Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Studio fun!


Goofing around with crayons is fun. I love the smell of them (ahhh! first memories of art making smell) and they keep me from being too serious. They got me craving 'grown-up' crayons- pastels. They're so creamy! I love pushing, blending and scraping with this medium. It's so sensual! I'm letting pastels be a medium for "play art" not anything I plan to show. I find it freeing. In the end it feeds my work.

Here's some more fun from the early art days. In grade one our teacher squirted black paint from a dishsoap container onto our paper. She gave us a straw and had us blow the paint around to make a tree. You get some really great shapes with this! I don't know what kind of formula she used, because acrylic even watered down doesn't move very well. I think she may have used kid's tempura paints (more good smells). I figured I'd try it with ink, since that would move well. Fluid acrylics might work too.

There is a small issue with the ink. Each time I placed the straw full of ink down on the paper and blew, it made a great big bubble that burst leaving these funny, circular growths. Since cropping is always possible, that's not such a big deal.



Jace told me about a way cool site The Daily Monster.
It has videos where the artist, Stephan G Bucher, drops some ink onto his page, takes some compressed air (you know those cans that you use to clean out the computer keyboard? at office supply stores) and from the resulting shapes he makes a monster. It's fascinating and relaxing to watch. He also has a blog by the same name where you can share your ink monsters. I think I'll try the compressed air next time to save some puff.

11 comments:

Regina said...

This DOES look like fun. Thanks for sharing.

Unknown said...

certainly looks fun :)

Tracy said...

Very striking works, Shayla! I used to play a lot with chalky pastels--loved that medium a lot. Pen & ink sketching was also something I enjoyed...I loved the flow with the ink, it was very connected to my spirit as I worked. Discovering your blog has made realize how much I have missed dabbling in fine art. I think I must see if I can find that packet of chalks ;o) Oh, and I've always loved the smell of crayons! Nothing like Christmas morning as a child and opening a fresh, new packet of crayons...ah, that does take me back. I still buy crayolas once in a while for fun to doodle with--LOL! Happy Day ((HUGS))

kate said...

Thanks for reminding me of the importance of playing. When I give workshops on various creative topics or try out a new technique for an ATC, I get the opportunity to experiment with stuff that I don't necessarily use in my "real work". And it's so much fun! I tend to compartmentalize the "play" creative stuff and my "real work". Both are very satisfying but I downplay the play! In fact, it's probably far more important than anything else. As you pointed out, it's freeing, it opens things up, it gets the creative juices flowing, and it does feed our work. I'm getting a craving for pastels too, or maybe those juicy new Sennelier inks that I bought awhile ago. Hmmm...

Shayla said...

Oooh! Sennelier inks? Sounds awesome- getting a craving for new supplies- I'm such a junkie, lol.

picciolo said...

great post, I love your experiments. The colours you got with the crayons/pastels are amazing
: )

MiKa Art said...

That top picture is so pretty - real eye candy!

ArtPropelled said...

I have a distant memory of school doodles and soap being added to the paint....

Your pastel painting is beautifully blended, Shayla. Have you used oil patels?

PAT said...

Fun post! You brought back some great memories, Shayla! Thank you!

Pat

Megan Coyle said...

ohhh, your pastel piece is lovely

Juggling Jason said...

I love how you call pastels "grown-up crayons".