Color study

I am looking for 196 volunteers to answer the following two questions;



If you could BE any color in the world what color would you be?   And why?


If ALL humans could be any color what would it be?  And why?



I will remind you that white and black are not technically colors. 

Rooted in RED exhibit

Tomorrow starts a one month show of the paintings that I did for the Rooted in RED project.  These are not all of them, but these represent my journey with the pigment red ochre and other natural red pigments.  I started the Rooted in RED paintings with the approach of working with the symbol.  Using it in a pattern, create a look of beadwork, a craft Ojibwe people did very well.  Even though I was using washes of red ochre, I wanted the main subject of the painting to be the shape.  To express the triangle and the linear persuasion it holds in the paintings.  As I struggled with this approach, I found myself relaxing and using portions of the Rooted in RED symbol to create an abstract though instead of giving the whole image.  Once I felt satisfied with the ability to move on from the shape as the subject, I returned to red ochre pigment as the subject.    I also brought in more natural red earth pigments, such as turkish red and brazilian red.  Both I have used in relation to the red ochre pigment.
Below are the 5 latest paintings.  I am extremely excited to see peoples inputs and reactions with this group of paintings.    I will also have my studio open for viewers to take a look at what is happening right now in Rooted in RED.

36"x48"  acrylic, red ochre on canvas

18"x24"  acrylic, red ochre on canvas

18"x34"  acrylic, red ochre, turkish red on canvas

20"x48"  acrylic, red ochre, turkish red on canvas

48"x48"  acrylic, red ochre on canvas

I'm a red weaver

Using raw powdered red ochre and polymer medium I am creating sheets of pigment that I then cut into strips and weave together.  I worked with a few mediums and ended up with Golden polymer medium.  I laid the "batter", as I like to call it, out onto a 3'x4' acetate sheet.  Through some trials and tribulations with medium to pigment ratio and drying time, I achieved enough skins to create the model installation of what I am thinking for my project in Berlin for my MFA exhibition.    The scale will be greatly increased to fill the studio space at Uferstudios.  

Rooted in RED workshop strikes again!

We reunited again for another Rooted in RED workshop!  We finished our Egyptian red ochre vases by painting them black and scratching away our story.  We also made weavings, with brown paper bags and colored construction paper. They decided on their own shape and created from there.  It was an another great day in the books!

Four Hills...WINTER

In a previous post, I introduced the project , Four Hills, where I would be photographing the Rooted in RED symbol through the four seasons.  The four seasons tell the story of growing, maturing and the process of life and aging according to Ojibwe teachings.  I started with Fall (adolescents), and have now moved onto winter (adult).  I applied red ochre powder pigment to the snow drift in my backyard.  Outside in the sun, the deep, rich hue of red ochre looks natural and an obvious earth mineral.  In photos it looks like blood.  I was originally going to tag snow banks through Denver with this symbol in red ochre, but it is so similar to blood that I do not feel comfortable doing it.  So for now, it will remain documented from my yard:)  The pigment was dry as I painted into the snow, so it settled on the surface, as it absorbed it resembled a velvet surface reflecting the light.  

DAY 1.................................................................................................

Rooted in RED red ochre symbol in snow

Day 2...................................................................................................

Day 3...................................................................................................

Day 4...................................................................................................

Weaves of Red!

Working with red ochre pigment mixed with an acrylic gel medium and red ochre acrylic paint, I made acrylic skins.  Getting an idea of how well the materials hold up in a weave that is a little bigger than 12"x12".  After the pieces were woven together, I applied a layer of high-gloss varnish, to portray a wet paint look.  fresh.  Pushing this idea further.  mastered the basket weave! now moving on to more intricate weaving designs.  

30"x 8"  red ochre pigments