Shadow Box Framing

I like this method of presenting my small works. The shadow box is made with a deep moulding. Archival foam core is cut for the side and glued to the wood (a few drops of rubber cement). The back sheet is white foam core that sits on top of the side pieces of foam core. I use mirror clips and small screws on the back to make for easy reframing. If the piece that's showcased in the frame is rather heavy I use drops of rubber cement as the adhesive. For best results reapply 2 or 3 layers of cement, let dry between coats and press down (I use a stack of very heavy books to apply weight). You can easily remove rubber cement for reframing, without any damage, and it doesn't mess with any of the archival materials.

I like the look of these framed, and perhaps one day I'll do shows again, but for the moment I'm happy to send these off in the mail unframed to my customers who find me on Etsy.

Heat Wave

Almost too hot to venture outside today....the first heat wave of 2014. Acrylic and pencil on matte board gessoed both sides, 8 x 8 inches. I'm quite happy to be preparing the surfaces this way. There is no warping of the surface over time...almost like painting on panel, but it's still paper.

To Lake Ontario

Another gorgeous late June Day. About 5 miles north of Lake Ontario...looking south. Acrylic and pencil on unprimed single ply archival matteboard 9 x 9.5 inches. Listed on Etsy today and sold half an hour later. I like how this one turned out. The diagram for it was more sketchy and general than normal, but I had a strong memory of the scene. It's very improvised.....almost more drawing than painting. This one felt different....and I look for the differences and shifts in my procedure because they very much keep me going and interested.

Snow Shadows

It's always my habit to look far into the distance....blue snow shadows, later in the day. Acrylic and pencil on single ply archival matte board, 8 x 10 inches.

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March 10, Hedgerow

 

I changes procedural things very regularly. This piece is only 8 x 8.5 inches and is on single ply archival matteboard, unprimed. The pieces just previous were on slightly bigger paper. In this format, every little change makes a large difference.

 

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Ice Forms

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Far Flag and Snowy Hills

I stood on a table in the school studio to get a distant view eastward. The flag flies over the elementary school next door, with snowy hills beyond. I usually paint in daylight, but this was started at 6:30....dark already.

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Cold Spell

January Snow on Hope Hill

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Acrylic and pencil on gessoed Whatman paper, 10 x 15 inches.

 

Trail on Lost Dog Hill

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Lost Dog Hill in the deep of winter, 11 x 15 inches, acrylic and pencil on unprimed, archival paper. After days of freezing temperatures, today it's lightly raining and melting...but very slowly.

January Afternoon....Lost Dog Hill

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Acrylic and pencil on gessoed Whatman paper, 10 x 13.5 inches. The last painting from Christmas holidays....... (Sold)

Remember........

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January Evening, 2014, the coldest days of the year so far, 11 x 15 acrylic and pencil on gessoed Whatman paper (sold).

It helps to make 1000s of pictures. This is a continuum. It helps to remember past days and painting sessions from all areas of earlier experience. In this case, I was remembering a work session from ages ago. I was a student at the University of Saskatchewan. It was winter....very cold....I was in 2nd or 3rd year fine arts. It was a fairly arduous journey to get from where I lived to my workspace on campus. To put in evening painting sessions after classes you had to really want to get there! I always preferred to work on the floor, and I sometimes would work on 2-3 pictures at a time. Sometimes paint was poured. Very little was predetermined in the picture, and anything could change quickly. Even then, visual surprise was always searched for. In the evenings, there was usually no-one in the studio...maybe me and one other person, maybe one professor....you could count on some very pleasant solitude and maybe some insight from the other person if you went in search of it. I remember learning things in those evening sessions....understanding one or two things about painting. But mostly I remember how fresh the experience felt. It can help to remember......

Elizabeth O'Reilly

 

For a long time now, I've been very impressed by the work of Elizabeth O'Reilly, both the small oils and the collages made with cut up watercolour sections. It is this old idea of seeing the world very figuratively, but also understanding and showing so eloquently, that everything is a wonderful abstract arrangement. And of course, there is also the idea that small paintings are just fine...in fact, they may be bigger, than big paintings.

 

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Playing With My Toys....

 

Playing with my toys....they are like toys, a bit....you can carry them around with you, lean them up on your coffee cup, lean them against the TV while you watch, or lean them on a shelf, or shuffle them up like cards.....or you can give one to someone you like...but then you can't look at it anymore...

 

Each card image is an original piece of art signed H. Stooshinoff.

 

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Some New Greeting Cards

 

Here are a few new greeting cards, 5 x 7 inches, blank on the inside, with some original images on the front. I love printing on old book papers....the rag content in the paper is high, and it takes the printers' ink and watercolour so nicely. One image is also a little acrylic collage. Everything looks so beautiful when you put it in a plastic sleeve! These 4 are in my Etsy store now.

 

Happy New Year Everyone!

 

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Fallow, Late August

I just now finished my 2nd one in this series. These are just a touch bigger...and a bit different. I'm quite glad that the work changes subtly over time, with little plan from me.....little hunches are enough to move things forward. 11 x 14 inches, acrylic and pencil on gessoed Whatman paper.

White Flock, Near Rice Lake.

Pencil and acrylic on gessoed Whatman paper, 6.75 x 9.75 inches. I think the aim was to park on top of the high hill and just sit there and look for a half hour.

My apologies to anyone who has been looking for new work here in the last months....I have been posting new work and comments almost daily to Facebook. Please find me there if you wish to see the daily pieces. I will come back to this space after a period of time....but Facebook seems easier at the moment.

Fox Hill, Second Thaw, January

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I couldn't post for a long while because blogger wouldn't let me add pictures....glad they fixed that! The start of the second January thaw....within a few days all the snow would be gone...again! 11 x 15, acrylic and pencil on archival paper.

Wendy's Hill, January 1

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...looking toward Wendy's Hill, the highest feature near me....late afternoon of the first day of the new year! The view is a bit elusive and takes some careful positioning....a few steps in either direction and the hill disappears. Acrylic on archival paper, 9.5 x 7.5 inches.

Tommy's Hill, December 30

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...a cold, crisp day, now with good snow coverage. Looking north, the sky still has bits of blue, but already, near 4:00 pm, the southern and eastern sky has dramatic yellow and rose. Someone has a smokey bonfire going by the little red shed.  Acrylic and pencil on unprimed archival paper, 6.75 x 8.25 inches.