'Coelus' by Gillian Ayres

Texture Experiments

I used mixed media to create two extremely textured pieces of work that differ greatly from each other:

In the image on the left I started with a simple emulsion layer that I started to scratch and scrape into with the end of a paintbrush and with a paint palette knife. While the paint was still wet I used the burnt umber and the Ultramarine Blue to create a verity of blues and purples that I used a stiff paintbrush to apply to the wet emulsion. I then scraped and scratched this layer after I gave it a few minutes to dry. This created even more texture. I used thick black ink to create a very basic composition in this piece (cruciform). After I had let this dry, I used the batik and hot wax technique to create yet even more texture and after this layer had dried, I chose to flick emulsion over parts of the page and left this to dry over night so the paint would remain textured.

With the other image I once again started with a simple emulsion layer and before it dried I placed strips of newspaper on the wet paint to create a vary basic composition in this piece (strata). Before I put the newspaper strips onto the piece I used tyhe end of a paintbrush to  scape into the emulsion layer to give the piece more texture. When the paint dried and the newspaper stuck down, I used the Burnt Umber paint with a dry stiff brush to apply it to the page. I found that the paint became darker in the sections with the newspaper on, and the emulsion kept the paint lighter because it was not quite dry. I later applied melted wax from the batik pot follwing the strata composition. In the short space of time before this stage dried I springled a small amount of sand onto the page and then once again used the end of a paintbrush to scrape into the wax and sand. After this layer dried it left me with a highly textured piece of A4 work.

I will be able to use this piece to combine with another image and create an create an implied texture piece. This is something that I will comsider later on in my project.

Aeolus by Gillian Ayres

When I first saw this painting at the Walker Art Gallery, I was instantly drawn to the huge scale, energy of the work and the brilliantly bright colours.This painting ‘Aeolus’ by Gillian Ayres was painted in 1987. Her painting were known for their often their grand scale, expressive use of paint and her profusion of colour. Her technique of dragging one thick colour over another, wet on wet, produces a very abstract effect. Here, amidst the density, colours, and apparent chaos of her brushstrokes, there are hints of recognizable imagery; trees and flowers, hedges and fences, a wheel and a bridge, as if a garden or farm provided the inspiration for this painting. Ayres usually gives her works poetic or literary titles. In Greek Mythology Aeolus is the ruler of the winds. An influential teacher at St Martin’s and Winchester Schools of Art, Ayres remains a leading British abstract painting. I have just found out that there is another Gillian Ayres painting just down the road. I'm off.