Welcome to
Commentary on Color
Susan L. Bailey
I am a self-taught mixed media artist living in Harrisburg, PA. After a 30 year career in logistics, budgeting and accounting I found the freedom in color, and texture exhilarating! Putting down the federal regulations and picking up the color wheel, the rules of composition and experimenting with various mediums, paints and papers if life changing.
I love to teach my two predominate techniques; mono-printing and alcohol inks. Creating an atmosphere of fun, creativity and ease. I believe creating art does not have to be expensive, in fact, I often use fruit webbed bags, toilet paper rolls, bubble wrap, and plastic wrap in my art.
One of my favorite art quotes is by Andy Warhol. "Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding make even more art."
When not creating, teaching or learning about art, you can find me engaged in my 2nd passion... traveling.
Classes
Learn and Grow
Mono-printing
To make a mono print all you need is a plate and some paint. Plates can be of any type, as long as they are non porous ie. plexiglass, thin sheets of metal, glass, masonite, etc. We’ll be using a commercial product, Gelli Plate, a silicon plate. Also I'll make handmade plate using Knox gelatin.
The plate is a fun tool, it is flexible, allows for mark making using all sorts of items. We’ll use toilet paper rolls, bottle caps, textured fun foam, webbed bags, stencils, ends of paint brushes, stamps and textured wall paper. We’ll make our own stamp using fun foam and/or styrofoam.
You’ll begin using a single color per sheet and move toward a variety of colors keeping in mind the color wheel in order to not make a brown mess. You’ll also use a variety of papers on which to do your mono prints… newspaper, cardstock (various colors), deli paper and maps.
You’ll leave with a stash of mono prints which can be framed, made into cards, tags, used for collage or as a background to create your own art.
Alcohol Inks
Alcohol Ink Class
Alcohol ink is fun medium to use in making vibrantly colorful art. The best substrates for alcohol inks are non porous surfaces… glossy paper, yupo paper, tiles, candles, metal, glass.
Alcohol ink is transparent, dries quickly, acid free and permanent (wear old clothing). They will stain anything they touch. The beauty of alcohol inks is their intense color and their movement. Using isopropyl alcohol or blending solution is like using water with watercolor paints.. it will lighten, blend or clear the color from the substrate. The way to paint with alcohol inks is by using a water brush filled with isopropyl alcohol and a palette of dried alcohol inks.
In this class we’ll work on the following techniques: making the inks run, how to control the run, how to restart a run, uses of blending solution, use of a felt applicator, using a blowing method either with canned air or a straw, the use of stencils, “painting” with the side of a coffee stirrer and using the inks in water to create a softer look of the intense alcohol ink.
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