Monday, June 4, 2012

Nude On Masa Paper



Last week I took a workshop in Port Townsend at the Northwinds Art Gallery, taught by Sheila Sondik.   A couple friends took the workshop also (see Marian Morris's results).  The technique used Masa printing paper that we soaked and crinkled, then using sumi ink, worked the values of our subject into the surface of the wet paper.   We all enjoyed it very much, and it was fun watching the varied results of the other students during the two days we participated.   A few of us brought watercolors and colored inks, also.

In my usual unorganized-right brain way, I am posting the last of my three masa paper workshop paintings first.   No, we didn't have a nude model to work from, I just made it up as I went along.   I'd brought photos my husband had once taken in Scotland to paint architectural subjects for the first two paintings, and I will post those later.   Being a more figurative and portrait-oriented artist, I just HAD to try a human form with this technique!   I think it worked out okay, though without having glued the paper down to a backing (as we were taught to in class) it's difficult working the details on the crinkled paper.   I DID take an iron to it, though!

*A note on June 7th.....   The wheat paste arrived, I pasted down the paper on heavier watercolor backing, and did more work on the nude with gouache.   I'm liking it much better!

4 comments:

  1. Ah, there it is...this is very appealing...warm, the texture, though understandably difficult, gives a sense of depth, form. Ironing it, too funny.

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    1. Hi, Lindy! I ordered wheat paste from Daniel Smith today, so I will have the technology to flatten down and paste the paper to a backing sheet. It may look quite different then.... maybe I will replace the image at that time. Thanks for the lovely observations.

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    2. This looks really cozy with the crinkled paper... the figure looks so comfortable! It will be interesting to see how it turns out when it is flattened. There is a chance you might want to keep ironing your work. I mean each one once, not obsessive-compulsively like where I have to walk over and wrestle the iron away, and we both end up with spade-shaped marks..

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    3. Yes, it almost makes one think crinkled massive masa paper would make a good cover for the bed, doesn't it? At first I thought she looked like she was cringing, but I got over it. Her expression looks pleasant-sort-of sleepy, now. She did scream a bit when I ran an iron over her, so maybe I'll devote my iron time to more pressing issues. Like castles.

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