6/26/2021

on changing [art] mediums, writing, mushrooms, weaving, and more...

ART

On a whim, I went off to my local art supply store, Imagine Art Supplies (a great little place with nice people behind the counter, and cats), to maybe buy a bottle of liquid graphite. I’d been thinking of using that instead of graphite pencils. The way I draw tends to be hard on the fingers and hands. They didn’t have liquid graphite in the store, but they did have liquid acrylics, “graphite.” I’m not sure if graphite was actually an ingredient (couldn’t find it listed on the label), but it had a nice sheen and the subtly granular look of graphite (although it applies very smoothly). So I bought this bottle of Amsterdam acrylic ink.

Look at that “sheen“!

Amsterdam acrylic ink, graphite. The start of something new!

After trying it out, I realized that, with the right brush, I can paint the way I draw. And furthermore, I’ll have a more flexible line, and won’t have to press so hard on the paper while holding a paint brush. Not only that; I’ll also be able to draw—or rather paint—on a wood panel again. Looking forward to that. I spent the afternoon experimenting with this stuff; the results are below—one largish piece, and three small ones:

Acrylic ink, 6 x 8 in. on mixed media paper. Unfortunately, the silvery look of the ink doesn’t come through very well in these photos.

I tried painting over dry acrylic ink with slightly darker ink of the same type. The horizontal lines are from a black ink pen (if you’re interested, a Pilot Precise V10). On heavy mixed media board, 6 x 8 in.

Acrylic (graphite) ink, 18 x 18 in. on mixed media paper.

Acrylic ink (graphite) and black ink.

I’m moving toward a more minimalist approach, partly a reaction to all the “noise” I get from social media, my phone, and email. Art is a meditative process for me; it creates a sense of “space” and even “silence” that I need.

Now I’m trying to figure out if I should register (i.e., plunk down about $275) for the local (Monterey) Open Studios event taking place in October. I’m not exactly rich, but thanks to my editing work, I can manage the fee. For me, though, it’s almost more a question of: “Am I ready to go out and get social again, as in around crowds?” What do you think? Should I go for it?

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WRITING

Some news: Old Capitol Books will be publishing my chapbook next year! I’m really glad to have it published locally. I have some time, still, to work on the poems, and I’m trying to figure out where I want to go with this. I think it will be a mix of old and new work.

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 FIVE GOOD THINGS

1) Historian and artist Nell Painter on her book, Old in Art School, and on overcoming all the BS about being old.

2) (Via Booooooom) What kind of amazing physics enables kestrels to hover like this?

By the way, Booooooom recently posted a call to submit art for their next art book, on the theme “Quiet.”

3) Weaving Stories with artist Cynthia Alberto who says “Weaving healed me and my family.”

4)  When I got interested in mushrooms a few years ago (thanks to my partner), it changed not only how I walked in a forest or along the roadside, but it also changed how I looked at the earth. It almost seemed to change my vision; I saw things on the surface of the earth that I never noticed before. Stephen Axford: “How Fungi changed my view of the world” (I’m very impressed with how he could talk without swatting away the insects):

5) Matt Manalo, founder of Alief Art House, on being an artist in search of community (interview with Houston Asian American Archive):

Have a great weekend…

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