Jackson Pollock - Following the Bread Crumbs

I was sitting at my desk pondering what I wanted to be when I grow up. More like what style of painting was likely to be my bailiwick. It really doesn't matter and I'm way to new at this to even be concerned about it. One thing I know I'm not very good at is controlling where my mind wanders. The "darter fish mind" does what it does.

I had been studying my portfolio of paintings which currently stands at five pieces. Now that's one heck of a body of work. I have put them on a wall so I can maybe learn from them, what I like and what I don't. As I examined them I decided where I'm  headed is primitive abstract impressionism.

My Complete Body of Work LOL!

I was curious to know if there was such a thing as primitive abstract impressionism. In typical ADD fashion, when I entered my search in Google I typed primitive abstract expressionism. I have absolutely no idea why I typed that. Anyway, my mistake led me to a MoMa video about Jackson Pollock.  (The video is in my library under Jackson Pollock)  

The video is a demonstration of Pollock's painting technique. I found it an interesting and informative video. Clearly, Pollock also enjoyed reckless abandon. More than the painting itself, I was struck by the fact Pollock used acrylic house paint to produce his creations.

I'm still struggling with my paint drying out. I'm doing all the conventional things but I'm still not happy with my paint. I'm beginning to think it has something to do with the climate in my house. In winter I keep the thermostat set 67 degrees during the day and 62 at night. The humidity is around 30%. It may just be too cold and dry. I'm perfectly comfortable.

After watching the Pollock video I wondered if mere mortals could paint on canvas with house paint? Seems to me house paint is a lot more fluid than the tube paint. I Googled the subject and found a painter, Skye Taylor, who says yes you can. Skye's video is also in the library.

I went from putting the wrong parameters into my Google search to finding Jackson Pollock to learning you can paint on canvas with house paint. I'm sure some purists might turn up their noses at such an idea. As far as I'm concerned, if it's good enough for Jackson Pollock it's certainly good enough for me. I bet anyone who would sneer at the idea never sold a painting for $140,000,000 either. Jackson Pollock did. Photo below.

Jackson Pollock - No. 5 1948

I can hardly wait to get some house paint and try it out for myself. It may not work for me but who cares? This painting thing is such a exciting adventure! I'll probably never sell anything for even $140 but I'm going to have a million dollars worth of joy following my art (heart).

©Kinsey Barnard

PS: I learned something else whilst writing this entry. I heard a crash in the living room and went to scold my dog for getting into mischief. Turned out the one painting I had done on a canvas board had fallen off the wall. The fall crushed a corner . Moral of that story; don't try hanging canvas board with masking tape.

A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose

A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose or so wrote Gertrude Stein. Gertrude never saw my rendition of a rose.

Whilst I was rummaging around the internet I came across some videos on the subject of painting flowers. (See Video Library). I love flowers because I love color and seldom is seen a flower without beautiful color. I decided to give a rose a try. I didn't have a photo to look at so I painted it right out of my head. Mind you, I probably  could not have done any better with a photo. But, as my friend Dave says, it is original. It looks to me like something a first grader might produce, maybe a kindergartner.

They say the great thing about acrylics is how quickly the paint dries. That special feature is proving my nemesis. My paints are drying out so fast I get all in panic. I'm one of those that does not do well under pressure and this is taking all the fun out of the exercise. I've tried misting the paint but it still dries out on the palette and clumps on the brush. Part of it may be due to the low humidity in the house. In winter, with things closed up and the heat running all the time it gets pretty dry.

I don't know what the trouble is but I really need to find a solution. If anyone reading this has any ideas to share about keeping acrylic paint moist I would sure be grateful if you'd leave them in a comment.

©Kinsey Barnard