Where the ragged people go

As I mentioned earlier, in the last show at the gallery where I work there were some pretty neat life drawings. This was one of my favourites. It's just amazing to get such curves from straight edges.

by Don Portelance

I was still thinking about my spine sketch that was inspired by that show and which I have perched on a shelf now. And then I got sent a haiku from a friend for my birthday.

standing on the peak 

eternity stretched 

me in the middle

At first it made me think of the image on the clingfilm (/shrinkwrap) extravaganza of 2012. But I also felt in the mood to do a new larger painting (I'm almost always in the mood for larger paintings, truth be told) and combining this haiku with the spine shape. So I scribbled, poured and watched paint dry on a Saturday afternoon listening to Simon and Garfunkel. Happy place.

Of course I had to wait for the red to totally dry before pouring the silver in the opposite direction. To see the spine curve it has to be portrait, and I like how that way makes the dripping seem to defy gravity, although I like it landscape too. The silver background is a little messy as I just smooshed it around with my hands, but once it was done I like how it contrasts with the straight drips.

Let the digital tweaking commence:

So then of course there was the obligatory usage of the leftover paint. If you don't pour the pouring medium paint mixture too steeply it dries totally flat, which I think is a weird texture for a painting, but it does make for some fantastic swirly shapes as the pouring medium prevents the colours from blending. Here it is in real life.

 Which calls for more digital wizardry, naturally.