Negative space

Effective use of negative space has always been a challenge for me.  It's the idea of defining space and form by creating boundaries; it's allowing the viewer to infer shape and substance from the spaces you left blank.  To me, effective use of negative space is a sort of "addition by omission" in the same way that carving or etching is "addition by subtraction."
Here's an example from a master:

Arthur Melville (1858-1904), "Kurrachan"

Here are some examples from some guy with a blog (me):

A few more words on black walnut ink

I did some looking around, and it seems that many people who make their own ink have noticed two wonderful properties:

1.)  Excellent light-fastness (resistance to fading over time with exposure to light)
2.)  Increasingly waterproof over time.  This is great, because it allows for some tinkering before the ink completely sets permanently.

Most recipes also, it seems, include a dash of clove oil or whole cloves (to help improve the somewhat funky smell).  

Another:

30" x 22"
black walnut and gouache on 140 lb. Winsor & Newton Cold Press sheet

Homemade ink!

These are my first paintings of 2014, done with my first ever homemade ink (black walnut - see previous post).

All of these were done on 22" x 30" sheets of Winsor & Newton Paper (Hot Press, 140 lb.).  This is probably the finest paper I've ever used...I bought a bunch on-sale during Thanksgiving break from an art supply store back where my parents live.

Having such large quantities of ink available (and large sheets of paper) allowed me to experiment with some new techniques and tools.

I also tried using some gouache I had bought on-sale along time ago.  I love the vibrant, opaque color, and I'm excited to experiment further.

Apparently, the color is "Carmine"

Happy New Year!!!1

Juglans nigra

pretty gross looking in here.

This is a cast iron cauldron of black walnut husks, happily simmering away on the stove (I waited for Elin to leave for lab before I began).  This process started last fall, with the collecting and de-husking of several pounds of black walnuts.  I packed the fresh husks into a bucket and let time and nature work their magic.  After all the husks had oxidized and turned black, I transferred them to the cauldron, covered them with water, and left them to marinate in their own putrescence for a couple months.  Things got pretty moldy (but surprisingly not-stinky), and this is what I ended-up with:

Can you believe this stuff is free??

So, one day, I decided it was time to take the next step: on to the heat.  After a few hours of boiling and reducing, I strained off all the liquid and was left with:

Ta-DAAAA!

A few jars of homemade black walnut ink!  I added salt to some jars and methanol to others, to prevent mold.  I packed the husks back into an empty paint can and stored it for a possible Round 2 of ink-making if I run out before the next crop of walnuts starts to fall next autumn.

A Unicorn for Elin

~13x15 in.  Coffee and ink on watercolor paper

My second, and dare I say more successful, attempt at painting with coffee.  I painted this for Elin muuuuch earlier this year, and I just got around to getting it matted and framed.  I found the frame (oak, with a nice finish) a long time ago...either on a curb, or in a dumpster.   Apparently they were all the rage in the latter half of the 20th century, according to the folks at the local frame shop.

ArtPrize 2013 Entry

"A Triptych of Icons"

Venue: Monroe Community Church (800 Monroe Ave. NW)

16" x 20"
watercolor and ink on Arches hot press paper

Artist Statement:  

“A Triptych of Icons” is a brief glimpse of a larger, as-yet unimagined, story.  The characters, settings, and the larger world they inhabit are presented here without any context, save what the viewer chooses to create for them.  I have some vague, ill-formed notions about what the larger narrative behind these pieces might be, but I present this little snapshot with the hope that viewers can wonder and create stories for themselves.

The vibrant colors and intricate patterns are meant to resonate with familiar, perhaps nostalgic ideas of beauty, while the grim, surreal elements of the iconography are meant to be a bit unsettling.  Hopefully, the overall effect compels people to linger just a moment longer as they attempt to reconcile the seemingly contradictory impressions.  

My first goal is to show people something new.  Beyond that, I would like for viewers to see something they can appreciate as being beautiful and imaginative, but that also challenges and knocks them off balance just a little.  Hopefully the experience enriches folks, and a small piece of it can persist in some dark, beautiful corner of their memory.

Art in the Park - Tecumseh, MI

 This event was brought to my attentions by a post on the Facebooks earlier in the spring.  I applied for a spot despite my reservations about having to pay a $100 booth-fee if accepted.  Happily, after the first day, I find myself comfortably in the black.  The community seems really supportive, and the attendance yesterday was great.    

 The organizers at Community Arts of Tecumseh are totally killing it with this event (their first).  The location is perfect, the event promotion was very strong, they've been really supportive, and the weather has been gorgeous.  I give them credit for all four.  I'm looking forward to spending one more day in the park and would love the opportunity to come back next year.

Can you spot 5 skydivers and one airplane?

One of the unexpected perks has been watching skydivers drift earthward all afternoon.  The park is adjacent to Skydive Tecumseh, and they must have been BUSY yesterday.  There were planes taking off constantly flying just overhead.  And then, a few minutes later, we could see little black dots against the clouds and blue sky.  Those dots grew larger, until we could clearly see parachutes with people (probably pooping their pants) dangling beneath.