Today is chilly and drizzly. It’s a good time to be thinking about warm tropical waters. And I am.

Actually, this thought began in a completely different place. I have been working on artwork created by patterns of tree limbs. I find them very interesting. I like the way individual static images, overlapped and repeated, build a sense of movement.

So my next step was to ask: Can the pattern of static images – overlapped in patterns – create a sense of movement in things that are actually moving. Like wildlife. That question inspired my current project.

Have you ever been to the beach and held up a piece of bread, only to find yourself in the middle of a flock of very hungry seagulls? Being immersed in that frenetic energy can be fascinating, but a little overwhelming. It’s a whir and blur of activity. That’s the kind of energy I want to create.

And this work will have birds – above. But, I am beginning with the area below the sea. I want to have that sense of immersion I imagine there would swimming right in the middle of a school of small fish moving through the water.

This is new subject mater for me, so it’s all an experiment. I began with the fish because it’s the smaller section, and I want some of the things I work out there to dictate how I handle the area with the birds. The only thing I felt sure about was that I wanted to use sheer fabric and create a watery-luscious environment.

First – creating the patterns for the fish.

I printed a few yards of yellow and gold and orange fabric to be the fish patterns. I worked fast and randomly to get an overall pattern. It is mostly monotype printed with some relief printing and a little stenciling.

Next – creating the shapes of the fish

Working from several reference photos of swimming fish, I drew a large stencil of a school in movement. I cut out each fish. This way, I can place the whole stencil over the yellow fabric and look through the holes to fins an interesting place for the patterns to fall inside the fish. Then I rolled a wheat paste resist into the fish shapes.

(“How-To” detail: Wheat paste is flour + water. Just pour flour in a bowl and add water till it’s the consistency of pancake batter. You can spread it all over a fabric or use stencils or block outs to apply it in patterns. Once it’s dried, you can crack it a bit. It will block out whatever the second color layer is, but allow some interesting crackle patterns to show where the second color seeps through. After the second paint layer is dry, you wash out the wheat paste with warm water. It does not hurt or stain the fabric.)

Next – overpainting the water.

I mixed a nice teal color and made a portion of it tinged with yellow for a greener hue. I sponged this over loosely so the green and blue merged. The magical part, I think, is the way the underneath colors of the yellow and oranges appear faintly through the blue water. That feels like sun and light penetrating the water.

When this paint dried, it was time to wash out the wheat paste resist and reveal the fish in their watery world.

So far, I am happy with the answer to my question, “Can static patterns create a sense of movement in wildlife?” I think yes. I’m interested in seeing how this works out with the birds and the sky. Stay tuned.

If you would like to see more of the tree-limb piece that started my thinking, it’s on my website HERE

An invitation for my central Florida friends:

I  hope you will mark your calendar for Saturday, April 24 for a small outdoor art show sponsored by the Guild of the Museum of Art – DeLand. (A GREAT organization.) It will feature about 20 artists and be held at the nursery of Select Growers, on US 11 just North of DeLand. Enjoy outdoor art stolling in a beautiful setting. You can look at art and look at beautiful plants—and shop for both! See you there.

Thank you for reading. I always enjoy questions and comments.
--Bobbi

bobbi@bobbibaughstudio.com

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