Sometimes I can plan results.

Sometimes things just happen.

Sometimes there are delightful discoveries along the way. They may or may not end up directly in a new artwork.

Here are two images from my studio this week. I love the soft, ethereal color blending of the first, and I love the crisp contrasts of the second.

I did not create either of these images. They are just random things that occurred in the process of studio work, bits of paint on my working supplies in the process of cleanup:

The soft image is on the roller of my brayer. The crisp image is on a vinyl drop cloth from my worktable.

What can you do with images like this?

There are several options.

OPTION 1 – DO nothing.  But do take the time to notice the discovery and enjoy it. Take a deep breath. Enjoy the randomness and spontaneity. Sometimes you can’t capture things in any tangible way. But, taking time to notice, to look at what shows up unexpectedly, is all part of increasing your artistic sensitivity. And it’s fun.

OPTION 2 – Capture digitally. Now that there are so many ways to reproduce digital photo images on fabric, one can capture anything, save it and manipulate it a bit for size and intensity in PhotoShop or similar programs. What began as an interesting splotch on a drop cloth might be reproduced as a large abstract work, or it could serve as the underneath layer of a large work with more added to it.

OPTION 3 – Try to capture it manually. This large drop cloth has all kinds of fascinating patterns and colors on it. I have, in the past, successfully transferred them to fabric using matte medium in much the same method I use for transferring photos.

I gave it a try.

This is a piece of blank white fabric that’s been slathered with matte medium, placed face down on the drop cloth and rubbed with both brayer and paintbrush to get a good contact with the paint that was on the drop cloth. I left it overnight to dry, then pulled the fabric off.

Eeehhh . .  not so much this time around. The high-contrast black and white is an interesting little section that I could incorporate into a work. But all the really inspiring, nuanced orange and brown values and textures did not transfer to the white fabric.

Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t.

But… you never know. Next time I invest a little time and effort into capturing an unusual and unplanned image, I might get an unexpected and wonderful surprise.

For all the artmakers: Happy creating
For all the art lovers: Happy appreciating

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

bobbi@bobbibaughstudio.com

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