Earlier this year, I took an exceptional online Abstract Expressionism class with Jodi Ohl. The experience really helped me push my skills to a whole new level. Plus, I learned a whole bunch of new tools and media. There are a few artists I follow religiously on YouTube and on their web sites. One is Judy Woods from New Zealand at https://www.judywoodsart.com.
She offered a free week-long taste of her class in abstract mixed media… so I signed up for the self-paced course with coaching.
The first homework was to create four very different quick pieces of art using just black and white. (I cheated with a dab or two of Payne’s Gray ;-)). The lesson emphasizes using opposites to stimulate interest… So, if there’s something big, add something small. If you have curves, throw in straight lines. If you have chaos, give the eye a big place to rest. Thick, thin. Hard edge, soft edge. Lost, found. You get the idea.
I used Arches watercolor paper, acrylics, graphite, crayons, and various and sundry markers and pens. Here are my four quick paintings (well, the zen paisley piece took quite longer than the others.)
Glad I took a photo because the next step was to tear them all up into pieces.
I suppose tearing things up gets you to look at the pieces you love. It also teaches you that nothing is too precious in art… when we concentrate on being safe, and preserving a certain section of the painting, our art suffers. Better to free the spirit and embrace the flow.
The next step is to reassemble the pieces into a pleasing arrangement. I used wood glue but that’s only because I didn’t have any soft gel medium. Then I glazed over the top.
Once assembled and glued, the piece was sealed with matte medium. Some of it smudged but I actually don’t mind it. I am going to post this to the private group and see what suggestions the coaches may have.
