ArtistJoyful Notes | Dena McKitrick

Oh Boy! A Whole New Universe

Oh Boy! I’m excited. The new transparent liquid acrylic paints I used to create this new universe are wonderful – everything I dreamed they should be. Plus the acrylic paint pen that I invented? Well, someone caught the vibe and actually created them! And they actually also work just as I dreamed! This little abstract acted as the temporary playground for my new toys.

Someone important to me told me that my paintings were too busy to take in. She suggested I instead take a small portion and just paint that big. My little abstracts on canvas are that idea expressed. This little one, however, is pretty busy itself – having incorporated an entire universe and all.

This is part of the preparation for offering Spirit Portraits. I now have no doubt that I will be offering those really soon. I’ve got plans for a giveaway/contest type thingy here this week. I love it when things move along at the speed of galaxy’s rising.

While the Paint Dries

Sometimes other good things happen while the paint dries. This morning I got up before the dark dissipated. I wanted to play with the new transparent liquid acrylics a bit before my appointment this morning which is before I go into the store to do Stones of Change readings. I LOVE them!! They are really going to work out. However, I did not want to push the river up the hill, so I decided to do a bit of digital paint playing as the physical paint dried. Then I got involved with that, and now it’s time to start moving about the cabin.

Another Idea

I bought some transparent acrylics today, but have not had the opportunity to work with them yet. Another idea that I had was that I could paint and color my drawings digitally for my Spirit Paintings. I’ve done quite a bit of that with my pen drawing, but not so much really with pencil drawings. So, for today’s image I’ve re-worked my pencil drawing of my friend Greta with some canvas/paint texture and coloring. This could be a quicker, lesser cost alternative. Of course it would be a spirit portrait, not just a pencil drawing, but it appears the technique tests out sort of ok.

In the Process

My life is spent in the process: of becoming, of doing, of simply being. Today’s process involves a new pursuit.

A friend of mine is clairvoyant. She suggested to me that I start doing Spirit Portraits of “real people” as part of my readings offerings. I have always thought that I would like to do that, but had not pursued it. On her suggestion, I decided to really investigate how I could do that quickly, and figure out the logistics and feasibility as well as the demand for such offerings. This painting is the first project in that investigation.

Well, I have these ideas. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t. The jury’s still out on this one. Another hour or two of work more and it’s still not complete. That’s not counting the overnight drying time for what I thought was going to help whizz the process along.

I am working on developing a process that will allow me to work quickly. This didn’t, but I learned quite a bit. I found that I can use Golden Acrylic Glazing liquid over the watercolor pencil layer to seal it. That’s important info. I learned that I can lay down washes of acrylic and keep them fairly transparent with water, and a little of the same glazing liquid. It does not dry really quick when I lay some plastic wrap on it however. And, if I don’t add enough water, the resultant texture is pretty darn well ensconced. I also re-affirmed that I can work with my prismacolor pencils right on top of the acrylics. And I was re-reminded how I love working in acrylics for bright colors and quick work.

I might just decide to prime my canvases with watercolor ground and go back to my watercolor and prismacolor approach. It would not be as quick, but it does have that magical quality that nothing else so far does.

A Whole New Thing

Sometime beginnings are humble, even when long overdue. This image may not look like much, however, it marks the scant beginning of a whole new thing. I am testing a different medium, specifically watercolor pencils direct on canvas. So far, they passed the test. Next will be combining them with acrylics and color pencils.

What I’m working on developing is a technique that will enable me to do very quick sketch portraits on canvas to be finished in layers varying between washes of transparent acrylic and sharper definition and discovery in the prismacolor pencils. I didn’t want a sketch in graphite or anything because it would interfere with the look of the transparent layers. It is also very important to me that it be very quickly manipulatable, to facilitate a speedy capture of the expression.

I’ll be sharing more about what I’m up to with this idea in the next couple days, but suffice it to say I’m excited about what I’ll be offering.

What Words Describe this Painting?

What words describe it?

This is a close up detail of a piece I called Awakening. The words did not come for me. Have you a suggestion what it should say? If there are more than 10 who suggest the words, I will pick one and send the “winner” a print. I would love it if you played with this. What word describe or express this painting? Allow YOUR creativity to have fun.

Note: the original painting is from a sculptural piece called Awakening. See the whole piece here.