aha moment....

Flowerburst

Mixed media 12"W x 16"H 140lb. watercolor paper

Ready to frame.

Sold

To see more of my contemporary abstracts please visit my Web Gallery: HERE

Several years ago when I first began painting with acrylics I found them very frustrating to work with.  I was a realistic painter who had been trained in transparent watercolors and oils.  I LOVED oils.  I felt confident working in both of these mediums as I could work slowly blending and layering colors.  The switch to acrylics was made for practical reasons.  Because acrylics dry SO quickly, I simply began working very quickly, pretty much sticking with a painting until completion.  The more and thicker the acrylic paint that is added the longer the drying time and more time you have to work.  

I am still working with acrylics, but have decided to try some new approaches.  Wrote about this in the last post. This is the painting that I was working on as I wrote that post.  The initial inspiration was from some irises that my grand-daughter and I had cut and arranged in a vase.  I absolutely love irises with their graceful curvy lines and their intricate inner patterns.  Anyway, I began with watercolors and a loose gesturally drawing of the irises.  Watercolor washes were applied and allowed to dry as I went off to do something else.  Coming back to it from time to time gave me a new fresh perspective and new idea to apply.

The circles (and there are layers of these) were the beginning of the addition of acrylic paint.  From this point on the layers in various ways are applied with acrylics.  It is a mixed media painting having used watercolors, graphite and acrylic paint.  The richness of this painting was built up with experimenting, playing and adding color intuitively.  The "aha" moment came with the addition of the parallel pyrole orange lines done with the side of a palette knife.

I was originally working from a floral still life of irises in a vases and got way off track.  But, I think it's lovely...don't you?!  And, it sold within two days of having completed it!!  Fresh off the easel.

Eileen, thank you so much!!  

Your support is VERY much appreciated!

Hope it's enjoyed for many, many years to come!!

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Elizabeth Chapman

Contemporary Abstract Artist