Tuesday, June 9, 2015

How "Palazzo" came to be

I was shopping for a frame for a piece I'd just completed (Ribbony), and the one I liked best came with glass, which I didn't need (but it can be saved). Because there was glass, there was a sheet of paper with a photo and frame information. The photo struck me for various reasons.
I like the large, Corinthian column capitals. The columns remind me of the tangle Romanancy. I like the sense of being drawn into the distance. I like the strong light, and that it's a black and white photo. I like the row of lamps and the pattern on the balcony railing.

I thought it would be an interesting picture to turn into a piece of zentangle-inspired art (ZIA), partly because so much of it is very plain surfaces. What would it look like crammed full of patterns?

I managed to trace the image reasonably well onto some art paper. It's 15"x13". I started with some masking fluid for the very white areas, and did some ink washes. The masking fluid was not one of my better ideas and I'll save it for canvas or another type of paper!

Here it is, partly done, pattern-cramming in full swing:

Next step, almost all the tangling done, but no shading yet. At this point I thought it looked like quite a jumble.

Oh the wonders of shading! I had to darken some areas and lighten others, then re-lighten and re-darken, trying for the right tone. Lots of darkening in the upper left; maybe more is needed? Here is the (almost?) finished "Palazzo".

26 comments:

  1. It is beautiful and amazing. :D I love it.

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  2. beautiful!!!! Always inspiring to see the work in progress too.

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  3. Too cool! Curious to know how long it took to do?

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    1. I almost never keep track of the hours I put into things, but this one did take days! :)

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  4. Amazing, how clever to create something from a photo using tangles!

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  5. What a great idea and fabulous execution!!

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  6. Awesome project! Great to see the progression and the shading transformation!

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  7. Well, you KNOW I was intrigued by the glimpse of these arches on your work table!
    How this has evolved is very interesting; what is the media? Pen, pencil, etc
    It's a wonderful piece!!! I know you asked about shading upper left, but what I think needs a little more shading is the top of the 2nd column to create a bit more delineation; it seems "garbled" to me. But maybe that's because I'm on a small screen. Please let me know if you decide to sell it....really! Sandy

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    1. Interesting idea. Do you mean the capital, the column, or behind it? Looking at it small on the screen I'm thinking behind the capital at the upper left.

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    2. Margaret, I'm referring to the left side of the 2nd column capital (the image on the right) It almost looks "bushy" on my screen so I'm unsure if you've capitals on subsequent columns. In fact to me, it almost gets a bit lost both in the 3Rd capital & the right side curve of the arches. LOL, and while I'm going...I worry that even the 1st capital gets a bit lost into the somewhat distant vertical element with the triangles. I can't believe I'M offering YOU criticism, but I just didn't think you wanted much ambiguity in such a complex, architectural piece. Now, you can also say "Sandy, shut your mouth!"

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    3. Very helpful. Thanks! I'll do a little more on it and let you see it.

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  8. Margaret, we learn so much sensational technique from you. It is creative bliss!

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  9. What fun! Very imaginative with your tangle selection, and you're right, the shading brings it to life. Very impressive, absolutely love it.

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  10. When I was in Cairo a few years ago, we went to many old mosques, which is what the photo feels like to me - the lamps, the columns, the way the light is. What I love best is that some of the mosques were full of patterns on every surface (minus the columns patterns in most) and you have captured it perfectly. Love it!

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  11. This is wonderful. It's like an illustration from an old book on middle eastern architecture.

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  12. MB.. FAB!! You remember my book, Real Life Strings, I am pretty sure you ordered it from SindyP.com
    It is full of my photos from around the world and its set up for exactly what you did.. except you work right in the book! I am now printing my photos on canvas and tangling on that, making large pieces for a gallery show! :)))

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  13. Margaret, this is ridiculously GOOD! It looks like you carved the top of the columns!

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  14. Oh, I am SWOONING with pleasure at seeing this, Margaret. Actually, it reminds me of the Moorish palaces that are here in Andalucia. Absolutely beautiful. Axxx

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  15. Oh wow..... this is incredible! Like Annie Taylor, I was instantly reminded of the Moorish decoration in Andalucia. Absolutely stunning! I love embellishing existing art - I tangled all over some Thai takeaway packaging once!

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/12780076@N05/sets/72157633468665816

    Shoshi

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  16. Yes, Margaret, one of the differences between you and me (you and I ?? :-))
    I, too, bought that frame, several of them as a matter of fact. And with each and every one of them, I discarded the paper picture. Never even entered my mind to use it as a starting point for a ZIA.
    Thanks for opening my eyes to the possibilities!

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    1. Oh Linda, I'm sure I've missed possibilities too! I think, though, that those I missed were ones I probably wouldn't have done something worthwhile with anyway. On to the next one!

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  17. Absolutely fantastic, as always! :-)

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