Silk Painting

Jackie is teaching me how to do silk painting. 

She wants me to use big, bold, sweeping brush strokes.

It makes me nervous.

“Use lots of water and then let it work.” 

Silk painting is not like other mediums.  The artist is not in control in the usual way.  You can choose the size of the work and the colors.  You have control over the image: but the final product is always an unknown. 

You add salt to absorb color.  Alcohol or hairspray provide greater control.  Sugar repels color.  

Sounds easy: it’s not.

I made some of my Christmas cards creating small, silk images and gluing the little squares to the front of the card. It was great fun, but small cards don’t make way for bold, sweeping brush strokes: strokes that take the work to a place you can’t plan for: some so beautiful I hate to give them away – others so ugly I don’t think I will.    

And this past week or so, besides silk painting, I have been looking for my next adventure. 

That’s what life is: an adventure.  Not always good; not always bad, but almost always interesting: like those silk paintings.  And I’m still not sure about those bold, sweeping strokes that Jackie uses, but you always seem to find so much in them, after they dry.   

Sometimes the colors mix and the effect is dazzling: and then it turns green.  I think that’s what happened last year in Australia.

Working in Aboriginal Communities is… well.. big, bold strokes: a big, bold ride.

Not sure I am ready for another one quite yet.

But, I don’t want to go back to the control of my little Christmas Boab Tree Cards either: no matter how pretty they can be. I have grown, yet again, but not sure how, yet again.  I don’t think my Australian work is totally completed. It will have to sit a while and I’ll think on it.  

Right now I am back on Dave’s ESL Café.

I thought about China, but the Middle East still calls.  I am still choosing the size of the canvas and will pick out an image soon: I will know it when I see it. 

And the colors?  That comes later - much later.  I have to ‘use lots of water and let it work’ and it will be years before it dries and I get to see the final product.   

Will keep you posted.