Artistic Calisthenics

I've asked friends to donate their used and unwanted magazines to me. I have a mountain to look through and it feels like Christmas.

I've been collecting images from magazines for a while, and now I'm sifting through them to see if I can make something of them.

Something I want to do more in my studio is quick drawings and paintings to loosen my mind and hand. When I paint on larger canvases, it's easy for me to tighten up and forget the intrinsic energy of painting.

Some of these drawing will be terrible, but that's part of the fun. Hopefully as I share them, it will be entertaining at the very least.

Above is the first stop on this journey, based on a photograph in Vogue. I was drawn to the image initially because, while the woman's outfit is minimalistic, there are lots of sheens and textures to the fabrics. The intermingling of simplicity and complexity, if you will- a juxtaposition for which I have an affinity.

The cream paper is 11x15" and I used black textile paint, colored pencil, charcoal, and acrylic. I'll be using a lot of leftover paint from other paintings for these and inexpensive surfaces I have lying around or find.

If you're reading this and have some magazines or materials you'd like to share, bring them to my studio (or I can pick them up). We can make some drawings together or I can make one for y-o-u.