Fern

A fern in the corner of this photo from the Dorothy Clive Garden. The shapes really stand out against the darker background leaves. This is the sort of photo that I might duplicate and mirror. I look out for images that can be made into patterns. The deep maroon/purple is a good contrasting colour. I need to look through all my pictures to see if there are any more like this. I do take too many!

Histology.

I don’t know what I was doing but this emerged today. It looks like a slice through some tissue. Maybe animal or vegetable. I kept doing lay ers of pattern. A line of the drawing had to stick to rules that I set for myself, like a curve every few centimeters or a wobbly line, so that some areas are lighter and less marked than others. It actually drawn on the back of the bird doodle I drew yesterday. I could see where the ink was showing through, but then I decided to extend it further. This was the result.

Digitally altered

I am not listing what I did to this, I just like the end result! Computer programs and apps can do lots to your work to change and distort, add or reduce colour, duplicate or delete. Its fun and it’s great to experiment, at least that’s what I think. Splodges turn into complex patterns. Acrylic paint, felt pens and megabits!

Symmetry

The things I can see when I add symmetry. A large green nose? Frowning eyes? A butterfly, a cats face? Two faces in profile looking downwards. There’s probably more that you can see too. Human eyes are always looking for patterns, shapes, looking out for monsters or problems. I guess it depends where you place the connection between the two sides. You can get more or less pattern by changing the centre line. I think there is also a 3d feeling because of where the hedge in the center is positioned.

Walking tree

Turn a tree upside down and it might look like it’s walking. Turn it on its side and it could be a running horse. Shapes can look like anything if you have that kind of mind. Simplify the shape and it becomes more like lots of different things. Stars turn into Gods and mythical beasts. Lines that don’t exist can be drawn on a map to create the Bermuda Triangle. Humans make up stories out of words and voices, but also from pictures and shapes, and I love that we do.

Finished?

Clouds pile up above a dark blue sea and waves rise, ready to crash against a rocky coast. Cliffs covered in boulders and vegetation stand above a small sandy area.

Having to describe what I have painted is hard, I know what I can see but finding a description that adequately explains it is difficult, especially since I’ve added texture and patterns. I’ve entered it for a local open art exhibition. It’s a bit of a risk, but I wanted to try. X

Coast abstract

I’m trying to replicate a photo of a felt pen drawing I did that I had put through a filter in Photodirector. So this is an acrylic painting work in progress based on the filtered image. An analogue to digital and back to analogue image…. Its interesting to try and add the digital texture. Appeals to my pattern needs. I think I’m addicted to pattern!

Flags

Peeling paint filter over duplicated flags. I have tried to create an image that you might have found on an old billboard, perhaps in the states although the pattern is not correct (I’m not sure what country it represented, and as I have duplicated its more difficult to recognise). I might try and paint it as an abstract image.