Artists hate waste! We squirrel away scraps of paper, offcuts of fabric, failed paintings, bits of thread, rust — you name it, we'll probably have it stashed in in a box somewhere, waiting to become part of a collage or a textile work.
When we paint, rather than waste the residue, we're likely to brush it onto a piece of watercolour paper before washing the paintbrush. The paint layers create patterns on a succession of papers until the session is complete for the day.
So... what to do with these miniature abstracts?
I've been working in black and white, lately, so often these little brush cleanings look very uninspiring, like this one which uses the remnants of paint applied to cling wrap.
However, since I won't waste them, I take up my fineliner pen and create designs: tangles, if you will. These consist of various strokes and shapes and are one of the useful methods many artists employ when not working on a major piece, in order to maintain the hand/eye coordination so vital to the artistic process. It's an enjoyable, relaxing exercise and has the added benefit of providing designs for later use in collage or as a stand-alone piece of art.
I've created a short video, illustrating a work-in-progress, using the technique I've discussed above. Once the exercise is complete, I'll post another short video to show you the result.
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