Covering an Art Journal Mistake.

Hi y'all,

Don't you hate it when you are just arting along, and then something doesn't go right? Or maybe even terrible wrong?  I make mistakes all the time.  Some I just shrug off and live with, and others I can't accept.  Here's one story of how I recovered from an art journal mistake.

I'd seen a catalog cover with a beautiful fall branch. When I saw it, my fingers just itched to paint some like it.  I'm not strong at drawing just yet, so I use my cheat--tracing paper.  I don't trace over everything, just the basic shape.

I decided to use cradle board.  After all an art journal is for practice, self-expression, and experimentation, but some times it's good to try a different substrate. I prefer it to canvas.

 Scrapping texture paste through a stencil gave me a harlequin pattern randomly through my board.

Using matte media, I adhered some dictionary paper slightly to the right of the board.  When it dried, I traced it.

Heavy body paint in a gold and an olive gave my leaves their base color, and gelatos were perfect for shading. I outlined everything in a Stabilo all pencil.  We were off to a great start after this step.  I was so please that I'd decided to record the process.

And then I stuck the bird on it.  The composition was clunky and everything was to much the same colors.  Ugh!  I cleaned up my supplies and walked away.  For a week.

I can only handle a small photo of this mess!

Oh, I'd look at it every morning and shake my head.  I was so frustrated I didn't even feel like making anything.  I thought of gessoing over it and starting over, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to lose the paper.  When you paint over paint you change the surface you're working on   It is slicker and noticeablly shinier.  I didn't want to do that.

Then one morning it hit me--I would just cover the bird up with more paper which would keep my surface workable.  The other thing I realized is I needed contrast.  All this olive and gold was bumming me out.  I mixed turquoise paint with gesso and water to make it fluid and painted here and there on the back ground.

I toned down the blue with more gesso and splatterd gray and white.  I also dripped grey along the edges.  It worked.  The bird was gone and my piece wasn't all the same color.

Yes!

Surpirse! Surprise! A piece of coordingating gelli print just happened to be laying on my table ( along with a giant pile of other prints in many colors.  I may have a problem). I cut them into leaf shapes and added detail with a Stabilo All pencil.  A little scribbling and journaling completed my success story.

Our lesson this wee?  Hmmm.  Put a problem on the back burner? Cover all your mistakes with paper and a serious amount of gel medium?  You tell me.

Happily,

Carolyn

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