Monday, December 13, 2010

Angel In The Shadows . . . Do You See What I See?

"angel in the shadows"
acrylic glaze on 5x5" birch wood
prints available in my etsy shop

Saturday I asked my hubby for a piece of birch wood. He always has some laying around in the garage. I wanted to try painting on a wood surface for the first time. So he brought me a 5x5 inch piece of scrap he had.

I added a coat of gesso first and when it was dry just tried adding some paint. I made glazes of my two favorite colors of the moment payne's and burnt sienna. I was just practicing adding paint to this new surface to see what it would do. I immediately felt the difference in how the paint moved on the wood and when I tried blending the paint I ended up just smooshing it around. I noticed that it gathered in some areas and wiped away on others. I liked how it looked with the wood grain showing through the glaze. It was all random. I was in no way hoping for a piece of art to come out of this. At one point I became very frustrated that I couldn't move the paint the same way as on a canvas wondering if I even liked painting on a wood surface.

I walked away and left it be till later on that night. When I went to go check on it my hubby got to it first and told me he loved it. I thought he was crazy until I looked at what came through. We both saw the image of a woman to the right who looks as if she is leaning up against a wall. Below her looks like rocks and water. I was shocked at the image and the depth that this piece has all without me trying to do anything but smear some paint around. It almost looks ghostly to me. It looked completely different to me when it was dry. This has become one of my favorite pieces!

So tell me . . . what do you see?

10 comments:

  1. So cool Cathy! I love finding images in abstracts! I was a little under the weather this past weekend and didn't get to visit blogs much but I see you've been quite busy! Loving your abstracts!! I'm so glad you're enjoying creating them too :)

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  2. This is absolutely stunning - I love it when experimentation leads to something beautiful and uplifting like this. I think this is amazing. Great colours, too xx

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  3. Wonderful work..Gorgeous Cathy...you are truly opening a new realm with your abtract paintings..it is exiciting watching it all unfold...and I imagine it feels exciting for you too.....shine on..your work is inspiring.
    HUgs
    Victoria~

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  4. It 's true !!!!!!!!! and is lying with his head resting on his hand as he watches the water!
    Incredible!
    Brava Cathy!!!

    Ciaooo!

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  5. chills.
    i love when this happens.
    isn.t it a wonderful surprise.
    i LOVE the rocks and water.
    congratulations on a beautiful discovery.
    xo
    c

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  6. very cool, I can see her! What a wonderful way to just let go, and let the image come out by itself. Although when I first looked at this, I saw 3 characters leaning over a figure in white, like Jesus. I thought it looked like a religious painting, I wonder if anyone else saw this too.
    Thanks for stopping by my blog, yes my painting is done on wood. I love it! and it looks like you see the joy of working on wood too. I prefer it to canvas actually, I only wish it were easier to get wooden canvases for a reasonable price.
    have a wonderful holiday season,
    betty

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  7. I just love when this happens--the piece you're working on takes over and tells you what it is. I really like working on wood too---it's so great that you're discovering new things all the time!

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  8. Beautiful painting! Wonderful subtle colors in this piece. I see a woman standing against the wall looking down at the water and rocks!

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  9. Where do they come from? The subconscious? Like Myra says "what's REALLY goin' on up in there?"

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