After finishing assignment 2, I decided to go back to a previous exercise and try a bit more experimentation with enamels. I had not really been happy with the results of the jewellery collection from this exercise using the acrylic ice blocks [certainly I’ll be taking away the point that I shouldn’t have added so much water to them!].
I tried the jewellery and sock in watercolour, which gave me the idea of trying them in Pebeo enamels.
I wondered how these would work on black and white paper. The reds were not great on black paper, but the lighter colours certainly stood out.
I tried using a bit of Humbrol thinners with them which worked well. Also, pouring dark paint in to a pool of light, and vice versa. All had interesting effects!
Next, I went on a sketching morning to a local reclamation yard which had many interesting old things stacked up together. Plenty of interesting shapes to draw.
This was an old milk churn with various bits of wood and metal stacked around it.
This time I tried Pebeo vitrea enamel, which are meant for glass but I wondered how they would look on paper.
Actually the colours made certain objects really stand out compared to the drawing where all but the milk churn ended up a grey mass! Thinning some enamel and using dry brush also gave interesting effects. I haven’t got that many colours but enough to get a shadow and rust effects.
This was a collection of objects in the corner of the yard. I liked the flowers in an old chimney stack stacked next to a wheelbarrow and modern watering can. Again, it was about keeping it simple. This enamel is thinner, more like nail varnish than Humbrol enamel paints but much easier to work with that nail varnish – I found the quick drying time of that stuff just frustrating!
My last feedback has helped me think more of the process rather than getting a finished piece from these experiments. I may have another go with the acrylic ink ice cubes with no water this time!
cleveypaintmedia 