These are small - placed on a black matboard substrate at 3.5 x 3.5 inches. Who knew I had so many interesting little bits in bags all around? And I have matboard I can cut down - most are black or white but some colored ones.
WATERCOLORS AND WORDS
by R H (Rhonda) CARPENTER
Thursday, March 27, 2025
Tuesday, March 25, 2025
I MAY NEED TWO BIGGER ROOMS!
Some more collages from the Collage Makers Summit classes - so much information that I can only pick and choose which ones I really want to try right now. One video released every day with a different collage artist and I have loved all but one so will try more later.
This was a larger collage that went everywhere at once - just didn’t like it and kept adding to it so…decided to just take my little 3 x 5 inche mat and “find” interesting pieces at about that size.
Wednesday, March 19, 2025
I NEED A BIGGER ROOM!
If I’m going to do these collage lessons (Drew Steinbrecher’s Collage Makers Summit) I’m going to need more space. It seems, over the years, that my little art room is shrinking inwards due to all the bins and boxes of things around the edges of the room!
Here’s the first thing I made, Day 1 and 2.
This was done after watching the first video lesson by the artist, Tara Axford. She called her lessons: Remove from Cart, Using Recyled Materials in Collage.
So pulled out some of the packing boxes I’d broken down and put in the recycle bin to use, cut some pieces, did as she said to prep them and then painted and added embellishments.
I like it but not sure how archival/lasting the piece will be since it’s using cardboard box material. Perhaps if we sealed it with acrylic matte medium or something else (clear gesso), it might hold up for a few years…but it was fun trying it out and it resonated with me so that I had an idea what the design would be right away and then added the broken earring (center off the circle), the little gemstones (glued on) and the string (I found in with my needlepoint/embroidery stuff). You just never know what you have lying around!
Saturday, March 15, 2025
SLOW DRAWING NATURE SKETCHBOOK AGAIN
For this first one (which is really the last one I’ve done), you just paint some watercolor blobs of color and then draw over them, whatever takes your fancy).
The last two are more realistic versions of the items I found lying around. Soon there will be flowers - or at least buds - on the trees and in the gardens.
THE TRUE SIGN OF AN AMATEUR ARTIST
I read someone online who critiques artwork say the true sign of an amateur is one who jumps around from subject to subject (or maybe from medium to medium) so I’m am amateur. And I never said I wasn’t so I’m okay with still learning and keeping things spicey…
Signed up for a collage workshop (Collage Makers Summit) through the artist (Drew Steinbrecher) who hosted the printmaking workshop last year. I have all these printed papers so why not learn how to use them well?
Here’s Drew’s bonus lesson (prior to the class starting Monday).
Collage a sheet of paper (I used a heavy piece of mineral paper - like Yupo but not as slick).
Then turn that collage over and cut the paper into pieces - same sizes or different, doesn’t matter.
Then see what you have and work with those, either adding more collage work, rice paper, etc., or acrylic markers, etc., to embellish the smaller collages and make them more interesting.
I liked the outcomes on all of them, but Sweetie says the lower right one looks better with the blue on top and I think he’s right. Another thing about this is that you can turn in however you want and see what looks best to you.
Thursday, March 13, 2025
DRAWING CLOSER TO ART ONLINE COURSE
Just some more in my little square sketchbook of things until spring starts popping. We are having a couple of warm, sunny days, which does get one in the mood for spring.