Reframing My Story

Hi Everyone,

This week I've been working on a lesson with the wonderful Effy Wild, for week 18 of LifeBook 2016. Phew! This was quite a big one for me - firstly because it is really two pages in one, and secondly because it involved thinking about some negative experiences in the past which have helped to shape my life in a positive way.

Here's my finished page - well, the top layer of it ...


Effy showed us how to use clear gesso over an acrylic paint base, then use coloured pencils and blending stumps to add shading and detail. This was a really enjoyable technique to try - the gesso protects the base layer and gives a good "tooth" to work onto with the pencils. I used my Wispa pens with a watery brush to create the sky and rainbow for the background. I thought about the things I've learned from negative experiences and where I am now and wrote some key words into the rainbow with a Posca paint pen.

This part of the page is the "flesh on the bones" of my story. When you lift the top layer, the "bones" of my story are revealed ...


Effy provided us with a striking image of a skull and skeleton torso, which we applied to a sheet of paper so that it would lie directly under the painted figure on the top piece. We painted the whole page matt black and then Effy encouraged us to use this space to write a story about a negative experience from the past.

I love the effect of the graphite pencil against matt black paint, because it appears and disappears depending on how the light catches it. Effy suggested writing first in one direction and then turning the page to right angles and writing some more - so that in the end the entire page is covered with writing which is no longer legible, but you know it's there and it creates an interesting background texture for the painting. Some of the key words from my story are written inside the rib cage - they're pretty much the opposite of the happy rainbow words I wrote to express how I feel now.

The back of the top layer needed covering with something - Effy used patterned paper, but I got carried away and created my own collaged background of colourful butterflies ...


Here's a slightly closer look ...


So that's it - I'm very happy with the end result, AND I got to use some new paints and stuff. Life Book has been such a great adventure for me and I'm learning so much - just really need to make more time to play!

Thanks for popping in today, see you again soon :o)

Annie xxx

Comments

I like how you made this your own, Annie! And I'm glad that you were able to turn a negative experience to your advantage in the end. Blessing in disguise, they say, and it's so true! Something bad can have a positive effect in our lives, given time. I think I have the exact same butterflies on tissue paper! Enjoy your weekend!
Lizzy Hill said…
You do the artsy stuff soooo well.....this is fabulous...& sort of the juxtaposition is quite confronting in a way, too. Thoughtful arty-ness. Pretty darn cool!!!
Helen Wallace said…
What a fascinating arty and whole of life experience. To revisit and reframe something must be very powerful and cathartic. Love the woman image and the rainbow - TFS