Day of the Dead Skull

 New listing on Ebay.

 

Day of the Dead Skulls

Halloween time is the best time to find skulls, and bones at craft stores. These are paper mache skulls I got at Michaels. First I painted them with white gesso and I am starting to paint them with Decolor Acrylic markers.

 I am only using the colors I have on hand so I had to use sharpies for the yellow and red. The Sharpies didn't go on as nice and the white markers looked good at first then started to dissolve the color underneath as seen on HIS forehead.

Michael's Bird

When I retired I had a list of projects I never finished. I would start projects, lose interest and move on to something else. This bird is one of the projects on that list. It is a paper mache bird I got out of the $1 bin at Michael's Craft Store. I painted it with acrylic markers. The photos show the top, bottom and side.

Paper Mache Bowl

It looks like I started this bowl in 2012. I am finally working on it again.

I didn't plan the design at all and it shows. Nothing is lined up. It's careless.

VW BUG at the Escondido Art Partnership Gallery

Gary looking at my piece, "Gary's VW Bug" hanging at the Escondido ARt Partnership Gallery. It's a paper mache piece then designs drawn with marker and paint.

7 Gods of Happiness

Today I finished Ebisu, my 3rd God in the set of 7 Gods of Happiness. He is pure hearted and contented with a simple life, always lucky and happy.
To his right is Hotei, very open-minded, an optimist and always happy.
The lady is Benten the only woman in the group. She represents art, literature, music and eloquence and my favorite. The tallest figure is about 8 inches tall.
I was introduced to these when my friend Eileen showed me a set her dad gave her when she was a little girl.

vw

this is what I worked on today. Drawing on my vw wall hanging. its 8 x 22 inches and made of styrofoam and paper mache.

journal page and vw bug

I started a paper mache vw bug about a year ago and wasn't sure how I wanted to paint it. I finally decided to use markers and have been working on it the last few nights.

I'm still not done with it.

Inspired

Inspired by Tom Judd I decided to start posting everyday . . . again. If you like looking at sketchbooks you will enjoy his work, a page a day started in 2004.

This is his web site: http://www.tomjudd.co.uk/

My journal page:

Olde Ramona Hotel Gallery

Last night was the art reception at the Old Ramona Hotel Gallery annual art show. I won 1st place in oils for my rooster painting.

























This is a picture of my Goddess of Creativity done in paper mache. My friend Lyn Fruedner's piece is in the center. Dancers in fused glass.

Hotei, Benten and a lawn bowls lady

I ended up changing Hotei and giving him a fatter tummy and a robe. His chest is WAY too low. My favorite is the goddess of happiness on the right.

Paper Mache...

Progress on Benten and Hotei

This is the progress I have made on my paper mache gods of happiness. I added plaster cloth to define the goddess on the left to show a kimono. The lady on the right is a lawn bowls lady. I also added a bag for Hotei to hold. I think it is filled with good fortune.

The 2 on the left are made using an empty spice bottle for the form. The 2 on the right were empty food containers. (frosting bucket and ricotta cheese bucket) I covered the bottoms with plaster cloth.

Benten and Hotei

Paper Mache

I started 3 more gods of Happiness (or gods of good fortune)

I would like to do a set of all 7 one of these days.

From left to right, Benten, the goddess of beauty and art, holding a paint brush, holding a musical instrument and a paint brush (middle) and right, Hotei the chubby one...open minded optimist always happy, distinguished by his huge belly which indicates a largeness of soul and an inward wealth of resources, characteristic of a man who attained the wisdom of Buddhism.

Paper mache pencil

This is one of the favorites I have made so far. I feel so silly but I love making paper mache. My pencil is 15 inches long.

Paper Mache Crow

I am finally calling this guy finished. He is a Crow Raven (well, which is he?) dressed in overalls with a red and white checkered shirt. He was made from an empty Taster's Choice Coffee container along with newspaper and cardboard. I made paste from flour and water and used plaster cloth as well. You can barely see his eyes but he DOES have some. They are gray.

Paper Mache Projects

I finished another paper mache cow with sunglasses. He started with a milk carton and cut paper tubes for the legs. The face was formed with crumpled newspaper. The tail and ears were made with cut out cardboard. They were attached to the other parts of the body with masking tape and plaster cloth. It was then covered with paper mache using newspaper and homemade paste. He's painted with acrylic paint.


These are some of the other projects I am working on. From left to right: a chicken, dog, crow in overalls, goddess of creativity, pencil and lawn bowling woman, and in front, a paint brush.

Paper Mache Crow

This is the paper mache crow I refer to in my blog entry
sketchbook journal entry 032108

I haven't decided where to put the other eye yet. He is going to have a red and white checkered shirt and he will be wearing overalls. You can barely see them in this picture. I still want to paint the stitching on the overalls to show the waist area and the pockets.

This is the crow before I painted him. He was made from a Tasters choice coffee container and newspaper covered with plaster cloth. I also covered him with paper mache strips before I painted him. I will probably do another one but smoother and better legs.

Paper mache goddess

A paper mache Goddess of Creativity would be cool for my art room. I did research about her and I I have done several sketches trying to come up with a design but they all keep looking the same. I think I am ready to start.

She is the only woman in the 7 Gods of Happiness. I found out about her from my friend Eileen.

This is a little key chain of the 7 Gods that Eileen gave me.

I could NOT find the pictures of Eileen's OLD WOODEN 7 Gods of Happiness. They are just beautiful and in a wooden box that her dad gave her many years ago.

This is a sketch I did of Eileen's Goddess.

A good website to read about them is: http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/seven.shtml He also sells statues.

EDM # 19 Draw Something You've Made

Everyday Matters Challenge #19 is Draw Something You've Made
These are my paper mache characters.
Drawing them made me want to do more of them.
I don't know why . . . I guess it's an artist thing.