[image_with_animation image_url=”7183″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] I’ve been making more monotypes. I can’t seem to put them down. The exciting discovery of what comes out of the press is as neurologically rewarding as opening wrapped presents. Better maybe. The invitation of the ghosted plate, cold blankness eliminated, grey tones and shapes invite me to create again, and again, and again.
Monotypes are so similar to paint that I feel I already have some skills, but they are a bit like painting semi-blind. I can see the ink on the plate, but it’s darker than it will be printed, so it’s like … well … painting in the dark. I can hold the plexiglass up to the light and see some of what I’m doing because the light shines through the area I’ve removed ink from and remains black in the areas that carry heavy ink, but the print is always a surprise. I haven’t timed myself and every time I do it I completely lose track of time, but I’m guessing I spend about 20 minutes painting a plate. Honestly it could be more. I really have no idea. But it feels like a sketch, not a “serious” work, so all the experimentation and gambling feels low stakes and high rewards. And since monotypes lend themselves so gracefully to top layers of pastels and paint, I feel another layer coming.
Degas used monotypes as first layers for drawings and paintings. He’d print one or two impressions from a plate, the first one being dark and inky, the second “ghost” image light and grey. Here are some examples of Degas’ monotypes with pastel and oil paint.
This is the beginning of a collection: examples of painted grass. When I paint grass I usually start with large shapes first, light swathes of masses break the canvas into smaller segments. I use a rag sometimes to form the first shapes, then a bristle brush so the bristles scrape away the paint as much as …
These days seem to be built for introverts. Stay at home, don’t congregate in groups, avoid contact. While the rest of the world goes stir crazy, introverts quietly read a book. …Unless their family is trapped at home with them. Call for Art: 6′ of space At the end of this collection of people quietly …
This is an incomplete post, more to come. Akio Takamori’s Sleepers [gallery ids=”4330,4331,4332,4333,4334,4335,4336,4337,4338,4339,4340,4341,4342,4343,4345,4346″ onclick=”link_no[divider line_type=”Full Width Line” custom_height=”30 From the Stranger: Seattle Artist Akio Takamori Has Died by Rich Smith • Jan 12, 2017 at 3:20 pm 1950-2017 JEN GRAVES Akio Takamori died of cancer on Wednesday night. As Jen Graves mentioned in a recent …
Hey there. I wanted to send out a little personal thank you about V. Notes, this unusual and personal blog series of thoughts and ideas related to art. Initially started as a way to give my painting students more information outside of class, V. Notes now has over 1,000 readers. Many subscribers are part of …
Degas’ Pastel Over Monotypes
[image_with_animation image_url=”7183″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] I’ve been making more monotypes. I can’t seem to put them down. The exciting discovery of what comes out of the press is as neurologically rewarding as opening wrapped presents. Better maybe. The invitation of the ghosted plate, cold blankness eliminated, grey tones and shapes invite me to create again, and again, and again.
Monotypes are so similar to paint that I feel I already have some skills, but they are a bit like painting semi-blind. I can see the ink on the plate, but it’s darker than it will be printed, so it’s like … well … painting in the dark. I can hold the plexiglass up to the light and see some of what I’m doing because the light shines through the area I’ve removed ink from and remains black in the areas that carry heavy ink, but the print is always a surprise. I haven’t timed myself and every time I do it I completely lose track of time, but I’m guessing I spend about 20 minutes painting a plate. Honestly it could be more. I really have no idea. But it feels like a sketch, not a “serious” work, so all the experimentation and gambling feels low stakes and high rewards. And since monotypes lend themselves so gracefully to top layers of pastels and paint, I feel another layer coming.
Degas used monotypes as first layers for drawings and paintings. He’d print one or two impressions from a plate, the first one being dark and inky, the second “ghost” image light and grey. Here are some examples of Degas’ monotypes with pastel and oil paint.
[image_with_animation image_url=”7182″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][image_with_animation image_url=”7180″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][image_with_animation image_url=”7193″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”]
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This is the beginning of a collection: examples of painted grass. When I paint grass I usually start with large shapes first, light swathes of masses break the canvas into smaller segments. I use a rag sometimes to form the first shapes, then a bristle brush so the bristles scrape away the paint as much as …
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These days seem to be built for introverts. Stay at home, don’t congregate in groups, avoid contact. While the rest of the world goes stir crazy, introverts quietly read a book. …Unless their family is trapped at home with them. Call for Art: 6′ of space At the end of this collection of people quietly …
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This is an incomplete post, more to come. Akio Takamori’s Sleepers [gallery ids=”4330,4331,4332,4333,4334,4335,4336,4337,4338,4339,4340,4341,4342,4343,4345,4346″ onclick=”link_no[divider line_type=”Full Width Line” custom_height=”30 From the Stranger: Seattle Artist Akio Takamori Has Died by Rich Smith • Jan 12, 2017 at 3:20 pm 1950-2017 JEN GRAVES Akio Takamori died of cancer on Wednesday night. As Jen Graves mentioned in a recent …
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Hey there. I wanted to send out a little personal thank you about V. Notes, this unusual and personal blog series of thoughts and ideas related to art. Initially started as a way to give my painting students more information outside of class, V. Notes now has over 1,000 readers. Many subscribers are part of …