They say that life is all about the journey and not the
destination!!!! When it comes to my
artwork, I can do nothing but agree. I
never know what the final design will look like until it’s completed, since
many things happen during the creation process that influence the final design.
Just a short while ago, I came up with a fun idea that would
allow me to work with Devon on a collaborative artwork!!! Since this project will take a few more
months to complete, I thought that it would be cool to share this journey with
you – my readers!!!!
Every week (or so) I will add photos and stories to this post,
at the bottom and in sequential order.
So – drop by, from time to time and take a scroll down to
watch this artwork project unfold…..
The Inspiration – Mid-January, 2019
We love working on puzzles during the winter months! It’s something fun that the whole family can
enjoy… although Joanne seems to be the one doing most of the work!!!! Devon and I will sit down, every now and again
and do a bit of work, but Mom seems to really enjoy it, so we let her have her
relaxing time! That’s a little ‘tongue
in cheek’ because Mom often times gets mad at the puzzle!!!! But if yelling at a puzzle helps her to
relax, then I say ‘Go for it!’. LOL!!!!
Devon and Mom starting a new puzzle on Christmas morning, 2018
So – we’ve built up a small collection of ‘done’ puzzles and
one evening, I remembered that I had once created an artwork using nothing but
jigsaw puzzle pieces. That was way back
in 2001, when Joanne and I were living in Nelson, British Columbia as we worked
on the art project entitled ‘Canada: Glorious To Be’. Thinking about this memory got my imagination
working and it was a few days later, when I decided to do another puzzle piece
artwork! I figured that I could design
the image in a way that would be easy for Devon to understand so that he could
participate in the project with me.
I shared the idea with him and he said that he would help
with the new project. So – it was time
to get started….
The Wood Canvas – Mid-January, 2019
In order for this project to be successful, I knew that our
canvas had to be quite large! I also
knew that the canvas had to made of wood in order to keep its shape! Devon and I went to a local art supply shop
and went wood canvas shopping! While we
were there, I had another thought…
Since I have been participating in several ‘Hip To Be Square’ art shows over the last few
years, I suggested to Devon that we buy a square canvas so that we could enter
in into an upcoming exhibition. That
way, many people could enjoy our creation… and just maybe we could sell it and
use the money for his swimming or piano classes.
When we got home, I began prepping the wood canvas with two
coatings of gesso!!!!
The Project Begins – End of January, 2019
After the gesso had dried, I mixed up a nice dark purple
colour to paint the border’s edge. I
wanted a plain and simple edge that would complement the final artwork without
distracting the viewer – as I have often times created interesting borders in
the past! This time, I want viewers to
only focus on the artwork and not the edge design!!
Then, we had to come up with a design! For several weeks, my imagination went
wild. I thought up all sorts of
interesting things that we could do! In
the end, we decided to copy another artwork that I created a couple of years
ago….
I explained to Devon that we would be inspired by the
concepts from this artwork, but our new art would end up being different in a
few different ways. I really like how
the sun’s rays go through the border (in the above art) and I wanted to copy
this concept in our new project… so we started with laying out the border…
An hour later, we were both itching to glue down some puzzle
pieces, so I showed Devon how to do that…
The first peaces to be glued down!
And after one hour, some more border colours are done!
Beginning of February, 2019
Beginning of February, 2019
It's always good to 'get your feet wet' whenever you begin a new project. After this first day, it was time to get moving forward! I spent some time laying out the design for this project. In the above image (the one that we are using as inspiration for this art) you'll notice that the sun is touching the horizon. As I was laying out the lines for this art, I showed Devon how I was using a small dinner plate to draw the circle for the sun and I asked him where he thought the sun should go. He decided to put it more into the centre portion of the sky... and so I did!
Then we started gluing down some more pieces...
When we started, I was showing Devon how to do everything. How to pick a puzzle piece to use... how to find a spot where it will fit.... how to glue the back side of the puzzle piece... how to hold it in place until the glue dries, etc.
I knew that there were going to be many places where I'd have to do the work myself - like where colours intersect and small details that would be very hard for Devon to do - but my goal was to find ways for Devon to work on his own, with very little supervision.
So... I got him to work in the large areas of the design. I'd glue one piece down for him and then tell him to make a 'snake' having his puzzle pieces expanding outward from where he started. This worked out very well.
When Devon first began working on his own, I was working right beside him - working on another part of the art. He would ask if he was doing it right - I'd say yes or give him a little guidance - and then he'd continue with his work. After a while, I told him that he's been doing such a great job and that because he understands what to do, he doesn't need to ask me any more questions!!!! And he proved me right!!!! Whenever I'd inspect his work, it was always perfect!!!! Great job, Devon!!!!
We've got more to share!!!!
Drop by in another week and see how much more we've got done!!!
See you then.....
