I’ll be honest…I never really know where I am going with any of my paintings. I’m not sure how many artists will admit that, but this is what I love about abstract painting…you don’t need to know, you don’t need a plan.
My base layers usually start with a vintage newspaper clipping, book pages or vintage fabric, as in this particular painting. From there, I add layers of paints and sand down each layer only to add more paint, paper/fabric. Once I think the painting is finished, I cover it up with more paint and use a power sander to reveal all of the layers. I’m often surprised with the results. Cherry Blossom is one of those ‘happy’ surprises.
With the end of summer drawing to a close, I was inspired to use a muted, more neutral palette for this piece. September Flowers was inspired by vintage floral fabric swatches that I have collected over the years. Layers of the fabric gave this piece the texture I was going for before applying acrylic paints. If you look closely, you can subtly see the floral patterns beneath the surface paint.
If you know me, you know that I have a love for Egypt. I have a love for ancient history and Egypt is, by far, the epitome of all things ancient. As with most of my paintings, they begin with a base, layers and layers of vintage papers. These papers not only add massive texture to the piece, but implant ‘history’, to an otherwise new work of art.