Today I should be studying but in my eternal quest to avoid whatever it is I'm supposed to be doing, I decided to make a painting instead. This began as a recycled canvas that I used up all of my leftover paint on. This is what it looked like when I had covered up all of the white background with excess colour:

I love the colours but the finish is not particularly sophisticated. I decided to layers some shards over the top, using masking tape and acrylic paint scraped on with a silicone wedge. Here is the step-by-step:

And here is the finished painting. My advice in using this technique is to be brave, and don't stop until you're completely happy with the outcome. You can't really go wrong!

I'm running an art group for adults in the school holidays so I've been sorting through ideas for art projects that can be achieved by non-artists in under two hours. So many possibilities! I've settled on these canvases that are made using masking tape strips and shapes, and layers of blended acrylic paint colours. I'm envisioning some relaxed chatting while we play with paint and make some cool artworks.

I had some fun cutting and printing a new linocut this week, it's a magnolia and was printed as one plate. Available as a limited edition here.

At the end of each uni study period, I like to chill out by making any sort of art that comes to mind. This time I decided to do some printmaking on a Christmas theme to give to friends. These prints are gelli-plate monotype prints in acrylic using hand-made and bought stencils, over-printed with black ink on linocut plates.

Prints and products are available here.

I was invited by Kelly Dombrowski to take part in a blog hop. Kelly is a friend from Michigan in the United States, who I met through our mutual love of art. Kelly is colourful, energetic and fun, full of creative ideas and talent - check out her work here.

Here are the other Blog-hoppers this week, visit them for more arty goss:

Right now, I'm at the tail-end of a study period at uni, so I'm madly trying to get all of my painting assignments and essays completed. Here is my most recent painting, where I was required to use paint pouring and staining techniques and only three colours to investigate the theme of "imperfection". I chose to look at scars, and used the colours red, white and flesh tone.
Pouring paint is difficult to control, so I did loads of experiments and worked out the best ways to achieve the effects that I wanted.

This process involved diluting paint with various mediums, such as water, PVA glue, gel and binder medium, then pouring onto canvas and allowing it to move in various ways. The results are unpredictable and fun, at one point I walked away from the painting and when I came back the paint had started to run off the canvas. This actually created some great textures, so I realised that happy accidents are part of the process.

Here are some close-ups of the finished colours textures:

Here are some further experiments I've done using pouring and staining, looking forward to adding more layers to these and seeing what happens:

I think that every artist has his or her own unique style. It is difficult for me to stand back from my work and analyse it. I know that I tend towards vibrant colour as I believe one of the functions of art is to create an emotional response, and to me beautiful colours bring a sense of nature and joy.

I look around me, for interesting colours, textures, the interplay of objects. Sometimes I look at photos I've taken while travelling or around the neighbourhood, as I often record things that catch my eye. Sometimes I start with a colour in mind, for example if I'm feeling a bit cranky or anxious I might want to work with calming blues and greens.
One of the best ways to work is experimenting in my visual diary to try out ideas. I find that my first idea might lead to another, better idea. And sometimes I just dive in and see what happens.

Next Monday, head over to these amazing blogs for more blog-hopping fun!

Michelle from Shells in the Bush:
"Hi, I'm Michelle Reynolds, an acrylic and mixed media artist who lives on several acres of natural bush in the Perth hills, Western Australia, with my hubby, two sons and kangaroos. My passion at the moment is creating Gelli Plate monoprints and using them to create mixed-media girls and collages."
Michelle is a dynamic and creative artist and I know you'll love to see what she has in store.

Jennifer McIntosh is a fine artist and photographer from the beautiful South Coast of NSW, Australia. We met through study and she is such a gorgeous and positive person. Her work is stunning and she moves with ease between drawing, painting and photography. She is in the early stages of setting up her website, and you can find her blog here from next week.

Tracie Grace-Gallagher is a contemporary artist who I met through our study group a couple of years ago. She is one of the most supportive and genuine people I know, and her art is extraordinarily expressive. She is just about to complete her degree and have a well-earned rest! You can find her tumblr blog here.

Thanks for joining me!

I am thrilled to have been invited by Michelle of Shells in the Bush to join in the Gelli Print Blog Hop. I first met Michelle on Facebook where we share our love of all things gelli, in a group called Gelatin Printing Enthusiasts, a community of creative people who love printing with the gelli. New members always welcome, you can find us here.
You can join my Facebook page here, too.

For a list of all the blog hoppers, check out the end of this post.

Just because I love to live life on the edge (!), I have decided to do something on the gelli plate that I've never done before. What can go wrong? I've seen marbling using water, so I wonder if it's possible to do marbling on the beautiful surface of the gelli? A quick search did not point me to anyone having shared this before, so here we go:

For this project, I'm using the 5x7" gelli plate, fluid acrylic paints (I use Jo Sonja brand), some clay shaping tools for moving the paint around, and binder medium (quite runny, it binds the paint together and dries clear).

I like to use a plastic tray when I am gelli-printing, as it keeps all the spills contained. To start, pour some binder medium onto the gelli plate, and gently tilt the plate back and forth to move the medium around to almost cover the plate.

Choose some paint colours that are close to each other on the colour wheel, to avoid accidentally mixing a muddy shade of brown once you start moving the paint around. I've chosen dark blue, aqua and Naples yellow. Place drops into the binder medium, there are no rules with this just whatever you feel.

Using one of the wire tools, drag the tool through the paint in a horizontal motion, the repeat with vertical movements. Change to a new wire tool and make large swirling movements through the paint. Don't overdo it as you want to keep some differentiation between the colours.

Using strong paper or card, place gently onto the gelliplate then pull the paper towards you allowing the paint to move underneath. Prop the print up so that the paint is allowed to move and drip as it dries. Continue using new sheets of paper until all of the paint is removed from the plate. For this session, I was able to pull 5 prints, with the final one being patchy (I can use this as a background for future printing sessions.) Keep an eye on the prints and tip them up the other way if you want to get some different effects.

While my prints were moving, dripping and drying, I decided to start another session using a slightly different technique. For this one I used a little less binder medium, and instead of pulling the paper towards me, I lifted it straight off the plate.

To clean the plate I like to roll some fresh paint over the top using a brayer, and print onto clean paper. In this case, I pulled three final prints which I will use as starters for future printing sessions.

This technique is fun and unpredictable, and I'm very happy with the finished prints. The paper has drips around the edges but the prints will be great for collage, card-making, or just trim the edges and frame as they are.

Don't forget to visit the following blogs for more gelli fun:


Wednesday 15th Oct Michelle Reynolds http://shellsinthebush.blogspot.com.au/
Thursday 16th Oct Joanna Grant  http://joannabananadesignoriginals.blogspot.com
Friday 17th Oct Jacques Williamos http://theelevatorpress.wordpress.com/
Saturday 18th Oct Linda Stokes http://www.lindastokes-textileartist.com/
Sunday 19th Oct Phillippa Montier - You are Here!
Monday 20th Oct Lauri Crowe http://www.laurijeancrowe.com
Tuesday 21st Oct Gail Schmidt http://www.shabbycottagestudio.net
Wednesday 22nd Oct Tami Sturm Howse  Www.thisandthatfromtami.blogspot.com

Thank you for joining me, and happy printing!
Cheers, Pip x

Shells in the Bush has all the details for the upcoming Gelli Print Blog Hop, lots of creative Gelli fun is in store!