Mixing things up!

 

The Red Mobile by  Alexander Calder, 1956  Painted sheet metal, metallic rod.

 

mixed me·di·a

1. using different artistic media: the use of different artistic media, e.g. painting, photography, and collage, in a single composition or work

The term “mixed media art” is a broad definition that covers many arts and crafts, including collage, assemblage (both 2D and 3D), altered objects, including books and boxes, handmade greeting cards, artist trading cards (ATCs) and tags, art journalling and book making.
The “mixed media” used includes paints, papers and board of all descriptions, glues, buttons, fabrics, found objects, photos, metal bits, fibres, things from nature, inks, pencils, crayons, markers, pastels and polymer clays, to name a few.
I found that my visit to the art gallery and my exposure to 100 works of high calibre art has really mixed up my thinking.  But in a good way! lol

The WAG is quite kid friendly. In a section set aside for them is this table that is computerized.  You can move 'pictures' around and even blow up the images.  It was very cool.  I really feel art should be mixed up and touchable.

The lunch room table top.  Paint colours mixed with metallic gold.   Under a thick clear acrylic. Touchable, sort of.  ;)

This is oil on canvas and is done by Frank Stella.   Quite large and I wondered how he kept his acrylic from bleeding into the bare canvas that makes up the background lines.  In reading another book I saw he has a series and they mentioned pencil lines with a ruler and masking tape. ?  In my reading I also learned about the variety of materials used for backgrounds and the different colours these were painted to enhance the colours that were laid on top.  The options just keep multiplying

Then there was another painting and I've 'lost' the image but it was done in about 3 colours  with skinny concentric circles that must have took a very long time and there was no visible bleeding of colours.   Can you imagine not getting 'mixed up' doing concentric circles?

This was by Kenneth Norland and he eliminated the paintbrush and poured his paint onto his canvases and allowed it to soak into the support. He also used shaped canvases.   The colours slightly bleed into one another, but not very noticeably.  He mixed up his method.  I'd have made a mess!

This is Alfred Pellan's Four Women.  These dots are subtly 3-D.  I wonder about mixing images up and putting them on black outlines behind them. Maybe with black felt.  I also learned that this canvas is deliberately small so that the images are cramped/confined on purpose.

I like groupings, especially if they can be mixed up in their arrangement.  This is The True North Strong and Free by Greg Curnoe. 1968, and is polyurethane and ink on wood.

Reading the description of Andy Warhal's Mao, 1973,  was an Aha! moment!  Mixed media.  Acrylic and ink.


White cotton fabric that has been 'rusted'  and commercial fabrics, quilted.  2010, by elle.   Knowing what I know now, I can definitely bump up my mixed media techniques! 

I have learned that I need to continue to mix up my preconceived ideas as well as the medias that I am drawn to work in. That has got to be kinda liberating!  ;)