Friday, July 26, 2013

Object Face

Pen painting on canvas  outside

First of three giant canvas panels for Abe's rainforest mural

sketchbook face made from objects on my desk
I'm really excited for Abe's mural project.  He is designing and painting three big canvases for his room which he has always wanted to look like a rainforest.  He has two done and began the third today.   I'll have better pictures soon; I was just so excited and wanted to share. 

Romulus and Remus Climb the Pyramids with Teddy


The next OPAL show is titled: 'The Dog Days of Summer".  Artwork is supposed to include pets or animals in its subject matter.  My Mom gave me an old photo of Nick and me sitting on our back porch steps.  Nick is holding Teddy, our cat.  I had fun painting the background which feels exotic and adventurous.  Watching my kids play outside has triggered memories of playing in our backyard which was like uncharted territory full of discoveries.  I think about how I would play with leaves piercing the stem through the foliage to create a lunchbox.  Likewise Pen has carved out a fort under our grape vine where she talks incessantly telling stories to herself and plucking leaves.  Abe plants forests with twigs and trimmings.  Both are devoted to the plants and flowers tending to them with the utmost care.  I love that the simplest spaces can feel like new worlds.  To me this is the purpose of summer. 

Monday, July 15, 2013

Final Coat

Products for sealing an  outdoor mural


Milky quality
From a distance
Having excessively researched the proper way to seal an outdoor mural painted with acrylic paint on a primed concrete surface, I'm a little disappointed that the surface milked up a bit (see above photo).  I applied a protective barrier made of two parts Golden Soft Gel (Gloss) to one part water.  I started at the top and worked my way down.  The top is fine, but the bottom, I think was warmer and caused the gloss to dry too quickly or in a way that made it dry opaque rather than clear.   After two days, I sprayed on a coat  of Liquitex Soluvar Gloss Varnish, and one day later, I applied a coat of Liquitex Soluvar Matte Varnish.  The varnishes are indetectable by my sight, but I can feel their presence when I touch the wall.  I certainly inhaled a bit of it.  This was the last step in preserving my mural.  I will continue to track the progress.  Hopefully it will continue to look good.  I'll miss that little patch of concrete and the well-wishers that surrounded me there.  

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Doodle

Having fun getting silly today.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Abstract at OPAL

 Once again down to the wire, I finished an abstract painting for this month's "Out of the Box" theme at OPAL.  I drew inspiration from the veins and pattens of leaves which become little houses all in a row.  This is funny to me because I originally planned on making a quilt using my row houses block print for this show but time was taken up with painting the mural.  Next month is pet themed . . .
Detail of Painting

Monday, July 8, 2013

Mission Mini Mural: Complete!


 I apologize for the excess of pictures.  I'm not feeling very selective today.  Yesterday morning, I finished painting my mini mural!  All in all it took about 30 and half hours to complete.  I still need to apply a protective coating.  Anyone have a recommendation for a sealer? or experience with protecting outdoor murals? 

I realized while painting that this is something I've always wanted to do, and that realization felt really satisfying.  Now that I have one under my belt, I'd like to apply again next year.  It'll be nice to think over subsequent months about what I'd like to see painted on that wall . . .




Complete with Signature







Monday, July 1, 2013

Chicago Homicides do to Gun Violence in June

Shannon Ware, Malcolm Whitney, Sterling Sims, Chavonne Brown, Freddy Lara, Robert Douglas, Tracy Gipson, Cortez Bailey, Marissa Boyd-Stangley, Justin Jackson, Eduardo Venagas, Carl Austin, Vincent Mayes, James Wright, Uriel Guadarramo, Rene Segundo Soto, Luis Santana, Alexander Lagunas, Jamal Jones, Cortez Wilberton, Kevin Rivera, Todd Wood, Ricardo Herrera, McGregory Porter, Robert Allen, Fernando Mondragan, Brandon Cage, Dwayne Duckworth, Miguel Tharpe, April McDaniel, Derrick Burrows, Fredrick Taylor, Jeremiah Moore, George Anderson, Miguel Villegas, Jessie Clark, Alberto Valencia, Raphael Smith,

More information at: http://homicides.redeyechicago.com/date/2013/06/