A FAVORITE PAINTING

Taken from high in the bleachers at the Brickyard 400, this bird's eye view just had to be painted....on YUPO. It's my husband's favorite painting, and since today's his birthday, I thought it was appropriate to post it.

Happy birthday, Honey!

"ON PATROL" Transparent Watercolor with Texture Medium on YUPO 14 x 25"

YUPO = PAINTING FEARLESSLY

"OVER THE RHINO" Transparent Watercolor on YUPO 25 x 11" SOLD - Giglees are available
This old girl in the Cincinnati Zoo seemed to like showing off her old, wrinkled skin, and I couldn't wait to paint her. First I tackled the background area, letting the paint have its way with a little encouragement from gravity.
Mixing sedimentary colors with juicy puddles of the more finely ground colors, like Phthalos and Quinacridones, resulted in fascinating textures on YUPO ..... making it totally fun to watch paint dry. YUPO 'paper' won't let the color soak in, so the colors stay brilliant and strong. It's a perfect surface for making the wildest textures. If you paint in watercolor, I really encourage you to play with YUPO. I call it FEAR FREE watercolor, because anything can be changed/fixed/washed off! Go for it!

COLLAGE AGAIN

A painting can turn in to a political or religious statement for an artist, as a way for the artist to express personal views or experiences without speaking aloud. This painting began with no thought of that in mind but grew in a direction that I liked.

The bank of snow and the bold sun in the hazy winter sky started me on a journey in this painting. The stone wall, mixed with so many different shapes and colors and diverse textures of rocks, (people) symbolized what I believe has built a lot of America into what she is today.

As I added more rocks, I also added pieces of printed collage, words, and small pictures that helped deliver the message of the painting. Many words, like heritage, corporate casual, virtue, tax, progress, abortion, war, save, money, new car, and insurance, are collaged into the painting. I photo copied part of a dollar bill, a dime, a picture of Marilyn Monroe, and pasted them down, along with a piece of the American flag, a feather, a drawing of an arrowhead, and anything else that would add to what I wanted to say. Most things are partially hidden.

The deep snow appears to be partially covering some tombstones. A Bald Eagle flies in front of a rising moon, toward a dormant tree. The wall appears to be well made. Is it? Will it hold up? What's the cost to keep it in good shape? What's missing?

"AMERICAN EULOGY" on Strathmore Aquarius II 80#, watercolor, conte crayon, collaged materials 19 x 26"