Illustration Friday: Spooky

This woman spooked me out one night.

Storm II - acrylic painting on canvas, painted in Australia

She really did. 

I remember her stare at me, the mask she was wearing and the storm she stirred up. Her stare burned a hole into my memory after I woke up from the dream.

Mummy......!

But I exorcised her by turning her into a
flat 2D creature that exists only on a canvas. Nothing else. I used my friend's old twisted hard brushes and wacky paints which she obviously hasn't treated with gentle loving care. But they really worked for this painting. The brushes added texture and dimension like soft clean brushes cannot do, and where brushes failed, fingertips prevailed as makeshift brushes. 

I literally got in touch with my art again.

Strokes that only fingers can paint

Paynes Gray & a house

My friend in Australia was also the one who introduced me to this wonderful colour called Paynes Grey. I fell in love. It was perfect - the perfect shade between darkness and light. 

But not just *any* Paynes Gray will do, it must be the cheap one she bought from a door-to-door salesman. So far, I'd been unable to find the identical twin to this shade of grey. The expensive acrylic paints had failed me. 

If I may change a popular proverb - "A rose by the same name does not smell as sweet". Sigh. I was very sad.

There is a house behind this shadow figure who's buried in snow. Can you see the faint red outline above?

Closeup - Storm II

Nevertheless.... I still have this painting to remember the shade by, while I incessantly search for the perfect Paynes Gray.

x

from a tired-I-woke-up-at-6.30am-to-go-to-a-rubbish-dump

pixy