Finding The Right One

“Words matter, and the right words matter most of all. In the end they’re all that remain of us.”  – John Birmingham

I relish layering in artwork…colour on texture on paper on ink on paint. You never know what the outcome will be, but the journey can be enough. And as much as I love surprises in the visual arts, I also love words. They too can carry you on an elaborate voyage of discovery…with twists and turns as you search for just the right word for the right moment.

For my next Artistcellar Design Team project I primed illustration board with gesso and attached an old dictionary page. When dry, I covered the center with a mixture of Splendid Gold acrylic that I thinned with glazing liquid. I surrounded the gold with Bubble Gum Dylusion Spray. Rather than use the pump spray, I brushed it on. The spray colours are great and hold their hue regardless of the surface they are painted on, or how they are applied. I wouldn’t be without them. My next step was to add rubber stamp images. I chose both a typewriter and calligraphic stamp and a dye ink to minimise bleed.

Some time ago I added Quentin Matsys’ painting “The Money Changer and His Wife” to my collection of paper bits and pieces. It was printed in a newspaper and I really liked the saturated colour on the newsprint. I chose to use only the woman and her open book in the collage.

With such a variety of designs it is can be a challenge to choose just one Artistcellar stencil. I decided to start with the Quilt. This stencil comes in two sizes, which allows so much freedom when planning your work. The Pocket Stencil was the perfect size for my collage, and what a wonderful foil for Quasicrystal Infra. Large or small, Artistcellar stencils are instrumental when you are looking to give your work a unique edge. You’ll always find just the right one for your project. I continued layering the stencils, with the final image as you see here, surrounding the woman with letters and words. Will she find the right ones to narrate her story? I wonder...

Finding just the “right one”…be it an image, a colour, or a word can be perplexing. But what a marvellous feeling of accomplishment when you do! And sharing the right word layered with the right sentiment is an incredible way to immortalise the sweet story of our lives.

MATERIALS USED:

• ARTISTCELLAR STENCILS: Pocket Stencils Mini Quilt, Quasicrystals
• RUBBER STAMPS: Calligraphy & Typewriter Text
• HAND CUT STENCIL: Diamonds
• ALPHABET STENCIL
• LIQUITEX WHITE ACRYLIC GESSO
• LIQUITEX GLAZING LIQUID
• MEMENTO DYE INK: Tuxedo Black
• DECOART: Splendid Gold, Sea Glass, Sunflower
• DINA WAKLEY: Lemon, Ruby, Blushing
• DYLUSION SPRAY: Bubble Gum           
• DYLUSION PAINT: Squeezed Orange, Vibrant Turquoise, London Blue
• NATURAL SPONGE
• NEWSPAPER CLIPPING IMAGE
• VINTAGE DICTIONARY PAGE
• ILLUSTRATION BOARD

Dreaming of Home

“Beds, three tiers high, were still not sufficient to accommodate the 5,000 immigrants who arrived daily. Many, like this young woman, were forced to sleep on benches, chairs, or on the floor.”             – Lewis W. Hine –

When travelling, have you ever felt bone-weary…so tired you feared the next step? Have you ever been stranded in an airport, with nothing but what seemed like unending hours until the next flight? I have. And if you are like me, I am sure all you could think of was getting somewhere, anywhere, to sleep. To lessen the discomfort of my situation, I like to visualise of my cozy bed at home, covered with a warm, colourful quilt.

My inspiration for this collage was a photograph from the Hine Collection. As an educator, Lewis W. Hine encouraged his students to use photography as a tool for social change. He often held his sociology classes at Ellis Island. In five years, 1904 to 1909, he produced 200 photographs of the immigrants passing through the Island. The young woman trying her best to get some sleep is one I thought fit perfectly with the new Artistcellar Quilt Stencils.

The new series features four quilt designs: The Bear Claw, The Star Flower, and the two I chose to use, The Ohio Star and the Amish Star. Living close to Lancaster, PA it’s nice to see the Amish star included in the series.

Going back to my Strathmore Journal, I sponged on layers of acrylic paint, letting each dry between applications. Having the stencils in both the 6” x 6” and Pocket size is really useful. In my work, I used both. Again, the quality of the stencils didn’t let me down. Even though the paint was dry between multiple layers, clean up was a snap, with each stencil back to immaculate condition. I built the background quilt layer by tiling the image as on a true cloth covering.

Completing the collage, I drew upon my collection of ephemera. I surrounded the Slavic lady with what I imagine surrounded her: mountains of paperwork as she made her way through the Ellis Island process.

And was she like you and me, tired and sleepy, dreaming of a familiar place to rest? Did her dreams include quilts and thoughts of home?

MATERIALS USED:

• ARTISTCELLAR STENCILS: QUILTS & MINI QUILTS – Amish Star, Ohio Star
• ACRYLIC PAINT
• REEVES: Rose Red
• CRAFTSMART: Sea Mist Pearl
• DECO ART: Champagne Gold, Crystal Green
• PLAID FOLK ART: Sunflower, Aquamarine, Rose, Blue Sapphire
• NATURAL SPONGE
• PALETTE KNIFE
• VINTAGE & CONTEMPORARY DIGITAL EPHEMERA
• STRATHMORE Mixed-Media Visual Journal 300 Series- 5.5" x 8.5"