Head of the Harem

Head of the Harem

8x10 inches

Acrylics and Oils on Gessobord

Another week filled with ups and downs and pieces going in the bin. In an earlier post, I mentioned that I had bought some Gessobord and also some Speedball Mona Lisa Gesso Boards which were about 1/3 of the price of the Gessobord. The Speedball boards, whilst they are called Gesso board, really don't have the feel of gesso at all. They are extremely slick, in a different way to Claybord, and actually feel more like laminated board. Whilst the labelling states they are suitable for a range of media, including oils, acrylics, watercolours, coloured pencils etc., I personally didn't find this to be the case. Watermedia bubbles up, coloured pencils slide off, and even the oil painting I got half way through started to peel away.

This painting was done on the gessobord and this surface is a joy to work with - enough tooth for the paint to adhere well, but smooth enough for lovely detail. This gorgeous rooster posed for us a few years ago at our local wildlife park and was just the subject for a little more experimentation with oils, which I have to say I'm really loving. The only down side, of course, is the length of time it takes for the paint to dry, so even though I finished this fellow earlier in the week, I couldn't really scan him for a few days.

Time for a clear out!!!

With a large family and a relatively small house, the time has come to clear some space, and so I have decided to sell off some of my earlier works on ebay, to make way for more creative endeavours. Most of these artworks have a starting price of .99 cents, and whilst I sincerely hope they sell for a bit more for than that, this is a one off opportunity to get some originals at a bargain price. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be placing more artworks on ebay, so if interested, please keep an eye out. Thanking you and have a great week :)

Little Garden Nymph

Little Garden Nymph

8x10 inch

Oils on Gessobord

Well since my last post, I'm sad to say I think the Claybord got the better of me after two more pieces ended up in the bin. So I moved onto the Gessobord and dusted off the water mixable oils, which have been sitting idol for quite a while now, to see how I fared with this board. I have to say I'm a bit more comfortable with this board than the Claybord, and so have ordered a whole heap more from the US. Within Australia, an 8x10 inch Gessobord retails for over $11 each, whereas in the States the average price is $4.50 USD. I've also ordered some of the Mona Lisa Gesso boards by Speedball which are only $1.70 for the same size and wondered if anyone has had experience with this board.

Full of Mirth

Full of Mirth

8x10 inch

Gouache, coloured pencil and scratch art on Claybord

I must apologise, as I have been quite neglectful with my blogging and internet sharing of late. I have been doing a bit of experimenting, much of which has not been successful and ended up in the rubbish bin. My husband Steve and I went into town (Sydney) last week to see Mary Poppins at the theatre, and whilst in town I took the opportunity to explore one of our largest art stores and the only Australian supplier of Ampersand products and so purchased some Claybord to play with. I have only tried this board once or twice before, without a great deal of success, but it has such a wonderful smooth surface, allowing for very fine details that I wanted to explore this product again to see if I could master it. The only drawback is the slickness of the surface, which makes it a little more challenging. In the past, I tried acrylics on the claybord, and can't say I was thrilled with the results, however, I know many artists produce amazing paintings, using this combination. I like the gouche better on this surface, as it adheres quite well, although will lift off if subsequent layers are too wet, and gives a more opaque colour laydown. The coloured pencils also seemed to work well over the gouache.