"Aerial Bikes II", 13.5" X 22" gallery wrapped acrylic & watercolor

Aerial Bikes II by April M Rimpo

Aerial Bikes II

acrylic and watercolor

13.5" X 22" varnished gallery wrapped paper*

SOLD

PRINTS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE HERE

More inspiration from aerial photographs I took in New York City resulted in Aerial Bikes II.  I am really happy with the clean lines I achieved in this painting. I decided to do this as a gallery wrapped painting so the image doesn't have to be constrained by a frame.  Since gallery wrapped paintings are varnished there is no need to put the painting under glass. The gallery wrapped edge eliminates any visible staples.

Here is a little on my process for this painting. Because this is a small, non-standard sized painting I decided to use an old frame as the stretcher bar. No need to buy special stretcher bars when other materials are available. The frame is cut to 13.5” X 22”, the final size of the painting.  I varnish the frame, as I would varnish a stretcher bar, and then stretch the paper over this frame. I put the drawing on the paper before wrapping it on the frame. A 1.5” boarder was left around the image which wraps around the frame. Normally I stretch the paper first so I don’t have to worry about the alignment being perfectly square on the frame, but since this is a small painting I believed I could control the stretch.  This approach worked out well.  I do like to experiment with different methods to allow me more flexibility in my work.

First step prior to stretching

While preparing the frame for stretching I went ahead and used very watered down fluid acrylic to splatter the paper, as shown at right. The splatter is an initial textural layer for the building and sidewalk.  A lesser amount of splatter is on the umbrella to unify the painting.   

Four colors of acrylic were used alone and in combination for the splatters: Cerulean Blue, Paynes Gray, Quinacridone Burnt Orange, and Permanent Alizarin Crimson.  These same colors were used throughout the painting.  I used some granular watercolor pigments (Daniel Smith Buff Titanium and Olive Green) in the walk and in the bushes.

* Framing not required on gallery wrapped paintings
** Contact April regarding shipping outside the United States

Exhibit in Frederick, Maryland

I'm proud to announce "Flora, Figures, and Found Objects", an exhibit of The Pleiades Artists, as group of seven women artists from the Baltimore-Washington area.   

The exhibit will be at at Delaplaine Visual Arts and Education Center, 40 South Carroll Street, Frederick, Maryland 21701, from February 1st - 23rd. The reception will be Saturday February 1, 2014 from 3 - 5 pm.

The Pleiades Artists is a group of seven Maryland women whose paintings demonstrate the wide variety of styles and techniques used to produce vibrant images in water media. All members of Pleiades Artists are accomplished watercolorists who are signature members of several local and national organizations. Three of our members teach locally.  Members include Stephanie Lyon, Kathleen Stumpfel, April M Rimpo, Joyce Bell, Yolanda Koh, Susan Avis Murphy, and Janet Belich.   

Read more about the artists here.