I find creating art to be a process of not only self discovery but of also being able to understand your subject better...Frida the Bust. I have had a push and pull with her.
She is such a strong spirit and I guess, so am I!
Sculpting
This process went very smoothly. I feel I understand the clay (DAS- air dry) I work with well and I feel, understand what is is capable of doing.
Base Form
Hair and Eyebrows Added
This was a great experience form me, since I have never sculpted hair in clay before!
I researched many "techniques" on YouTube, but ended up going with my own instinct.
I love the was the hair turned out! It was all about following what you know within your own medium and what it can do and using the "tools", in this case a chenille needle, that will work in their best capacity.
Painting
HA! This piece is SUCH a great learning experience for me!
I wanted Frida to have a painterly effect...so, my first method was watercolor...
YIKES! Well, this turned into a muddy mess. No flow, just stickiness!
So there I sat, staring dead on at Frida...
where are you?? who are you?
And then she answered "I am a shining light".
Well, of course your are Frida- you are gold.
Which also relates back to her accident that changed her entire life when she was eighteen years, left in the street thought for dead with gold dust covering her torn and broken body.
Several coats and drying time over night... I could return with a renewed spirit and a knowing that I was indeed, in the right place- shoulder to shoulder- with her.
Warm tones. I always start with the warm up. The gold became a beautiful base as I painted a combo of skin colors on top. The gold still shone through but in such a delicate way. As her spirit always shone through even through pain with layers of clothing and accessories.
This is where I used not only acrylic but was able to bring the watercolors into play!
Cool tones. Next came the shading in the cool tones. Unseen here in the photo are the blue and green tones. You can see them softly in "real life" and my hope is in the final images.
She was very demanding and needed her hair immediately, so I had no time to take a photo in-between the two paintings.
Here she is compete in her painting.
Flowers and Rebozo
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So at this moment, I am writing in retrospect!
This has been and still is the most interesting part of creating Frida...
I have found that I have stepped with my personal take on who (I thought her to be) only to be dissuaded time after time...At this writing I have put Frida to the side and feel that the right connection is in the process of being reveled. I can feel it but hasn't quite come into existence...yet.
First Flower attempt:
Silk and paper.
Cutting and shaping all seemed to be going well, UNTIL, I started to put them together. It was too obvious...too expected.
Two days of work swept into plastic bag.
Second flower Attempt:
Japanese Paper.
Beautiful and had the feel of a painterly feel.
I rushed it and the re-shaping of the flowers lost their delicacy.
Two days of work swept into plastic bag.
Third flower Attempt:
Ok, so this is where my own definition of Frida, got in the way. She is such an icon, a saint really in our own human anointment of her.
I went back to the painting of her. "I a shining light"...of course, a halo- a halo of roses. It came into being.
It worked for about two or three days but just not quite...there. It was very elegant but I know I needed to sit on it.
After conferring with a trusted artist, and getting the same response as I was giving it.
Four days of work swept into plastic bag.
NOW the rebozo- the paper was not working and I return to my roots and created a magenta (her favorite color) in a beautiful two way silk with my signature topstitching.
And now Frida, sitting patiently for the her headdress from this maker.
It is coming...I can feel it.
