Kriszia, oil on canvas paper
For Marawi. Mixed Media on canvas 24in x 16in.
Tinago Falls, watercolor on paper, 9in x 12in
Three of my artworks. Check out the succeeding paintings which artists influenced which artwork.
A lot of my artist friends, work with, or those I know and admire prefer one or two media for their artworks. They use other media, of course, but they are more known for some particular medium like charcoal, oil, watercolor or acrylic. My favorite contemporary artist, Cesar Santos, for example, is known for his charcoal sketches and his oil paintings. Another contemporary favorite, Orley Ypon, prefers oil paintings in creating contemporary realistic pieces, and still another, Wilfredo Calderon, uses watercolor as his main medium. Even my friends choose one or two — but never just about anything.
Guadian, 22in x 14in, oil on linen, by Cesar Santos (http://www.santocesar.com/)
Resurrection by Orley Ypon . 2011
“Bahay sa Bukid (Tag-init)” by Wilfredo Calderon. Watercolor on Paper, 12in x 18in. 2016
If you have read some of my other entries here or checked out my instagram, you will notice that I use multiple media from pastel to oil to watercolor to charcoal to ink. I even use melted crayons. However, if you check my artworks particularly in this blog, you will notice that a lot of them make use of two or more media.
Cutting the Red String of Fate Series. Art installation 7in x 5in x 3pcs
It is said that it is better to master at least one medium, but it was a friend of mine, watercolorist Mai Secuban, who introduced me to the world of Mixed Media. Before that I was already fascinated with the various media, especially pastel, charcoal, and oil. I was shy of acrylic and watercolor back then — acrylic dried too fast, while my art style was too used to heavy application to be able to enjoy watercolor.
“Tampered”(a.k.a. Nature’s Warning) Mixed media on canvas, 8in x 10in. One of my earliest mixed media artworks.
Meeting Mai and another artist, Freya, however, inspired me to give watercolor another chance. Both friends directly and indirectly taught me how to enjoy the medium. Mai also introduced me to ink transfer. Another friend, A, lured me to the artistic side of calligraphy — I am no calligrapher, but the idea of ink as art on my artwork was something worth pursuing.
My take on Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Starry Night. Mixed media (watercolor and sumi-e ink on paper).
Me and You. Mixed media (watercolor, acrylic, ink, paper, synthetic washi) journal entry.
Multiple exposure to plein air eventually convinced me to practice using acrylic. Moreover, I found acrylic to be a nice medium to work with paper, creating more solid colors that watercolor is unable to produce. An early application of what I have learned so far in my pursuit of watercolor and acrylic can be seen in the painting below, where I inserted the Tinago Falls watercolor painting into a larger mixed media artwork.
“Maghimo Ta Ug Kaugmaon” (Let’s Make the Future). Mixed media on canvas, 24in x 36in. 2017 Lanao del Norte Painting Contest Winner
These various experiences and developing interests in various media, along with various art videos that I’ve seen on youtube as well multiple experiments using paper, natural fibers, helped me to pursue mixed media.
I will have to admit that I am hopelessly curious, and my wonder and delight whenever I discover something new in using these various media is what keeps me going. There is a sense of fulfillment whenever I am able to come up with a new texture, a new layer, a new style, or a new approach in mixing, matching, and coming up new pieces from the various mish-mash of paper, fiber, paint, and whatnot.
My artworks incorporating mixed media range from journal entries, to canvas works, to book illustrations, to art installations.
A journal entry incorporating ink, oil pastel, and watercolor.
There is an upcoming book by Women In Literary Arts (WILA) (where some of my writer friends and mentors are part of), contains one of my mixed media arwork, and I hope to write about it here in the future.
Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice Three of my artworks. Check out the succeeding paintings which artists influenced which artwork. A lot of my artist friends, work with, or those I know and admire prefer one or two media for their artworks.