Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Yupo paper experimentation

I work in an art supplies store, so I'm always busting to try the new and interesting things that my manager gets in. The yupo paper had been there for a while, but I didn't realise the potential it held for watercolour, so I gave it a go. The interesting thing about yupo paper is that it isn't paper from wood pulp, cotton or rag, but rather just sheeted plastic. Watercolour behaves differently on this surface, swimming and pooling until the water evaporates, instead of being absorbed into the paper. This makes it maintain a more liquid appearance even after it has dried. These works aren't necessarily my style, but it was fun to see what it could do. Sprinkling salt on the still wet image yielded interesting results as well.
flowers
watercolour on yupo, 2009

untitled
watercolour on yupo, 2009

untitled
watercolour on yupo, 2009

grim04
watercolour on yupo, 2009

Sunday, April 25, 2010

grim girls

Returning to the girls from eyeontheprize, adding watercolour and some flies. Trying to communicate decay and vulnerability. When I have the time and means I plan to translate these into oil painting.


grim03
pen and watercolour on paper, 2009



grim02
pen and watercolour on paper, 2009

grim01
pen and watercolour on paper, 2009

fear

I did this mixed media drawing a while ago, it was going to be a starting point for a different series, but I had to abandon it due to a lack of time. Will probably expand upon this idea in the future. Focusing on fear, humanity, vulnerability and the unpredictable.

fear01
mixed media on paper, 2008

Friday, April 23, 2010

Monochromatic portraits

Leaving the watercolours alone for a moment here, decided to unearth the inks and charcoals. Was a lot of fun to use these bolder mediums again.

portrait23
mixed media on paper, 2009

portrait22
mixed media on paper, 2009

portrait21
mixed media on paper, 2009

portrait20
mixed media on paper, 2009

portrait19
mixed media on paper, 2009

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

matics

I wasn't sure what to make of these, I'm pretty sure they were a continuation of works from a previous year on global warming. I'll probably do more work on this theme later.

matics03
mixed media and collage on paper, 2008


matics02
mixed media and collage on paper, 2008


matics01
mixed media and collage on paper, 2008

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

milky

After a friend had a baby I was compelled to draw him.

milky05
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


milky04
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


milky03
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


milky02
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008

military

These are the first works that I made using children's book collage, and a definite step away from my usual work at the time in 2007. They were fun to make.

military02
pen and collage on paper, 2007


military01
pen and collage on paper, 2007

Monday, April 19, 2010

Random collages


These works were inspired by trawling through old children's books in op shops, experimenting with appropriation. 'creaturesoftheforest' is a theme that I will be elaborating upon in the future.

creaturesoftheforest01
pen and collage on paper, 2008




birdstring
pen and collage on paper, 2008



antarctic
pen, watercolour and collage on paper, 2008

eyeontheprize

These works were a move toward illustration. I wanted to juxtapose a naive style with confronting subject matter, however these initial ideas lacked the impact that I was after. I still like them though.



eyeontheprize05
pen on paper, 2008



eyeontheprize04
pen on paper, 2008


eyeontheprize03
pen on paper, 2008


eyeontheprize02
pen on paper, 2008


eyeontheprize01
pen on paper, 2008

Later expressive portraits

I moved on to making more expressive portraits. These ones are an attempt to look more bloody and fleshy. I wanted to highlight humanity, vulnerability and transience.

portrait18
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait17
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008

portrait14
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008

portrait12
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait09
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008

portrait07
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait06
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008

Earlier portraits

This set of portraits of self and others mark an important starting point for my work in portraits, and from here move on to a more expressive mode of practice.

portrait05
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait04
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait03
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait02
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008


portrait01
pen and watercolour on paper, 2008

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Introductory Post

Hi everyone, this is my first post for my blog. I've made this as a means to share my art, to get feedback and to share and discuss inspiration.




Enjoy



:)