DRAWING ON THE INSPIRATION OF SOME OF YOUR NATURE PHOTOS and the technical skills you learned earlier, this exercise calls for a slightly more refined composition. You will want the viewers to feel like they are walking up on a pile of rocks or perhaps just about to look over a rock wall and into a magical garden just beyond. The magic of Yupo will shine through even though you rein in the looseness to create a more representational abstract work. Let’s explore this amazing surface once again.
Baby wipes
Black India ink
Cosmetic sponge
Golden high flow acrylics: Permanent Violet Dark, Quinacridone/Nickel Azo Gold, Teal, Titanium White
Hard brayer
Neocolor II water-soluble crayon
Paper towels
Rubbing alcohol (mister bottle and an applicator bottle)
Soft foam brayer
Water-soluble pencil (optional)
Yupo paper
Brush India ink across the horizon line of your surface. Spread the ink using a hard brayer, which will garner a more uneven spreading of ink while a soft brayer will mute the ink and soften the edges. Using a hard brayer for this step will allow for the more pronounced texture you need at this stage.
While the ink is still wet, apply excess ink above the horizon line with the brayer to achieve a slightly shaded look from the residual ink.
Distress the India ink by spraying rubbing alcohol in a mister bottle onto the semiwet surface. You’ll see small granular marks appear as the ink moves away from the rubbing alcohol.
In the area of your horizon line, draw in rock shapes with a Neocolor II crayon.
Add texture both above and below the horizon line of the painting. Go back and forth between using both the hard and soft brayers and spraying rubbing alcohol to soften the ink. You can also use a paper towel to pull up the color or to blend in edges.
Clean your brayers with a baby wipe before moving on. Start bringing in additional paint colors at this point. Use Titanium White on the top of your horizon line and Quinacridone/Nickel Azo Gold below.
Use Teal fluid paint and a soft brayer to cover up some of the rocks at the horizon line. You can redraw the rock shapes afterward.
Use a paintbrush to paint the rock shapes with Teal, white and lavender. Mixing Permanent Violet Dark and Titanium White makes a great lavender. This fresh color will add dimension and light to your rock shapes. Fill in some of the gaps between the rocks with Quinacridone/Nickel Azo Gold. Let dry.
Add splatters using all of your composition’s paint colors. It’s okay if some splatters fall beyond the rock. Repeat these last few steps to build up the depth of the rocks. You can also add a bit of shading with a water-soluble pencil, if you like.
Finalize your piece by adding another layer of the Quinacridone/Nickel Azo Gold to the bottom. This creates a rich, rusty color for your landscape.
Don’t be afraid to try strange color combinations. Tiptoeing between the world of reality and the world of abstraction is freeing if you get out of your head and give it a chance on the canvas.
RENEW
20" × 24" (51cm × 61cm), acrylic, modeling paste, texture tools, NeoColor II water-soluble crayons on canvas
WHEN
11" × 14" (28cm × 36cm), acrylic ink, acrylic paint, pen, chalk, scraping tools on Yupo paper