How I Get My Color Fix in Mixed Media.

My beat up old set of Dr. Ph. Martin’s is the second best treasure from my second marriage. My creative, funny genius son with a heart of gold is (of course!) the very best treasure! When my son’s dad left us years ago he didn’t leave us any money, but he did leave a ton of really great art supplies (Arches paper, Sennelier pastels, an airbrush, photographic equipment, etc). I sold most of these things at a yard sale to pay for more immediate necessities (like food) but had the presence of mind to hold on to these little treasures. They are so super concentrated they will last nearly a lifetime if you work on small pieces. If you work on larger pieces they are still incredibly economical because they are so incredibly intense. Dr. Ph Martin’s Radiant Concentrated Water Colors are truly one of the studio staples I can’t live without. The colors are so incredible. Some are almost too beautiful and some are actually ugly. They are all capable of magic! 

They are labelled “Radiant Concentrated Water Colors” but I feel that they are more like a an ink or a dye. Sometimes I thin them with water or use  different kinds of acrylic mediums. I’ve even mixed them into acrylic paint, used them in conjunction with regular watercolors, pastels, crayons and collage. One of the things I love about them is their ability to unify different medias and materials.  There really isn’t anything they aren’t compatible with. And they are non-toxic! I use the gorgeous brights when something I’m working on needs a shot of energy and I use a different range of colors when I need to antique something.

The company has been in existence since 1934. I don’t know if the formula has changed since then or if the current line in production is as magic as mine from the 90s. I’m about to run out of my favorite color (Persimmon, which reminds me of a really intense flamingo) so I’ll have to break down and try the new formula. Has anyone tried these in ways I haven’t mentioned? If you haven’t tried them I guarantee that you won’t be disappointed and hope you enjoy exploring with your set.

Blast From the Past

Someone gave me a pile of newspapers and LIFE magazines from 1969. I took them for collage material but ended up reading them first. Yes, there were lots of cool fashions and funny ads. But the 60s were also a time when people were exploring issues like race, gender, war, freedom and space. The status quo had to go! 

I started a collage journal based on this treasure trove of trash. Its very autobiographical because I grew up in this era. I was the girl at the slumber party totally cracking up with a tape recorder. The pictures from The Beatles White Album were on my wall too. The text below states "YOU could be a HAIRDRESSER! It's the now career for now people!" I never wanted to be a hairdresser. I knew I wanted to be an artist, and decades later I still working on that. 

iHanna DIY Postcard Swap

I joined the iHanna international postcard swap with an idea to make recycled postcards from contemporary materials ... but I got magnetically drawn to my collection of vintage National Geographics for inspiration. These images came from 1928. I have a large collection of vintage ephemera and I usually use the original images. I scanned these because I couldn't bear to part with them. In spite of scanning them I still could barely part with them! I used to make and send cards to my mom who passed away many years ago. Although its impossible to mail postcards to the "hereafter" I think I really made them for my mom. Her family came from Poland but she loved to dress in the latest American fashions. The rowboat is a reference to the house she lived in along the river. You can see more of my postcards on Flickr.