The sound of Raasay

 This week The Inspiration Avenue are hosting a show and tell week! I do so love show and tell as it gives me a chance to show what I have been working on outside the constraints of the themed challenges. This mixed media collage is just finished. I have been squirrelling away for the past month on it, It is a large canvas for me, the picture below on my easel gives you an idea of size. It is made up of fragments of found, printed and handmade papers along with acrylics and textured pastes.

As you can see some elements are lost along the way one being the Celtic knot which I decided wasn't working. The subject is the 'sound of Rasaay' as seen from the coastline of the Isle of Skye. Skye is an Island which is part of a group of Islands called the Hebrides off the west coast of Scotland. Skye is a relatively large Island being over 50 miles long Raasay is much smaller with a very small population.

Raasay sound

                        

a

.I have taken a few detailed photos of progress and finished work. As you can see I was a little frightened of doing the seagulls so kept putting off starting them!

 But I began by blocking them in in book pages.

The fish are collaged with metallic papers which shimmer, this doesn't show up on camera.

 And finally finished! This is one of the pieces I am submitting for the Skye annual summer exhibition. which runs throughout August.

Linking to Inspiration Avenue

And also Glue it Tuesday! ( this canvas used buckets of glue :) )

And also paint party Friday.

Also a last minute entry to Mix it Monthly and it's seaside theme. Have a look Here at all the other great seaside art!

I am away for a few days so may not be able to reply to your comments straight away but will get back to visit you as soon as possible ;)

Staffin Bay Mermaid

Recently I posted about the 24x24 anonymous  charity exhibition on the Isle of Skye to raise money for the St Kilda Row. I mentioned I had a piece in the show but couldn't post it until it was sold as all work was to be exhibited anonymously and unsigned so the buyer would only find after purchase who the artist was. All works were at a set size and price.

My mermaid sold last week, so I can post her at last!!

She is 24x24 box canvas and collaged onto a citrasolve paper sky.  If you are interested in learning more about how to make citrasolve papers I did a post earlier in the year about the process, click HERE to have a wee look.

The papers create fabulous collage backgrounds...

sea and shoreline

 Like this!

Le Chat Noir

Back to my mermaid......

Her hair is cut from pieces of gelli plate paper and foil. It combines collaged elements and acrylic paint.

The coastline of Skye is a wild and beautiful place, indeed it is reported that Brad and Angelina are planning a cruise around it on the Hebridean Princess cruise liner and if they do I hope they watch out for my mermaid as she sunbathes on the rocky shoreline!

The coastline of northern Skye

The kilt rock northern Skye ( named so because it falls vertically like the folds of a kilt! )

   Big thanks to Skyeworks Gallery for organising such a great event!  

Links this week to  Paint party Friday

And also Artists in Blogland                                            

The end of the summer of color.

Fernande

 It's the final week of the Summer of color :(

The final color combination is Sepia and sage, oh no I thought, that is just not me! I then started to think about my trip to Florence and Pisa earlier in the year. I saw some fabulous fresco's

 I loved them so much!!

These ones were in Pisa. I took so many photograph's!!

So I did like the colour combo! I just had to choose a classical type of image to use the colours.

I used some watercolour paper to make my background using layers of paper.

I then added a thick layer of gesso over the papered layers

Gave my Italian lady a face. I used a thick layer of copper acrylic paint for her hair and scratched through to the base paper.

For the ferns I used fern napkins which I tore up and stuck down around my figure.

fern napkins

  So my final piece for the summer of color is 'Fernande'

Fernande

The summer of color has been challenging and yet fun thanks so much to Kristin at twinkle twinkle for hosting such a great party!

Also linking up to Glue it Tuesday

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Oriental Poppy

Well no complaints this week over the Summer of Color combination of Candy Apple red and yellow! So far I haven't been totally in love with the pastel colour combos, but these two....Far more Paper Rainbow!
As a rule I don't wear yellow, and I often say I don't like it, but when combined with bright poppy red, well who wouldn't !

My oriental Poppy started life like this. A  multi layered background of papers, gesso and paint.

The poppies were napkin pieces which I tore up. There is nothing that says Summer more than the bold red of a poppy and golden yellow sunshine!

Oriental Poppy

                           

I was going to call my lady just plain old Poppy but at the last minute found some gorgeous Chinese paper in brightest red in my paper box. It was just made to be a dress for her!

So here she is Oriental Poppy, a wild and exotic being!

Linking to The Summer of Color
                                                    



And also  Paint Party Friday!!!

wedding album

 This weekend I was busy working on a wedding album commission. I started off with a plain white mulberry paper album which I bought from ebay. They cost around £10-15 and come complete with a matching box.

 I decorated the album with doves and bunting which I cut from paper and then painted.

Added names and dates and little sequins. The doves are covered in sparkle modpodge.

Stuck some gilded ribbon around the edges of the box lid.

Glazed in Decoupatch glue to create a solid protective surface. I added a few quotes from old books which you can only see if you zoom in.

And had lots of fun decorating the lid!

Linking to Inspiration Avenue where the theme is Words. As you can see my little album is all about words and a little place to store treasures.

Also linking to Glue it Tuesday!!
                                              

                                               

25x25 exhibition

The Skyeworks gallery on the Isle of skye is holding a charity exhibition for the month of July showing local artists work. The only thing is none of the pieces are signed on the front so the Artists names remain a secret until they are sold, when the buyer will receive a certificate of authenticity from the artist with a description and title of the work! Clever eh!!


                                             

I have a piece on show but can't post it or that would spoil the surprise. However the works are now available to view and buy HERE if you want to take a look.

If you visit my blog you probably can guess which is my piece!! :)

proceeds of the sale will go to the   St Kilda row

This is scheduled to take place the summer of 2014 and the challenge is to row the hundred miles from the remote Island of St Kilda back home to Portree on the Isle of Skye to the some 100 miles away!

The boat!!

                            

Portree Harbour

I was amazed to find this is the boat they will be rowing the distance in! Built in the 1890's and last used in 1918 I hope it is up to the job! The sea around the Hebrides can be very daunting even in summer.
The row is to raise money for the  RNLI Lifeboat charity and Skye and Lochalsh young carers and I wish the expedition every success.

                                     
                                      


                                         

Summer of color grey and pink

The summer of colour combo this week is Charcoal grey and pale pink.........


Well I started the week with my previous post of a shopping bunny and now for something completely different!

A sketchbook page inspired by the Scottish designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh.
 Born in 1868 he was a Scottish architect, designer and artist. He worked during the time of the British Arts and Crafts movement. I have many lovely books on the subject and I used one on his furniture and leaded window designs as a starting point for my page.


The garden is full of pink flowers in bloom at the moment so I painted a quick watercolour page with my inktense pencils while sitting outside, then stencilled in a little scroll down the side with modelling paste.

  Linking to Summer of color

Gone shopping

This week I am finally linking up to Artsyvilles Glue it Tuesday!

I have been meaning to do so for ages, after all I do go through buckets of modpodge glue in all it's varieties. Matte, gloss, sparkle, in fact the only variety I haven't tried is the glow in the dark variety, but there is time yet!
Many people seem a bit confused about which glue to use for collage. The most important thing to consider is using a glue that is acid free if you want your work to remain colour stable and not fall to pieces after a few years. Acid free glues usually state the fact on the label and most also act as a sealant encasing more unstable papers like newsprint and found papers and protecting them from deterioration. Modpodge is my favourite although it is a little thin for some more delicate papers. I also use golden gel medium which is harder to get in the UK and more recently a great modpodge like glue called Decoupatch, made especially for decoupage and collage.

'Gone shopping' is mixed media piece on a wooden off cut. It uses collaged paper, felt, lace and acrylic paint.
.
It started off as a more serious 'Hare and the Horsetail'

 I didn't like the hare much at this point, and thought she was missing something....

Clothes!!! That is what she needed! And a shopping bag!! 

Much better! I know what you're thinking...

I need more ventilation when working with Modpodge, the fumes had gone to my head!

well I think she looks far better in her little checked dress.

The shopping bag was made from a piece of antique crochet table mat and the trees were cut from felt circles.

It has a gloss glaze which is unfortunately very reflective so I had some problems getting a good photograph.

Linking to Glue it Tuesday

And Paint party friday