Diary of a Mini Painting
Exquisitely detailed mini paintings.
From time to time I like to make small art. By small I mean very small. Small as in hold in the palm of your hand small.
It’s an entirely different process, to work this small compared to working on a (relatively) large canvas that demands grand gestural marks and lots of paint. Making the mini paintings in my collection requires of me a settling down, a concentration and an attention to detail that appeals to my natural inclinations.
They are my small works of wonder.
This is the story of how one set of these mini paintings were made.
Day 1
These minis began, as do all of the mini’s that I’ve made, as a part of a larger work on paper that never progressed beyond the stage of “interesting background” of lively colour and texture. Cutting down a mostly blue and white painting on paper gave me the beginning of 16 minis, all of equal size and proportion, each about the size of a playing card.
Beginning the mini paintings.
Day 2
It was a green kind of day on Day 2 and the minis got a splash of bright, saturated emerald as a contrasting colour to the original palette. Once the paint was dry a layer of gel medium was painted on the surface to “fix” the colour in place. (The medium makes the minis very shiny as can be seen in the images below but the sheen can be adjusted later.)
Day 2
Day 3
Day 3
Purple is not a colour that I usually gravitate towards but here, on Day 3 it made an appearance for something a little bit different. Even early on I was sure that much of the purple would be covered with more paint and collage. My aim was for just hints of purple to remain visible in the final works.
Day 4
On Day 4, with the addition of small amounts of peachy orange my palette became a split complement of colours. The orange added a nice contrast of warm colour to the purple and green.
Day 4
Day 5
Day 5
By Day 5 there was a lot happening in a small space with each of these minis. Plenty of colour, line and movement was telling the history of the process. While all of this textural interest was exciting, the eye needed a place to rest. It was time to make some decisions about what to keep and what to let go. It was time to edit.
Day 6
On Day 6 of making the minis I began to strengthen the compositions by quieting some of the details while at the same time highlighting areas of surface interest in each one.
Day 6
Day 7
Day 7
The thin side edges of the mini paintings were painted a contrasting vermillion red on Day 7. This is how I finish all of my mini paintings...an unexpected little surprise for those who notice the small details.
Once dry, two coats of matte varnish were applied to protect and unify the surface of the minis. Using a matte varnish also reduced the sheen from overly shiny to a lovely satin finish. The sheen is that of a polished beach stone and is another exquisite detail of these charming mini paintings.
Making the minis into greeting cards
Every one of the mini paintings that I make is attached to white card stock using acid free double sided tape so that they then transform into original art greeting cards. Paired and packaged with an envelope each one is ready to send as a memorable greeting card or as a special occasion gift.
You can view the completed mini paintings featured in this post as well as the rest of the collection in the art cards shop.
Enjoy!
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