As featured in
The New Zealand Listener & Sussex Life magazines
C r e a t e d b y
Activity 1: relief on canvas
1. For this piece I used a 12 x 12 inch box canvas.
2. Draw your design on your canvas
3. Mix Plaster of Paris with PVA (in small quantities as it dries quite quickly).
4. Apply plaster in selected areas and leave others flat. (I used the end of a paint brush on the edges for accuracy).
5. Paint using acrylics.
Art by Richard K. Potter.
Activity 2: wax resist with fish
1. Firstly, I drew a fish outline on thick watercolour paper.
2. I used masking tape to stick the paper to a wooden board to stop buckling.
2. I then used a dark wax crayon to go over the lines, leaving lots of spaces for different coloured watercolour paints afterwards.
*Any thick white paper will do and you can use inks instead.
Why fish? My Father used to have a Tropical and Marine fish tank, which I believe have therapeutic value. People love to see the variety of fish, their colour and movement and I have seen fish tanks in GP's surguries, dental practices and on screensavers, which have a calming effect...
Art by Richard K. Potter.
Activity 3: texture with tissue paper
1. To achieve this effect glue tissue paper over a canvas and let dry.
2. Paint, let dry, then rub pastel or chalk over the surface to highlight the texture.
Mixed Media
Activity 4: baby blessing sunburst
To create this collaborative piece the artist emailed a list of people the clients provided her and asked each one to send a brief blessing, prayer, wish, quote, or lyric for the family as they welcomed their new son.
The piece was made by:
1. Finger painting the background.
2. Painting a watercolour mandala of the family for the centre of the sunburst.
3. Writing selected excerpts from the quotes onto paper, cutting them out into strips and pasting.
Art by Jen Berlingo.
4. Jen also gathered the quotes and put them into a home made keepsake book along with the well-wishers names.
Serenity and Casey
Kelsang Pawo, a dear friend of mine asked me to feature Serenity's work and her love of art, which I hope she will always enjoy!
Art by Serenity and Casey.
Here's a great idea: Serenity was inspired to make her own apron from an old bed sheet, which her mother helped her with. Serenity's idea is that the apron will itself become a piece of art eventually, when it has been used enough. I look forward to coming to her first exhibition one day!