Home assignment:

Abstract Art with a Meaning

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Instructions

Week 6:

Titling your piece is a crucial finishing touch to your abstract paintings; they make sense of your piece, they help the viewer connect to your work. One of my favorite ways to title a painting is by going through my playlist. You may be surprised what you find!

Week 3:

Image transfer is fun way to infuse images into your work, but it is technical.

Here how to photo transfer step-by-step with gel:

Step 1: Brush a smooth, even layer of gel medium onto your surface.

• Not too thin, not too thick - you want it wet enough to grab the ink, but not so much that it oozes everywhere.

Step 2: Place the image face down

  • Don't move the image around - keep it still.

Step 3: Burnish the image

• Burnish (rub firmly) with your tool so the paper makes good contact. Keep the image still.

Step 3: Dry completely

• You can let it air-dry (hours/overnight) or speed it up with a hair dryer/heat gun.

• Patience here matters because if you rush, you’ll just peel up wet paper.

Step 4: Remove the Paper

• Spray the back of the paper with water until damp.

• Rub gently with fingers/sponge - the paper pulp will roll away.

• Take it slow, or you’ll rub off parts of the transfer too.

Step 5: Reveal & Seal

• Keep rubbing until the paper fibers are gone.

• Seal with a thin coat of gel medium or matte medium to protect it.

Notice how the image looks a little imperfect - sometimes patchy, sometimes ghostly. That’s part of the beauty of transfers. You can layer several on top of each other, combine them with paint, or even transfer onto fabric or wood for different textures.

For next week (part 4), think about what images you choose, personal photos tell a story, while magazine clippings can add surreal or unexpected elements.

Week 2:

Materials you'll need specifically for image transfer (in addition to the rest of the materials for the course):

  • Hair dryer
  • Image from Laser Printer/Toner Copier*
  • Gel Medium
  • Gesso or any color acrylic paint
  • Tool for burnishing, such as a metal spoon
  • Sponge
  • Spray bottle

*How to select images for image transfer:

You can use pictures of any subject matter, colored or black and white, as long as it's HIGH CONTRAST and printed with LASER PRINTER (not Inkjet). Keep in mind that some images may be reversed, depending on the transfer technique (not recommended to choose words. If you really want words, you'll need to reverse them before printing).

If you don't have access to a laser printer, pictures from magazines also work.

Jean-Michel Basquiat

If you'd like to create a new artwork inspired by Basquiat:

  1. Begin with writing down words you've heard, thoughts you've had, stream of consciousness-style
  2. Create illustrations of the words you've written, or doodle pictures of objects that you like / are around you
  3. Use paint as a way to solidify composition and define color harmony
  4. If you want words to stand out, cross them out or partially cover them with paint
  5. Draw with your paint brush, outline your drawings again and again
Week 1:

Robert Rauschenberg

If you'd like to create a new piece, or want to be reminded of the steps we followed in class, here they are:

  1. Pick three colors, plus white and black.
  2. Choose any one color ( not black or white) and paint 2-3 geometric shapes at some distance from each other.
  3. Cut 2 patches of texture (any size or shape), and paste them on your canvas using white paint as glue.
  4. Find a photograph (face, car, flower, anything) that caught your eye. Paste it anywhere using white paint as the glue.
  5. Cut several words from any printed media and arrange on canvas, without too much thinking (it is better to not think at all than think too much!)
  6. Use black to add small accents, lines, and shapes, etc., using the power of black to create tonal “punches”, punctuate the composition, and play up certain areas.
  7. Use your white to create unity. White can soften edges, lighten colors, and make some areas less heavy. You can apply white thickly or scumble it.
  8. Often step back further away from your work, to see if you like the results so far.  

Artist Examples

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