Variations On A Theme

A few of us have been working on an interesting project at art group. I ordered several 8"x8" square canvases and we each began a painting based on a circle. Of course the possibilities are endless but I still ended up confused as to what I wanted to paint. In the end I decided to do something design orientated and painted this Flower Mandala in acrylics based on an antique Art Deco brooch. So far ten people have handed their canvases in with six more to complete and it's fascinating to see the wide range of ideas and styles. When they're assembled we're displaying the works at Otane Arts and Crafts Open Weekend in November with the paintings being sold and the proceeds donated to charity.

For life drawing last week I decided to try something different. I lay four sheets of cartridge paper on the floor and did a poor man's Jackson Pollock on them. This made a good basis for drawing on with pastel pencils. Another method is to draw first with oil pastels and then drip watercolour paint over the drawing although this is best done at home with a large supply of newspaper.