cradled for the Pre-Shrunk show

Greetings on this cold and grey January afternoon.
A couple of light snowfalls this week, a bright sunny day yesterday, and now some random flakes are floating about.

I have just been given permission to post pictures of my 4"x5" watercolours that will be for sale tomorrow at Argyle Fine Art's Pre-Shrunk Show in Halifax, January 22- February 13.
(You can click on each of the following pictures for a larger version.)

Hortense

Hepzibah

Hannah

 

 

Preparing and finishing work are the secret thieves of time when it comes to creative work.

This was the first time I'd mounted paper onto board.

 

Mounting A Finished Watercolour Onto Board- Cradling

 

1. I used a thin piece of 4"x 6" piece of plywood that Wally had to cut an inch off for the unusual measurements of 4"x 5".  

 

2. I sanded the edges, then gessoed, sanded and painted the edges and a little over the front of the board, the latter because despite my best efforts, the paper and the board didn't quite match.

 

3. I brushed acrylic gel medium onto the board and weighted the paper down with books overnight. (My paper was too small and heavy to bother with using a brayer to get any bubbles out; in fact, using the brayer only helped to slide the paper around, but I would use it in future for a larger piece of paper.)

 

4. Once dry, I used a sharp blade to trim the bit of overlapping paper using the edge of the plywood as a guideline.

 

5. Sure enough, I shaved a little of the plywood off and had to touch it up in places with more acrylic paint.

 

6. Then, I  used the time saved from not having to travel to Halifax on Saturday (because of the blizzard) to do a third coat of spray (so as not to disturb the paint) matte varnish over top.

 

7. At the last minute, Sunday morning, I decided to paint the somewhat rough back with acrylic paint to stain the wood and create a somewhat more finished look

 

8. onto which I double-sided taped handwritten labels to each.

 

The days that passed in this process added up to many more than the day it took to paint each one. What a short memory I have for that lesson in life. This reminds me of my father's lesson in irony: " By the time (sic) you learn to hang the wallpaper, 25 years pass and you have to learn it all over again."

 

wishing you a pleasant wind-up to your week

and, hopefully, some time to set aside for some creative pursuit