Quick Update

So, this week i've been running around in my full-time job - what a nuisance. But other things are also happening!

I managed to finish off the last layer of varnish on Fleur and put her in a gilt frame.



She's for sale in the shop.

I also have invested in a really brilliant A3 printer which uses Chromalife inks - The Canon Pixma Pro9000 - Using Canon's papers and inks the prints have a longer lasting life and good colours. I've always been happy with my prints, but these are even better! Somehow they are just richer, and not only that but the printer is fast and you don't get any jamming or problems with the thick art papers...that was my main problem, I had to hand-feed every sheet and it took an age to get a print, so printing out on order for the theatre for example could take me 40 minutes! It's absolutely gigantinc, and since I can now print A3 i'm going to do a few large theatres and assemble them myself - It means the dolls can be jointed and it will last longer.....Hopefully have those ready soonish.

I also recieved a package from Ponoko..I love that site, laser cutting made easy and accessible. I got 5 jumping jack patterns in wood. One of these is being primed and painted today and going off to Gallery1988 for an upcoming group exhibition! I'll post more about that soon....

Hopefully next time i'll have some progress and some pics!

Oil

All of my paintings are currently done in acrylic inks. I like them because you have speed, control and consistency. But i'm a romantic at heart and I love oils. It's been a long time since i've done any though. Partly this is down to the time it takes, which seems ridiculous when you become accustomed to acrylics. I like to layer the oils as well (i'm not much of a straight to canvas kind of girl) so you have to wait for a long time between layers drying...And because I like to work on something solidly I often lose interest after the 3rd layer and oil paintings lie abandoned all over my studio.


Anyway, this morning I was looking at one of these abandoned paintings, it didn't have much further to go, just one more layer of glazes, let it dry and then a varnish. Before i'd thought twice i'd jumped up and grabbed my oils and started glazing like crazy. And it struck me just how much I miss oils. There is something about them, and for me the glazing aspect in particular, which is just magical.

In the gradual build up of glazed layers you seem to get so much more depth than you do from laying down one single colour. The smell as well, Damar Varnish and even turpentine (Which I don't think you can buy anymore in Britain but which I have a stash of) is kind of wonderful. It was excellent, and I am already planning something new in the same vein as the current one.

Here's a wee peek.