Week 2: #100daysoftags

Week 2, #100daysproject

Yesterday ended Week 2 of #100dayschallenge and my #100daysoftags. I decided I would use some of the exploratory concepts being presented in Wanderlust 2022 for my tags. The first two tags were inspired by Jeanne Oliver's lesson using charcoal and gesso. The ideas were not new to me, but it had been so long ago that I had played with them that I found a kind of childlike wonder all over again. The first was a botanical drawing using chunky Derwent charcoal, activated with water, followed by adding highlights with white gesso. The second tag was a reminder that there is simple beauty in using staples not only to adhere layers to a tag, but also as a form of mark-making. Both were very satisfying activities. 

Day 10 involved collage using torn scraps (yes, this is the hoarder's heaven) from magazines, water-stained handwritten recipes, teabags, and other ephemera, which I entitled "beneath the golden sky." Days 11 and 12 were more collage. on Day 13 I decided to play with acrylic paints. And I ended the week with a round tag where I played with Conte crayons (new product for me.) While they felt and acted like pastels, a quick Google search revealed they are somewhat waxier than pastels and therefore less "dusty" and somewhat more controllable. 

What materials have you been playing with this past week? I'd love if you respond in the comments below. Can't wait to see what this week will bring.

#100dayschallenge

 

I have been toying with the idea of joining the #100dayschallenge, and last Saturday I decided what I would like to do for those 100 days. I wanted to keep my idea rather generic so that I didn't get stumped on something either too difficult to complete or so specific that I might run out of ideas, so I decided upon #100daysoftags. I could pick the size, shape, and color: check. In addition, tags are generally small enough so that I could keep my daily creativity within the 5-10 minute range, especially good for the three days each week that I spend with my granddaughter (almost 13 months and busy, busy, busy!). Mostly each day represents some aspect of either my day or my mood. I don't expect each one to be a masterpiece, but just being able to touch and work with my art supplies every single day is bliss enough for me. Also, I am relearning what I like to do and what I won't bother with again. My favorite medium? Why, acrylics, of course; though second best is collage. You will likely see a lot more of both. It's never too late for you to join: no one said you had to follow the start date in order to participate...your 100 days could even take all year if it had to! I plan to see you regularly with my weekly posting.

Valentine's Love

 

Happy Day of Love! Even if you don't have that "significant other" to spend your day with, please know that loving yourself...and loving yourself well...is probably even more nourishing than loving another. This piece was created a few years ago, based upon Laly Mille's "Wholehearted" lesson. I totally love this lesson because it begins with an underlayer of self-love affirmations written on scraps of paper that are glued to the canvas. Important stuff, that underlayer. Laly only incorporates one collaged heart, but as I worked through a series of these paintings, I began incorporating at least two, and sometimes one with other figures. The juiciest part: writing over the background with a poetic snippet, your own words, lyrics to a song, whatever speaks loudest to you. This one is from a poem and perfectly expresses the self-love required in a case of unrequited love: "I confess, I loved you more than I let on, but you weren't ready for it and I wasn't going to pour myself into hands that couldn't hold me." I'm not really sure who penned these words, but thank you for letting us know it is okay to take care of our hearts. That being said, I love you all.

Watered Down Black & White Gesso

 

A new lesson from Wanderlust 2022 from artist Soraya Nulliah. The idea was to use watered down black gesso and also watered down white gesso to create contrast and to push back a vibrant background. I used a self-created stencil, keeping my unmuted background marks within the confines of the figure. An envelope window, adorned with washi tape, also gives a peek into the background. Additional stencils and washi tape completed the spread.

I don't think I have ever used the watered down black gesso before. I feel like I should have used more water so that more of my background shows through. I love the foggy atmosphere the watered down white gesso provides.  

The inspiration for this particular take on the lesson was a quote from Song of Solomon, chapter 2, verses 9 and 10, which are quoted in the spread on the left: "He is standing behind our wall, He is looking through the windows, He is gazing through the lattice. My beloved speaks and says to me, "Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away." Will I be roused by the words of my lover and step out into the early morning fog to accompany him? I think so!

#Wanderlust 2022

#Soraya Nulliah