Over the past month I have experimented with a medium that I have never pursued before…or rather, a type of art composition. I’ve been fascinated with certain illustrators that use collage as their preferred way to present a story and I’m struck by the beauty in the simplistic shapes, the bold colors, and the “folksy” look that results. I’m a beginner with collage, but have created these two pieces to give away to a couple of people who have experienced a tragedy recently in their life.
In addition to butterflies and outdoors, I’ve done a couple of doodles of animals, also to give to people needing a pick-me-up, over the past year. These are all done in gouache and bring me a bit of a smile.
Back in February, my mother asked me to consider painting something for her mom. She wanted something that was nature-focused and would help bring back memories of the her time spent in the woods before she became unable to camp and fish and enjoy the outdoors. The challenge was that she wanted a specific size to fill in a spot on her living room wall. I have largely painted small things because of the time needed to put in the detail, etc. Consequently, this project ended up taking a lot of time. Here are a few pictures of the process, starting first with pen and ink, and then moving into watercolor for the filling in.
I really liked how it came out, particularly the little details (see the small detail of the grass), but mostly I enjoyed the process knowing it would allow my grandma to look at it and reflect upon good days experienced in the past when she was able to be outdoors, listening to the crackling of a morning fire, sipping her warm drink with grandpa.
It has been over a year since I last posted something on this website, and frankly, I’m shocked. I have been actively producing things here and there, but haven’t really taken the time to broadcast it or share. I thought I would make a few entries to post some of the things that I have created since then and I’ll start with more butterflies.
Hands down, I have enjoyed painting and cutting out butterflies the most over the last year. There is something spectacular about the varied patterns and colors in nature. I love the lessons that can be taught about perseverance, transformation, growth and struggle from the life cycle of a moth or of a butterfly…there’s so much to be gleaned from the observation of these wonderful creatures.
Here’s a slew of butterflies that I have painted and given away to various people over the past year:
A couple of years ago, I painted a tortoise and hare for a friend who needed a little pick me up. I enjoyed playing with the texture on the turtles legs and shell. Recently, I decided to try another version of this classic fable, and painted a bit broader scale. This one took a bit longer than my other attempt, but I think it came out all right.
This was done primarily in gouache, with a few smatterings of prismacolor and pen and ink. I gave this to a beloved colleague at work that has a special needs daughter that loves animals. I’m sure it will bring a smile to people that deserve a lot of happiness.
Here’s how it came out:
The last couple of weeks, I took a break from painting things to send to friends, but to just enjoy the act of painting and creating. Butterflies, with their myriad of textures, colors and personalities have long fascinated me, and I wanted to return to creating them. But this time I chose to do something a little bit more 3 dimensional, by painting paper wings and bodies and stacking them, almost like little paper sculptures. I like the way that they came out, and will likely do some more.
These are done with gouache, and little bits of painted jewelry wire for the antennae.
I looked recently at this blog, recognized the date of my last post, and felt a little sheepish for not having posted for a while. October of last year was the most recent entry. The length of time between posts, however, does not indicate the level of activity. I have continued to paint, and have looked for people specifically that might have been struggling, and that might benefit from a little friendly piece of art sent to them by mail.
Without going into a lot of detail, I'll post some of what I have created in the past few months. You'll see a lot of birds, bread and butterflies, etc. (no surprise, they are things that I love to paint!)
In thinking of friends that were undergoing some seriously challenging experiences, I painted some sparrows, reminding them that they are worth much more than sparrows (See Matthew 10:31). Sometimes, amidst the trying circumstances that we face, it is comforting to be reminded of our worth, and how much we really have to be grateful for.
These were done in gouache, and were in the "cut out" mode. I've enjoyed, more and more lately, painting things and then cutting them out and doing a collage of various items:
For another amazing family, who I felt needed to be reminded of their infinite worth, despite facing challenges which would make anyone feel like a lowly reptile, I painted a frog, and a crown on opposite sides of paper. These also were done in gouache.
I had a family member who recently lost his father, and right during the Covid-19 challenges, which impeded him from participating in funeral services, and the normal closure that we have become accustom to. I modeled a stain glass window that I love from back in Europe and painted him this version of the Savior as the Creator. His father was very interested and involved with the Cosmos, so I thought this might be welcome. This is done in gouache with an acrylic background.
