Linocut and golden foil draco painting

Another painting inspired by the ancient Dacian history has been sold by my online shop, Atelierul de istorie. It is a sofa-size painting depicting the Dacian war standard, the half wold half serpent dragon that the Romans called draco. It is a highly decorative, even Art Nouveau-like work, with the main motif as linocut print, glued onto canvas, and the background with golden foil. In order to confer the foil more radiance, underneath I have applied a layer of red acrylic paint, and a black painted acrylic frame renders no need for an actual frame. Here is the painting in context.

See the item page HERE. 

Another variant, smaller size, HERE. 

 

The Dacian traveler's journal

I have discussed before the first steps in the creation of a linocut journal for explorers of the Dacian civilization, available in my online store Atelieruldeistorie - jurnalul exploratorului dacilor.

Here is the second work stage, when I have decorated both covers and the first page with linocut collages, depictions also inspired by ancient Dacian and Getae artifacts and representations. The inner blank pages contain four printed suggestions on how to use the journal while/after vising museums with relevant artifacts on display, taking part in historical reenactment festival in Romania that often include reconstructions of Dacian costumes, weapons, and fight styles, taking notes after reading historic and popularizing works related to the history of the ancient Dacians, and visiting archaeological sites and digs - suggesting for example the Dacian fortifications included in the UNESCO list. The suggestion sheets are attached with colorful washi tape, giving an idea of how the journal should be used, as the idea is not so common in Romania as yet.

Linocut Dacian elements on the Dacian explorer's journal

First page of the Dacian explorer's journal - with the ancient Draco symbol

Instruction sheets inside the Dacian explorer's journal

The Dacian explorer's journal

The Dacian explorer's journal

 

Ode to Cluj

One of my small-format paintings (20 x 20 cm - 7.9 x 7.9 inches) is inspired by my hometown, Cluj-Napoca, in Transylvania, Romania. The center of the city is dominated by the Gothic church of St. Michael and I have chosen the same majestic building as the focus of this collage. I have used linocut and acrylic on canvas and the contrast between dark green and orange.
"Ode to Cluj" is now available in my Etsy shop - Goddess Gruia

Ode to Cluj - miniature collage

Detail of linocut print collage

Detail of the towers in central Cluj-Napoca

Detail of St. Michael's Gothic church linocut

"Life in the city"

The small painting entitled "Life in the city" is a story of happy urban living, depicting in warm colors a town scene. The atmosphere is depicted through a combination of techniques, with perspective suggested through the interplay of color, line, and transparency. It is created in a mix technique that combines linocut, collage, acrylic, incision and pencil on canvas, protected with a thick coat of transparent varnish.
Size: 20 x 20 cm (7.9 x 7.9 inches).
It is ready to hang - needs no frame, as the sides are painted as well, though you could frame it if you wished it. The art object comes with a saw-tooth hanger (allowing for perfect balance and balance corrections if needed) and canvas stretchers already in place, on the back (if, due to display or storage conditions the canvas should need stretching in the future, the pegs just need to be pushed in a bit)

The masterpiece is available, besides others (contact-relics, works touched by the goddess on the online temple aka Etsy shop of Goddess Gruia. 

"Life in the city" original artwork by Ana-Maria Gruia

The hanging system

Music madness

A couple of prints after my "Orchestra" lino plate have gone imperfect due to improperly stored printing paper so I ended up with decoupages of musical instruments. Starting from my previous decorative box created using such elements, I have started a new small canvas entitled "music madness". It turn to the same effect of monoblock color background (saffron yellow) and collage of individual linocut print elements, in this case musical instruments and one stylized sun from the Transylvanian frame of the Goddess Gruia plate. After drying there will be shadows and highlight, but not much, and then the final vernis that makes it shine. There you go. Madness :)

See more of the masterpieces in my 2014 catalogue HERE. 

 

Stories with paintings

This is another of my idealized vistas of Sibiu / Hermanstadt (in Transylvania), made in 2014, with a bit of collage (linocut prints of the old tower and narrow alley) and acrylic on canvas. The photo is rather truthful in its color tones, so it shows the reason why I like it so much. Hope it's owner enjoys it too!

In order to reveal some of the technique employed, here are the individual linocut prints that I used in the general composition. In order to better integrate them the prints have been cut closer to the intended contours and partially painted over.

Experimenting with gold leaf

Adding gold leaf to paintings is much like including writing: it can be easily overdone, turning an extra decorative effect into the main impression and thus ruining the work. It naturally presents the advantage of its high associations, probably started from the gilded icons and religious works of art of the medieval period, adding symbolic value if nothing else (as the actual foil is rather inexpensive). 

I have tried out some new ways of applying gold foil. The first idea was to create a king of network to unify the composition, but it proved too much and a bit too Baroque (as all associations of white and gold in my mind :) The overall impression of the collage (lino prints, acrylic painting) is of too many elements in too small a space.

These first two works are inspired by the medievalish architecture of Transylvania, namely the Mathias Corvinus House in Cluj-Napoca (above) and the old city tower and typical eyed roofs of Sibiu (below).
 

The second attempt envisages the use of gold foil lines against a dark background. The abstract composition is not so much according to my style, but the desired effect is interesting: the small detail of gold leaf drawing, continuing the small row of linoprinted houses, the continuation of the arch in the center of the painting, even the signature might not be that bad. I've decided to name this third work "The Alchemist's Midnight Dance", though it is just made using elements from previous projects: alchemical symbols, the Happy Houses, and an older lino scene with the Virgin's Presentation to the Temple [read about this iconographic type HERE].

 

New draco linocut project

Today's work has been dedicated to yet another linocut project, again inspired by the ancient Dacian civilization, i.e. their war standard the mythical dragon - half wolf, half dragon or serpent. On Trajan's Column the draco is seen as a wind sleeve, so I have attempted to render it similarly, though a bit more ferocious.

This is an approximation of the final composition. The work should be a collage, with three linocut prints onto canvas, the background with gold leaf. Canvas size 20x20cm.

The tricky part naturally consisted of the left-right flip and the details (teeth). My solution was to break off the drawing into smaller geometric shapes and straight lines, doing the same with the contours (aka the lino board). As the canvas is square, I thought to balance the general composition with two vertical decorative strips.

See my previous draco linocuts and collages for Atelierul de istorie HERE.For the golden background effect, see this painting HERE.

Another online art shop

In the spree of web shop making, I have added a special page on my website with various art works available in my studio. One can arrange a visit or order online and I shall send the items via the post, in Romania or abroad. I think people are a bit shy to esquire about prices or visit art studios that might seem "alien" spaces, so it might be good for artists to come out, show some art pieces and provide a general price for them.

I have just started filling in this page, so do check again from time to time, to see what's new on Dragalina Street in Cluj-Napoca :)

 

 

Attempt at encaustic I

After finally getting everything needed, I woke up early Sunday morning for the experiment. I prepared all the materials, beeswax, carnauba wax, metal containers, pigments, heater, hair dryer, gold foil and the rest. Everything went well, with a bit of struggle in cutting the beeswax lump and determining 10% of carnauba wax.

Then things went south and I was unable to take photos in the heat (literally) of the action. The metal plate supporting the containers started to smoke and had to be removed, but placing the containers directly on the electric heater worked well. Molten was does tent to drip from the brush, so some ended directly on the electric heater, which again did not smell so great - from this point onward I worked with the window open - mind you, it is freezing cold in Romania this time of the year.
I somehow applied the wax to the wooden panels, but trying to fuse it with the hair dryer proved futile - I needed a heating gun. Off to the store, returned with a cheap heating gun, which indeed fuses everything waxy. Which then melts and drips off the wooden panel. Anyway, this is one of the end results, ignore the composition, I was trying everything all together - collage (linocut), color, sewing thread, gold foil.

I presume the beaswax had impurities, thus the white residue on the surface. Or the 10% mix with the carnauba wax was far from accurate. Still, encaustic seems messy and appropriate for large, well ventilated working areas. Also, I envisaged a more translucent quality of the finished work, less irregularities in volume, and easier work with pigment. Gold foil was also very unstable, i.e. it disintegrated when pressed onto the still warm wax and would not stick. I refused the entire layer, so the flaked just drifted around.
So, the next attempt, probably during spring time, on the balcony, will include using pure wax and no pigment, paper, hot stylus for finishes and more tips and tricks to be learned from Nancy Crawford.

Fragmente des Anderen / Fragments of the Other

An impressive collaboration project by Andor Komives and Gisela Weimann. It was recently presented at the Art Museum in Cluj-Napoca, and here are some images from the opening, presented as an artist talk. The video present the project in its entirety:


Fragmente des Anderen / Fragments of the Other from Gisela Weimann on Vimeo.

Tonight's work

 
Alright, I gave into abstract compositions. I was in fact trying to use randomly dyed working paper from previous linocuts. Then, through collage, I integrated them into new compositions and assorted them with new acrylic painting, suggesting silhouettes in the background. The technique looks promising, it just needs a bit more work and practice. Maybe it should look better on canvas, not cardboard.

I made it! "The medieval city"

This is just one part of the series from the exhibition I am preparing for the opening of the Urban Cultural Center in Cluj-Napoca. It is mixed technique: linocut, collage, acrylic  on canvas.
There will also be the individual linocuts (to show the units of the larger works) and an installation (in the making).


"town square"

"spiritual patrons of the city"

"sacra conversatione"

"la strada"

"square with fountain"

"procession"

"holy women by the fountain"

"the city of Mathias Corvinus"