixed media on board
For this second collage, I knew I wanted the figure to be gazing out a window. The photograph I selected for this was from a trip I took a few weeks ago to Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was taken while I was hiking in the Cerrillos Hills with my daughter, Rainy. To continue the theme of New Mexico, I included a beer glass from a photo I took at the Marble Brewery in downtown Santa fe and a plate of chilies. I added the drapery and, of course, a little bird perched on the window sill. I started to prefer this approach over the background of torn papers used in the first collage.
10-27-12, “Waiting For You”, 14″ x 20″, mixed media on board
This third collage was the last one made from drawings of this particular model. I wanted a boudoir effect, so I started with some scrap booking papers that I had gotten from Britta, a friend of Rainy’s. Again, I wanted a window. The photograph I selected was from one taken in Hawaii. I really liked the surreal look of the plants growing in the meadow. The 2 zebras were a recent find from an old National Geographic magazine and worked nicely to continue the other-world effect I was after. The lace across the top of the window was a last minute edition, but it carries the idea a step further. Of course there is a bird, this time a bit more subtle.
I am really enjoying this collage endeavor and think that each one is better than the next. I have three more oil pastel drawings from this past Tuesday night, this time the model is Eric. I hope to get started on this series this afternoon, though the Copal medium still needs to dry.
juliepeters 