Persephone

Oil and acrylic on canvas

18" x 24"
2012

$400

Available here

Copyright Patricia Ariel

Challenges and prizes.

November was a challenging month. particularly the last two weeks. it started with the Inscape open house, which, in the last minute, i almost quit participating due to the complete chaos and uncertainty about my own process. the studio sleepover, when i worked 10 hours non-stop, just made me exhausted and disappointed with myself. i was unable to complete half of what i had planned. finally i decided to open the studio for the visitors even with few pieces completed. and it was totally worthy: i received invites for two shows and "Sheltering Ghosts", the piece i hang in the foyer group exhibition was very well received.

"Sheltering Ghosts", hanging on the Inscape foyer.

then, in less than two weeks, i had to get ready for the Forgotten Goddess in LA, Bherd Gallery and Rock the Terminal, in Seattle. and all the crazy conflicts with my technique of acrylic on panel kept going. i had decided that i didn't want any graphite that time, and there was no way to achieve the texture i was looking for using pure acrylic! and there was no time to cry and stomp feet like a temperamental artist. show must go on... and then as a last resource i came into an art supplies store and left with three 12 x 24 stretched canvases. 

pure joy. :)))))

it was an amazing shift in my work in less than two weeks.

after i dropped off the last pieces in the last gallery, as soon as i get home, i just sat and cried for several minutes. i had won a challenge and a lot of understanding about my art, my current moment and what is really important for me right now. and most of all, i thanked the Supreme Intelligence for all the network of support i have around me, all the fantastic people who push me forward and the love of my boyfriend and my daughter, remembering me all the time where lay the most important things of life.

and on Saturday, time to have fun on the Rock the Terminal - ANT Gallery opening!

I participated with two 12" x 12" pieces (called "Dialogues") since I was included a little late to the line up and they didn't have a lot of wall space left for bigger works. (I wish the had placed the works side by side, but that worked too.)

Moi taking care of myself (the beer was great!!) and my loyal sidekick, who was always cheering me up with her excitement and positive attitude every time i got messed up.

+

There are people asking me if i am abandoning my works on pencil. The answer is "no". I love working with graphite and i am a way better drawer than painter, so stopping my pencil work just because i am excited with new toys is almost like shooting my own feet. As a matter of fact i am seriously planning to start new series of pencil works on paper. Painting on canvas became a delight (old followers must remember how i used to curse the canvas in the past,) and i am excited and grateful for achieving such degree of versatility. The most tools i have to give voice to my inner universe, the better. :)

(by the way, posting images of the new works soon!)

Salome

Acrylics and pencil on canvas

6 x 18 in

$300

Dryad

Acrylics and pencil on canvas

6 x 18 in

$300

can't fall in love.

I had bought a couple canvas panels with the intention of painting 2 large mandalas to decorate my booth at the Louisville Psychic and Paranormal Gathering, on July (have I told you I'll be there?) My experience with canvas is limited to a little experiment I've done several years ago, using oils. I didn't really get excited with the little painting, and never touched oils or canvas again. I'm not going to revisit oils so soon -- I am the type of person who wants all-at-the-same-time-now and not very patient to wait ages until a piece gets dry --, but moving my hands over canvas again has been, if not a fully satisfactory, at least a fun experience.

My first mandala is inspired on peacocks and I wanted a big one right on the center. Didn't take long to perceive how the graphite pencils I use feel awful on canvas. But I liked the first lines done with acrylics (Payne's grey, one of my favorite colors and always very handy for shading and outlining). It also felt good to work big! These panels are 24 x 36 inches, which is the largest area I ever worked on.

I just wanted to get adventurous. It feels good to think that you can make mistakes and fix them as much as you can. This is a good thing about working on canvas. When you are dealing with paper, you don't have a lot of room for mistakes due to the fragility of the support, everything has to be carefully planned beforehand. Even illustration board, sturdy as it is, has its limits. And feeling pressured to do "right" definitely is not a good thing. Score to the canvas.

Of course I couldn't wait until the peacock was done to start experimenting with my traditional stuff. I found out that colored pencils work way better on the toothed surface than regular pencils and started to sketch a self-portrait, on ocre + alizarin crimson washes.

First glazes with acrylics. White layers on the skin. I love this ghostly looks.

Ebony graphite pencil to reinforce the outlines and try some kind of shading. White pastel for the highlights. At this point I am a little frustrated because I will never achieve the type of precision I do when working on a smoother surface. But on the other hand, the loose lines are a pleasure to do, along with the more gestural, expressive strokes.

I am running away from the feel of traditional painting like the devil from the cross. I kind of like the direction the work is taking now, looks more like my type of stuff. However, I am not really in love with the canvas. It's still hard to tell where I am going; some parts of the painting really please me, some not. I am now seriously thinking about trying gessoed masonite, but don't know how my pencil will come out. Anybody here did have tried it yet?