Surface Matters

The surface one paints upon, or the "support" as artists call it, matters...a lot!  Different surfaces receive the paint differently producing a different look and feel in the final product.  The surface matters again when you go to frame something: will it need glass? can it be hung without a frame?  This partly depends upon the surface.  I found another place where the "surface mattered" this week so I thought I'd share it.

Often a "study" is done of a piece in a small size sometimes as a practice piece before it gets painted in a larger format.  The study can be a way to work out color combinations, composition or just to become familiar with the shapes before enlarging them.  So I decided to play with a study of the Golden Gate bridge in a 12 x 9 size with acrylic paint.  I had done a much smaller one previously in pastel and it is fun to revisit the same subject in a different media.  Here is the work completed:

Golden Gate 12 x 9 acrylic on board

 

I knew that the larger size canvas I had, 24 x 12, was not the same ratio and thus some of the composition would need cropping; however I did not pay too much attention to the fact that the study was done on a board (a very hard surface) and that the second one would be done on canvas (a very bouncy surface). 

 

I used exactly the same kind of paint and a lot of the same colors but the brushes did not move the same way over the two different surfaces, many of the techniques were not transferable and the feel of the paint grabbing was very different.  Here's the larger painting:

 

Golden Gate Bridge acrylic on canvas 24 x 12 x 2

 

 

So it was really like painting a whole new piece except that I knew my subject matter.  If you look closely however you will notice that I did change the lighting a bit between the two.  Artist perogative!  Or maybe one was in a slightly different time of year and the sun rose slightly closer to the north??  Anyway, next time I do a serious study for an enlargement I will definitely remember to stick to the same surface for both executions.  And as long as I am illustrating the difference the surface makes, I will add that the top painting will need a frame (no glass) to be hung and the second one, due to a "gallery wrap" canvas, will not.  It is painted on the 2" edges all the way around and can be hung as is...or framed.

 

Hope this helps the next time you are looking at a piece, remember to ask about the surface or support used and how that affects your care of the piece.

 

 

 

P. S.  I am in the slow process of putting new work onto my web site for purchase and will let you know when it is updated.  Meanwhile feel free to contact me with any questions should you see something that you wish to own.  

The Thinking Tree

click HERE to purchase

THE THINKING TREE

9" high x 6" wide x 3/4" deep

graphite on board, needs no additional framing

Sometimes the exactness of detail work is paradoxically relaxing.

A friend and I headed to the park for a relaxing day outdoors and after our picnic retreated

to our lawn chairs to mellow out.  This is what kept my hands occupied as I listened

to the children playing in the creek, looked for the songbirds and wondered what

great stories this tree had to tell.

If you are curious about where the name of the painting came from just click through above

and read the description where it is posted for sale on the etsy store site.

Mr. and Mrs.

I love cardinals!  Not as arrogant as the blue jay but full of color and personality.  I did not know that they got their name from the red robes worn by the Roman Catholic Cardinals; and I have heard that they are faithful to their mates (no proof of this).  Unlike some of our feathered friends the cardinals sing all year long and I like that too.  Another motivation for painting this winsome pair is that the logo for our little village is the red cardinal.  Oops, and I confess: I had to paint another pair because the first rendition went flying out to a new home....sold in a flash.  Hopefully I will have to launch a third version soon!  Purchase here...sorry, SOLD

This piece is 10 x 8, mixed media on board.  That means that on a cradeled piece of birch (framed with a painted edge about 3/4" deep) I put many layers of gesso sanding between each one.  As I got the surface closer and closer to glass I added some acrylic to the gesso and put several layers of mossy green on the surface.  I then draw the birds on with graphite and tease out a bit of color, go back in with additional graphite and voila!  it's done.  Wish it were that fast.  Hope you find some cardinals where ever you go today.