A Week in the Life of an Artist - a weekly blog about what it means to be a working artist

Three Poppies

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pre-collage background

This past week I traveled to Traverse City with 3 of my artist friends and colleagues.  Months ago, we signed up for a 4 day workshop through the Traverse City Art Center.  The workshop was to cover collage, and while was admittedly less than interested in collage as an ‘art form’, I was very excited to spend the week creating with my friends, far, far  away from the ladders and scaffold and house paint that usually fill my muralist/decorative painting work-weeks.
I was immediately blown away by our instructor, Elizabth St. Hilaire Nelson’s talent, unique approach and the artistry with which she ‘paints’ with papers.  Each of the papers used are hand painted & patterned for use as virtual ‘brushstrokes’ on the painting’s surface.  I cannot say enough about how her approach thoroughly shifted the paradigm I held of collage.  For more information on her work and to find your opportunities to learn with this beautiful and talented master, I highly recommend you visit her site.  Trust me.  I used to hate collage.  But after 4 days learning from Elizabeth, I’m addicted.




The day after I came home, I pulled out this half-worked canvas (image, right).

It has been milling about my studio for months now…a stunning background in blues and purples.  The problem?  The texture of the surface was a far cry from what I needed to create the playful flowers I envisioned growing up from the rocky, iridescent purple ground.

I immediately set upon creating flowers with collage. The sturdiness and opacity of the paper would hold up against not only the deep tones of the existing background but also the heavy texture.

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The finished piece “Three Poppies” symbolizes to me the time spent in Traverse City with my 3 beautiful friends, Michele, Helena and Carleen.  Each stands strong and beautiful against the gorgeous scenery of coastal sky, and while our backgrounds are in paint, we are grounded in a new love of paint, collage, and of one another.   The measures 18”x36” and is on stretched gallery wrapped canvas, (ready to hang).  The piece is $650, though I feel this piece, much like my time spent in Traverse, will be hard  to let go.

"Three Poppies", 18"x36" - $650 (top) Detail of Poppy, (left), detail of collage and 'ground" (right)

Before I wrap up for the week, I want to share with you the 2 class projects I worked on while in Traverse City.  The first is an apple study.  Below you can see a detail of the collaged apple, the initial underpainting prior to collage and the finished piece.  “Apple Study” measures 11”x14”, and is awaiting a frame that I ordered last night :)

Lastly, the yet to be titled orchid painting below measures 12”x30”.   Again, you can see a detail of the collaged orchid, the initial underpainting prior to collage and the piece in progress.  I am debating whether to add painting to the surface.  I feel the piece lacks a linear element I have yet to develop in collage…. What are your thoughts?  Do you feel the piece stands alone as a collage, or would you like to see the surface?  Please share your opinions and thanks for reading!

#poppies #collage #friends #traversecity #paint #weekinthelife #artofshadia #apples #orchids #artist