firecatsue's posterous

Folding Chairs, Firecatified

Our Firecat First Friday coworking sessions have become popular enough to become standing-room only in our studio space. At @BeardyMcD's suggestion, Matt and I picked up 4 folding chairs, but they were looking a bit grim and not at all Firecatty.

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Matt's idea: paint them. With the leftover spray paint from our space paintings. So I let Matt go to town on them. I think they're better; we're considering a clear coat to keep the paint from rubbing off on people.

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I love them! What do you think?

I'm Taking a Drawing Class

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After years of saying "I can't draw," I decided to sign up for a drawing class at the Southwest School of Art. Actually I wanted to sign up for a painting class to learn more about color - but they sensibly recommended everyone start with a basic drawing class. Walk before you run.

I'm so glad I did! Making decent progress already, and it stretches my brain in an entirely new way. Lots of what I'm learning applies also to writing, which I find fascinating. It's easier to figure out when my mind is in the way of the creative flow when drawing, for me, but it's the same "editor" I'm familiar with as a writer.

At the top is my first exercise, executed in pencil - I foolishly tried to render "easter island heads" from memory. I got all wadded up with perspective, shadow, vanishing points and whatnot.

But my efforts got pretty rapidly better, under a good teacher (nationally known artist Sylvia Benitez) and by watching and imitating the other students.

In the second class, this view of my own leg and running shoe came together better than I'd hoped.

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And I did this abstract of Sylvia in charcoal with just a few swoops. Charcoal rocks! I love its softness, smudginess, and the great variety of ways it can color and mark the paper.

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Today was class 3, doing gesture drawings and contours. I figured to be better at contours (outlines) because my limited artwork as a kid was mostly cartoons. Here are some studies of one of the other students (Ruben, texting).

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I'm getting proportions and perspective pretty badly wrong, but at least I can see that, and I expect that'll get better with practice.

 

Spray Paint Art (Not Tagging): Space Vistas

My son Matt got interested in doing spacescapes and other art with spray paint - yes, the kind of paint that some folks, not us, use for tagging. We're serving as an example of channeling creative energy.

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Step One: YouTube research.

Matt got the idea from YouTube videos of folks doing this artwork. Several of our favorite artists, their methods and their work are captured in tourist vids from people visiting Mexican beach towns. Google spray paint art video and you'll find inspiration.

Step Two: Buy the paint.

I suggested we start at Hobby Lobby. Matt begged me to take him to Sherwin Williams instead, insisting that Target, Walmart and Hobby Lobby wouldn't have spray paint. Sometimes it's easier to just give in, but the Sherwin Williams guy told us that Walmart had the biggest selection of colors. Doh! Despite my misgivings about Walmart, we ended up there. Notwithstanding my presence and reassurance, one man took it upon himself to lecture the two 12-year-old boys with me (Matt and Philip) that he'd call the police on them. Philip was especially indignant about that.

Step Three: Prep.

Dad/Greg insisted on safety first - so we spread newspaper, taped dropcloths, and bought rubber gloves, covered the ground rules of well-ventilated areas, no inhaling, and no smearing paint on anything but the posterboards or the overflow areas. We also gathered several round lids to serve as planet masks, and some pens and other objects to do etching and dragging effects with.

Step Four: Have at it!

These examples are the result of about 2 hours of fun and 15 minutes of cleanup. I didn't video our first round - but we're happy with what we emerged with, and plan to do it again soon. Not suitable for wet weather or oppressive heat, so we're keen to try again one evening soon.