Taking on My Hobgoblin Update: Painting Large

In this blog post, I shared the story of my inner critic's fear that painting large was "dangerous."

After writing about the subject in my daily journal, and then creating in my art journal, I plunged in and made this 24" x 30" painting.  

I am delighted to report that painting large is in some ways easier than painting small.  It allows freedom of motion as you paint, making sweeping motions more natural.

I started with this fiery orange-red underpainting to employ the power of color contrasts.

Orange and blue are opposites on the color wheel.  When you place them side-by-side, they create a vivid contrast that attracts the viewer's eye and creates a dynamic energy.

The beautiful thing about acrylic paint is that it dries quickly, so you can add layers on top of each other fairly quickly without mixing the two layers of paint.

I explained how I made this crow stamp in this post.

After making an enlarged copy of one of the prints, I transferred the photocopy to the painting using matte medium.

I applied a generous coat of matte medium to the face of the copy, stuck it down to the painting where I wanted it, and then pressed it firmly in place.  As I scraped excess goo out from between the two layers, I was careful not to get any matte medium on the back side of the copy.  That's important.

The next step is to let the matte medium dry.  When it's fully dry, spritz the paper with water and peel back the paper to reveal the image (in reverse).

You'll have to rub the last fibers of paper off of the image, and some parts of the image may come up with the paper if there was an air bubble in that spot.

I touched up a few spots on my crow with black paint.

Mixing matte medium with the acrylic paint allowed me to paint smooth, flowing letters and swirls.

The black & white contrasts appealed to my artist's eye.

As I painted, I tried to listen to the tiny voice of my intuition.  Of course, I had antsy moments in the creative process, wondering if it would all work out.  

We have a saying at my house, "Excite = Life."  If you're getting excited/nervous from time-to-time, then you are living your life fully and not shying from challenges. 

I played around with different designs underneath the crow, but didn't like the first attempt.  I removed the black squiggles with a paper towel wetted with rubbing alcohol, and tried again.

For touch-ups, I put a dab of acrylic paint and a blob of matte medium on an old membership card.  I mixed the two to make a smoother paint.  

Matte medium also slows the drying time of acrylic paint.  I used it after the painting was finished and dried as a clear top coat to protect the painting.

Old credit cards are useful for spreading paint onto a canvas using the broad side.  You can use the corners to scratch back into the paint while it's wet to make texture.

I finished, of course, by signing my name with a Posca paint pen.  

Always sign your work!  

Then place it where you can admire it

I hope you find ways to talk back to your inner critic.  It's incredibly empowering, and you end up with rich artwork!

Copyright Betsy Bangley 2024.  All rights reserved.

Art Journaling 101 with Amy Maricle

 

I am taking an online course from artist and art therapist Amy Maricle of Mindful Art Studio. 

Art Journaling 101 walks you through ways to jump right into creating, beginning with defusing the inner critic by writing out what our critic says to us and making a drawing of it.  

I call mine the Hobgoblin, and I imagine it to be a cranky, snide gargoyle.

Afterwards, we turned our attention to embracing our Muse.

Through the course, I've been eager to watch each short video and create more pages because the process is so easy.  

It's inspiring to have an instructor outline a technique, then invite you to make your own variations.

Amy demonstrates a variety of techniques for creating backgrounds as well as ways to fill the backgrounds with drawings and writing.

We created backgrounds in watercolor, 

both splashy and smooth.

Instead of facing a blank white page, now there's an inviting field of color on my art journal pages.

Amy demonstrated a technique using 2 colors of Caran D'Ache Neocolor II water soluble crayons with gesso. I incorporated a layer of music sheeting for more texture.

She shared a simple technique for filling a page with acrylics.

Which provided the ideal surface to write a quote.

I recommend taking this inexpensive course because it inspires you to jump into creating right away.  

Sometimes, the hardest part of art making is getting started and deciding what to do.

I created all of these pages in a span of one afternoon. I tucked the activities into an otherwise busy day, and felt uplifted by the process.

Here's a link to the class: Art Journaling 101.

Happy Creating!

Upcycled Art Journal from Trader Joe's Grocery Bags

I'm a big fan of Trader Joe's grocery store.  I love the staff, and the food! 

Over the last few years, I amassed a collection of their sturdy paper bags.  Determined to recycle them, I turned them into a journal.

I got the idea for creating a faux leather cover from an idea I saw in a YouTube video.  

I cut my paper bags into pages, wet them and crinkled them for some extra texture. 

After letting the pages dry, I sewed them into a journal and added a cover.

On the pages that have print, I gesso and paint over, or simply collage. Here I've used music sheeting and old book pages, acrylic paint, homemade stamps, and Sharpies.

I copied a wonderful "permission slip" from The Unexpected Gypsy.  It's helpful to write down your intention in a journal, and to remind yourself that you are allowed to create without judgement.

I love the brown craft paper surface of the unprinted pages. I can use white paint pens and black ink to contrast. I've sewn in a string of battery-powered lights to this page to remind myself that nurturing myself helps my inner light to shine.

The beauty of upcycled materials for me is that I've saved something from the landfill, so it feels like there's no pressure to make anything "pretty." 

A beautiful way to slip past perfectionism.

Why not create your own art journal from materials around the house?

Art Journaling Class at the Community College of Beaver County

 I just finished teaching Art Journaling at the Community College of Beaver County.  My students and I explored a variety of techniques and materials, from collage to acrylic painting to colored pencils, watercolor pencils and homemade stamps.  

We began each morning with inspiration from other artist, then moved on to a writing prompt, and spent the remainder of class creating in our journals.

Many thanks to CCBC for hosting this class, and to my students for the energy and authenticity they brought to each session.

I hope you all continue to create and make discoveries in your journals!

If you're interested in joining me at CCBC for future art classes, you can find a class listing here: https://www.ccbc.edu/arts