The last couple of weeks of Painting II were filled with nonobjective painting. At first, I disliked it. While I appreciated looking at it, I felt I couldn’t create it myself. I needed to be able to represent things in my art. This was creating something from nothing. Nevertheless, I muddled through the first week deciding that at the very least I would experiment with different techniques or mediums during this time.

I started with India ink and tape. I really focused on the composition of this one by turning it to a different side when I felt the one I was working on was filled and I was always able to find more places to lay down tape this way. The ink ended up bleeding under the tape slightly which was unintentional but ended up looking pretty cool.

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After that first ink painting, there were several failed paintings. While the paintings themselves were bad, they were also important because I learned from them. Eventually I discovered the idea of putting on gesso with a palette knife. I had been using just a paint brush and never thought to use my knife. When I did it created a really nice texture I liked once layered. So I built up this texture for a while, found some colors I liked, and just began to lay them down. While I was focusing on composition I really didn’t have a definitive plan for this one. Instead, each brushstroke was a reaction to the previous brushstroke. I kept this up for each layer until I was happy with the results. At first, I didn’t like the way it was turning out, but I kept building it up. I’m glad I did because eventually I really enjoyed the end painting. 

I liked it so much I started another one but on a larger scale using the same process with some different colors I enjoyed. It’s still a work in progress but I am liking the way it’s going so far. 

While I admit I disliked nonobjective painting at first, I’ve grown to like it more than I did at first. In the end, I came up with some great paintings and learned a lot from each of them. 

Until next time!

~Jordan