Adventures in Cardboard!

This past weekend, my husband and I ended up heading out of town to celebrate Easter with family. As an artist, packing can be an issue, as I tend to pack for my studio work first, and myself as an afterthought. For this trip, however, things were different. I came home from work and went straight to my room to begin packing for myself. By the time I finished, I only had a few moments to pack up my art supplies for the weekend. In a rush, I began placing paints, adhesives, palettes and brushes in my travel tub. Then we were off like a herd of turtles!
After we arrived, I began unpacking my supplies, and soon realized that I had forgotten a key ingredient to any decent painting---a canvas! Although I do occasionally use traditional canvases, my favorite surface is a 3/4" cradled artist panel board with canvas textured panel. Wondering what all of that means? You can see an example here.

About a year ago, while walking through some galleries in downtown Fort Collins, Colorado, I noticed some incredible works that had been created from cardboard, and then painted with acrylics. Since then, I haven't been able to get the image of those cardboard works out of my head. I love the idea of using recycled materials in artwork--as well as the added dimensions and texture that cardboard naturally provides a surface! I had been itching to try it myself, but hadn't found the right moment...until now!

After the initial moment of panic, I shifted my thoughts towards the possibilities of cardboard. Being an avid bird painter, it seemed that creating a cardboard bird would provide me with the perfect opportunity to experiment with different textures and effects. With the help of my husband, I located several different sizes of cardboard, and dove into creating!

For any artist in a creative rut, I highly recommend exploring a new material. There is something so exciting and revitalizing in getting out of your comfort zone and trying something new! You might even surprise yourself and fall in love with a new method or material! After my explorations in cardboard, I most definitely plan to include more cardboard constructions in my future creative adventures! 

Happy Monday! :)

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