ATC's have me by the throat

It is still happening..................... once I start making ATC's I find I just can't stop. If the truth were known, I just find it easier to produce satisfying collaged images than painting. It is so easy to set everything up before finally deciding to glue it down. I think my next step has to be making full sized art by this method. I find that it is so easy this way to keep coming back in short breaks or whatever time I can find whereas with painting there always seemed so much setting up to do. Or is this just my excuse?

But I must remember to do a little drawing everyday, just a few minutes - enought to keep my hand in LOL

Here are another two which I have entered in group challenges/competitions

The second one seems to be a little washed out here but I think this is because I took the photo in poor light and used the flash

well... the decorating is done, the carpet is laid and the flat-pack wardrobe is assembled. Just got to put all the "stuff" back in. this was our spare bedroom and looks more like a warehouse with all my son's junk. My wife is thinking of letting him move into the newly decorated room so that I can do his room. Oh what joy!

Back to the grindstone, again.....

Back to ATC swapping again

After a busy weekend decorating and assembling flat pack wardrobes I was able to fit in a couple of ATC's during rest breaks. One of these was for a challenge on a new group that I have joined, in a further bid to widen my crafting horizons; the other was for a 1-2-1 swap. It feels great to have got these both done and out of the way. Both are simple collages on backgrounds done by wiping acrylic paint over the media. Here they are:-

Just for good measure I have included another ATC which I have completed recently for a swap and this are shown below. Again a collaged image but the background (the egyptian scene) was an experiment with image transfer, I like the distressed effect which is ontained by this technique.





Well it's back to the grindstone for another session of decorating...............

Button fairies on You Tube

A little while ago I posted some photos of button fairies which I had made for a swap which was run by the NI group on Yahoo. Not my usual style or subject but I do like to join in and since most of the members are ladies (are there any male crafters out there apart from Tim Holzt?) I get embroiled in all sorts of odd things. here are the three button fairies that I made.

my very first attempt, a more masculine african angel and the one I included in the swap. That's it I have not been tempted to do any more, just wondering what to do with the buttons I aquired for the project!

I have made the work for this swap into a video show-reel which I have posted on You Tube, here it is if you would like to see some of the varied work by the members of this talented group.


I will be adding more videos in the near future to cover more of the groups projects.

ATC's from altered magazine images

Hi, my group NI has been working with a new technique to many of us. It has been described by Berni Berlin in her book, "ATC Workshop" and by Shelli Heinemann in the magazine "Art Trader".

Basically it entails selecting an (inspirational?) image to use as a starting point for the final work. the image can be used as it is or cut out from surroundings if only a portion of the image ( often a face/portrait) is to be used. This is layered onto card stock, and painted using gesso or a diluted acrylic paint to wash out the details. When dry, the required details are drawn in using a pencil or waterproof pen. Colour can be added as required, here I have used permanent markers. Although it is possible to re-create the original image, further scope is available by creating a new image from the basic outline. It is also possible to use collage to build up the image.

here are my first three examples using this technique; I have kept the painted image quite simple as I have largely been experimenting with the technique. I do hope to be doing more in the next few days and will be posting these as and when they are available.

I am afraid this shows a lack of appreciation of the potentialities in altering / modifying the hairstyle. Make a note to myself to be careful with this in the future..............

I am in fact using a watercolour felt-tip pen here to paint the skin tone in the face. Not sure why the paint has reacted as it has done. Worked well over most of the face but in some areas has not taken at all, but I actually liked the effect...............

Sorry about the lack of focus here. I think this is the best of the three so far, actually the first one that I did. I used a metallic acrylic paint in the hair and then repainted with black pen to achieve what I think is a very good effect. Pity you can't see it in the photo.

Well I don't know what this has proved so far but again I enjoyed using the new technique and learning from the mistakes which have been made. watch this space...................

another completed wip - after chagal

Did you see the pastel painting I posted recently (after Chagall), I decided to give it a little digital treatment, just to see what I could do with it as I am still learning the capabilities of my new toys. I think it is an improvement, even tho' the texture of the pastel has been removed.

What do you think? I hope I have improved on his face ( very difficult to do details using stumpy pastels). But he still looks pregnant and I have not spent too much time on his hands and feet. Wow don't I exude confidence - not!

You can see the original via the link on the previous post.

I have to say I am spending rather a lot of time creating digitally altered images at the moment. As I said above just trying out the new toys. 'Fraid I couldn't afford the best but the freebies that I have been playing with are giving me so much to think about at the moment.

The ones I have been using are Serif Photoplus 8, Art Weaver, Project Dogwaffle and Art Rage. All are available as free downloads, wonderful thing the web.

wip completed (after Paul Klee)

As promised here is the completed pastel based on Paul Klee's, "SENECIO".

I could not wait for this weeks art group meeting, and rather than getting out my pastels at home ( omg the dust!!!) I used a photo of the original WIP and completed it digitally.

I have just sorted out my so-called office at home, and I now am able to use my graphics tablet on the desk in front of the computer rather than using it on my my lap. This really helps with the hand - eye cordination ( so expect lots more digitally produced paintings in the future) which was giving me a problem when using this device. Anyway here is the completed painting

Have to admit that mine is not a patch on the original, much less innovative as I am still painting what I think I ought to see. A major handicap when doing semi-abstract paintings like this.

fun with pastels (after Paul Klee)

http://www.artinthepicture.com/paintings/Paul_Klee/Senecio/

The above link gives a photo of an oil painting by Paul Klee called "Senecio" (old man), paul is another of my favourite artists and at my art group tonight I was looking thro' some of his work to use as inspiration for another pastel. I particularly like the way Paul uses texture in this painting and I decided that I could get close to this with pastel and that I would use this as a reference for my latest attempt to return to painting.

I have not finished the painting yet needing to put in a little detail for the nose, the eyebrows, etc; but I was pleased with the work so far and liked the new colours. Quite a difference! What do you think? Hopefully I will complete it at the art group next week. Anyway, here it is as a work-in-progress :-

digital paintings using dogwaffle

Hi all, its been a busy week for me ( decorating my home office, well my spare bedroom really) and I have not been able to use the web at all. However I have been playing with my graphics tablet and a new piece of software called project dogwaffle ( new to me at any rate although it has been around for a while I believe).

Its like learning a foreign language, trying to work out what all the strange new words mean. I have decided to put up three of the "fun" paintings which I have done. It does not show up any great skill on my part but does show some of the tricks used by the software. If anyone knows of any web site where I can get any advice I would be grateful for any guidance. It is quite late now, and I have decided to post these before retiring, but I will be googling tomorrow to see if I can get any help.

Here are the "paintings", I had a lot of fun doing them as I found what some of the "buttons" did:-

the first two used built in brushes and effects, the last used an "oil" effect brush which picked up and mixed the wet colours - great fun swirling all those colours to get the effect.

..............anything to keep from picking up a real brush................... must be more determined.

PS long term readers will know I tried a program called ARTRAGE when I first aquired my tablet, that seems better for real drawing as opposed to the gimmickery of dogwaffle. However, I am sure that each has far more features than I havae yet discovered.