Here, one evening, I looked down from the high bluff made of volcanic rocks that had been forced through the more ancient softer petrified sediments. I had previously drawn these contorted rocks in watercolour and sketched the shapes made by the two rock types in ink and wash.
I approached this using a board covered first in thick, unfixed charcoal, drawing in shapes with fingers and an eraser, reserving the brightness of the light reflecting from the sea. I then worked into this with very wet white acrylic, suspending the charcoal dust and building the contrasting tones. Finally I worked into the wet layers with coloured acrylics, a couple of sticks of chalk pastel and a sharp knife hacking my way back to the paper beneath. I photographed the piece on site.
I set off with the piece on a board in the back of the car. After a while I pulled into a lay-by and looked at it again. In the deepening gloom, I ground more charcoal into the surface and slopped on more white paint, lifting the charcoal but obscuring the colour. I tipped my remaining sepia ink in a streak along the line of the rocks.
I imposed rotational acceleration on wet, slowly drying paint as I drove round twisting lanes up and down hills, catching in the headlights owls, startled into flight by my progress.
I photographed it late that evening, still drying, paint still moving slowly to invade the bastions of ink.
This is the dried form, as it now is, waiting further action.
Amazing textures you’ve made there. What is the scale of the piece?
Hi Leonie
This is A3 which is the size of paper I can fit in my ruck sac so work outside. Working bigger is better though.
Bw
Neil
Great textures 🙂
Thanks Maxine.
Neil
More than anything, I appreciate your art even more when I read how you created them. Beautiful, kestralart!
Thanks Leslie
The challenge is now to use these textures to make a finished piece.
Best wishes
Neil
The dried result looks like rust and raw metal. Very interesting look.
Thank you.
But what do I do with it? It is not finished but I have not worked out how to take it forward.
I was looking at this the other day (http://thefunkiejunkie.blogspot.ca/2013/02/stormy-seas.html)
and I really want to try something similar with acrylic. And I thought what you have, the colour and texture, remind me of it.
Anyway, I hope you get sparks of new ideas coming in 😀