Paint

Spirited: New Series

Art

I’ve been waiting for a new series idea to come to me for a long time. Probably one of the most challenging aspects about being an artist is finding inspiration. In fact, part of the reason I started this blog was to inspire myself and others by  sharing creations and inspiring places, media and recipes.

Recently, Andy and I were watching “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.” Although probably my least favorite installation in the series, I have always been inspired by the scene that showcases the DA (Dumbledore’s Army) learning how to cast a Patronus charm.

The spell that has come to the forefront of all Harry Potter witchcraft, the Patronus charm defends again dementors and for every witch or wizard, takes the form of a different animal.

tumblr_inline_nvs2kwqehg1stluio_500Thinking about partonuses and spirit animals, I landed upon the idea of creating a series of mixed media pieces, featuring different ghostly animals. Whether the animals are ghosts or the result of magic, I cannot say. All I know is the vision that I have.

 

Right now, that vision entails white, ethereal animals painted onto fabric and embossed with embroidery. I hope to machine embroider white wisps of thread trailing from the animals. The first animal is a fox, as I have always loved these animals and thought that, were I to have a spirit animal, it would probably be some species of fox.

Although I started this piece a while ago, I am just now ready to proceed into the embroidery phase. Painting onto untreated cotton, I needed to put down numerous layers of paint before I was able to achieve the opacity I was looking for.

 

I’m looking forward to embroidering, as I know that will pull the piece together, adding details and movement to the composition.

Stay tuned for the final result!

Hippogriff in Paint and String

Art

Fibernation post #5! And probably the last of my fibernation posts for a little while. I have found myself partaking in other media this winter as well and I don’t want to neglect them!

I’m hoping, however, that this mini series ends with a bang, as this piece took me quite a while to complete. The imagery is, obviously, directly inspired by Harry Potter’s Buckbeak and is a mixed media piece, created with commercial fabric, acrylic paint and embroidery floss.

A little history:

When I was a senior at SUNY Cortland, I created, hung, advertised and hosted a senior exhibition. The show was called “Idle Curiosities” and this was one of the pieces displayed:

dragon idle curiousities

Receiving overwhelmingly positive response to this piece, I thought to myself, why not make another? A follow up if you will. And so I went from dragon to hippogriff.

Fantastical Series:

As two pieces from the same puzzle, both creatures are approximately the same size and made from the same materials. While I bought the fabric at Walmart, the rest is purely handmade (although I did have a professor accuse me of hodgepodging my dragon).


The tricky part of making both of these was painting on the fabric, as thin cotton has a tendency to want to move around. Also, as the paint dries, it soaks into the material. Meaning, 3+ layers of paint are often needed to get an opaque aesthetic.

While the dragon is adorned with both hand and machine embroidery, the hippogriff was all done completely by hand, again, making it one of those pieces that took a little while to finish.


And so ends this mini-series. While I focused on embroidery this time, there is so much more to the world of fiber art. Hopefully I have opened up a few minds and eyes to this world and perhaps event inspired some of you to try it for yourselves!

The Fox and the Feathers

Art

Fibernation post #4! So far, I have given you two different embroidery-oriented posts. Today’s post is an example of something I have become a huge fan and practitioner of: mixed media.

As I have mentioned before, I do not have my own studio. What I do have is a kitchen table.This means that I am always looking for house-friendly forms of art. While there are many different forms of mixed media, one of my favorites has grown out of the combination of paint, ink, fabric and embroidery.

The piece that I am featuring today was made from fabric, markers, paint and thread and is titled “The Fox and the Feathers.”


Although foxes have become trendy over the last couple of years, they have always been one of my favorite animals. I loved them so much in fact, that as a child I begged my parents for a fox costume, not unlike the one worn by one of Peter Pan’s lost boys. Inspired by this animal, this piece came together relatively quickly, only taking a couple of hours from start to finish.


Having drawn the feathers and the fox in black marker, I was able to smear and smudge the ink using white acrylic paint and a rubbing technique with a paint brush. By doing so, I was able to create a sense of depth and form that was lacking in the line drawing.

I finished the piece by using my sewing machine to embroider over two of the feathers. While I had considered embroidering the fox, I did not want to clutter the piece, so I only added embroidery to his ears. I am quite fond of the simple composition and did not want to ruin it.

  Another reason I love this piece is because it reminds me of what art is really about: creativity. There are those in the art world who believe mixed media is a cop-out, and that if you are a true artist then you should be able to communicate through a single medium. I, however, believe the opposite. To limit one’s creativity, in media choice or otherwise, is to limit the whole purpose of art.

So whether you are creating in one media, or two, or ten, it doesn’t much matter, so long as you are creating.

 

Pop-Castle

Art, Pop Culture

It has been much too long since I have been in a painting studio. In undergrad, I was extremely fortunate to be an art major who was privy to newly-renovated studios. As a painting specialization, I spent a particularly large amount of time in this studio creating with oil paint.

Currently without a studio, I am confined to acrylics and watercolor, presently afraid to use oils within my house. Although I plan on having a studio in the future, I am currently grateful for any chance that I get to enjoy painting.

As an art student, I was always encouraged to produce conceptual work. However, getting a masters in public relations from the Newhouse school is a stressful experience.Therefore, lately, I have been enjoying painting for the sake of painting.

To start this new, once-forbidden period of my artistic life I have decided to do a series of acrylic on canvas paintings featuring castles from pop-culture. The first castle that I recently completed was Elsa’s ice castle from Frozen.

frozen painting

I decided to start with this castle for a few reasons. The first being my recent inspiration from the movie (mentioned in a previous post) and the second being the limited color palette. I knew this painting would go quickly for me and therefore chose to do it now as I have been especially busy with midterms having just recently passed.

The next castle on my list is the fictional castle that has had the greatest impact on me and my life: Hogwarts. I obviously have a long way to go on this painting, but don’t mind sharing this very early-stage snap shot as I love looking back and seeing how far a piece has come.

Hogwarts painting

So again we are presented with the question “Is it alright to create art based on copyrighted images?” The answer to that questions is yes. So long as you either:

  1. Alter the original image or
  2. Reproduce it in a new medium

The bottom line is that you must make the piece your own, in some way or another. Both of these paintings are legally OK as they are in new media. I have taken an animated castle and reproduced it in paint. I  have also added my own designs.

In regards to Hogwarts, which obviously has a long way to go, I will make it my own through color choice and the fact that it is being created with paint.

So as I have mentioned before, don’t be afraid to be inspired by the world of pop-culture. It is popular for a reason! Just be sure to make things your own. We are all creators after all.