Desiderata, 50x40x1.5 inches, Mixed Media
After first stretching the canvas, I painted it black. I then created quadrangles in the upper left and lower right corners - the one in the lower right is still somewhat visible.
In the upper left quadrangle I painted a round white circle to represent the face of an unnamed person. I then painted the five red squares on the right (I like geometric shapes).
All of this was being accomplished in Studio Window, an annex to Art at the Main Gallery in Salt Lake City, Utah. I was spontaneously adding white and blue acrylic paint to the canvas when a young lady entered to watch this process. The public is able to watch and interact with artists in Studio Window. Unfortunately, I did not get her name so I will call her Tatted Girl. Tatted Girl suggested the face in the quadrangle in the upper left should fade away down through the canvas, and further suggested to entitle the painting "Fade." I noticed that she had several lines from the poem, "Desiderata" tattooed on her right forearm; I therefore, suggested that I might title it "Desiderata" in her honor. She stated that those lines on her arm helped keep her balanced.
Later that day, I took the painting home to finish it there. I did some internet research on the poem and not only decided to call the painting "Desiderata," but also to place the title in the painting. Since I am not proficient in free-hand lettering, I used a stencil.
I then painted one of the squares a solid red to add more interest - I chose the fourth square down to draw the viewer's attention in that direction. I then added three handprints - one at the top which I subsequently painted out, a blue one to represent Tatted Girl reaching for her desiderata, and a white one grasping the side of the canvas to represent Tatted Girl hanging on to former values. I painted over the white face to represent Tatted Girl.
I love lines and added lines over lines over lines, seven inches in length. These lines are in an early layer of the painting and not all visible in the finished painting. Viewers may have to get close to see them. At some point I added the outline of the Gothic cathedral. The white area above cathedral appeared in an early layer of the painting and I chose to preserve it.
I returned to Tatted Girl's face in the upper left quadrangle as it didn't appear to be a part of the painting. I placed a mask on her face, but it didn't tone it down enough, so I applied red tissue paper over the face. She still peaked through, so I added red and blue paint over the tissue paper.
I then added thick paint with a palette knife to random areas. I repainted the red square to create a more impasto effect.
After each of these steps, I added more and more lines and more and more layers of paint. At some point during the process, I learned of a New York City artist who mixes acrylic paints with water and future acrylic shine floor wax. I adopted this technique and used it throughout the painting. My next to the last step was the addition of more lines of various thicknesses and lengths. I should also mention that in some areas before the paint dried, I sprayed it with water to create the drip effect all the way down the canvas, especially under Tatted Girl's face thereby creating the fading effect of her face.
My final step was to place the metal cross atop the Gothic cathedral.
I hope you enjoy this explanation and appreciate my process and "Desiderata."
