Mixed Media Workshop Details

                    
Mixed Media Workshop

                      
Tuesday 22nd November

10am till 1pm

Small class in warm comfortable environment, in Ballinea just 7 miles from Mullingar.

Suitable for beginners and experienced painters

                   
Mixed media is a fun expressive creative way of painting that is equally suitable to those who are experienced in other media and to those who have never painted before. It can be used for any theme and is particularly great for making memory paintings of special times using all sorts of bits and pieces, to embellish the painting.  Anything from scraps of old letters, to labels, tickets, photos that we copy onto a special product called Extravorganza before collaging on to our picture, to buttons, beads etc.
 Details of possible projects will be posted on this blog over the coming weeks.

                             
Your will need to bring a canvas, some brushes, and a few tubes of acrylic paints which are are available to buy locally or can be purchased at the class. You can bring various items  to embellish your painting as well.  Additional materials and ephemera and light refreshments will be provided.

Cost;  E25


To book or for more info, please phone me on 087 9287692

Mixed Media Workshop

MIXED  MEDIA  WORKSHOP


COMING  SOON

DETAILS TO BE ANNOUNCED OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS

Rose card

Here's a little card I painted yesterday.

Derelict Cottage at Churchtown, Ballinea, Mullingar.

I pass this little cottage most days coming and going from my home.  In the Spring, ancient,  long forgotten bluebells flourish by the door as cars, lorries and other traffic speed by going to God only knows where.  Do they even notice the bluebells or even the cottage itself?

I often wonder who lived there,  was it a happy home? Or was it filled with angry voices, and times strapped people rushing hither and tither fretting over  things that are no longer important?   Does it even matter?

 I like to think it was a happy contented little place where callers would be welcomed in for a cup of tea and maybe a scone and some bramble jam and a chat by the fire in the days before the road that runs past became so busy.

Sometimes when I am running around like a headless chicken fretting about stuff,   I think of that little cottage, and I say to myself,  "Does it really matter".

This painting can be purchased herehttp://www.etsy.com/shop/AislingKiernan?section_id=6115284

Jewelry Upcycling demo

I had a lovely morning yesterday with the wonderful ladies of Milltownpass. They have a monthly coffee morning and get together which is so important for rural communities. Living in the country can be isolating and it makes such a difference to have a great community to meet and socialise with. We always have great craic in Milltown and the topic of conversation can be very diverse to say the least. They also run art classes and have a variety of very interesting speakers on all sorts of topics at their coffee mornings.

I was invited to do a jewelry demonstration. What with the recession and so much emphasis on recycling and reusing these days I decided to demonstrate how to update some old jewelry. We all have bits and pieces of jewelry lying around that we no longer wear but don't want to throw away. So, I took apart an old necklace that had some lovely Rose Quartz, and also a high street bracelet. I had been looking for a bracelet to go with a dress I bought for my daughters' confirmation but had'nt been able to match the colors. I combined the quartz, with some beads from the high street bracelet, along with a few swarovski crystals and some gorgeous glass flower beads that I bought a while ago just because I loved them.

eh Viola!!!

I now have a bracelet that picks up the colors in my dress and one that nobody else will have. And best of all, no damage to the old bank account!

Mini illustrations

These mini flowers are to be dotted here and there throughout the text.

Book Preview!

Here is another little taster from the book "The Garden Girl"  by Mary Dunn and illustrated by yours truly!

Book being published

Am so excited to have finished the illustrations for the book and that the Author, Mary is happy with them.  These are a few of the pictures that will be in it.  I found this a big challenge and a huge learning curve and at times very daunting.  Completing the commission gave me a great boost of encouragement and confidence.

I cant wait to see the finished book with both our names on the front cover.

New Project

I haven't been here for a while because I have been very busy working on a very exciting (to me!!) project. I have been commissioned to illustrate a Children's book for a U.S. children's author. It has been a huge learning curve and a very enjoyable challenge. I still have quite a bit of work to do but thought I would share one of the illustrations here on my blog.

When I have completed all the work I will share more details with the permission of the Author.

Mixed Media work in progress

I am working on these 4" x 4" mixed media pieces at the moment. They are evolving slowly and may end up looking a bit different when I am finished. I am enjoying just playing with how bits and pieces from around the studio change the look of the pieces. I am using sumptious strips of silk from silk rod carriers from Oliver Twist. I really love the dramatic colours of the silks. I am also trying to incorporate lace and linen from my considerable stash of antique linens that my Mum, Granny and Great Auntie Nancy left me. Much of this linen is no longer suitable for use today or damaged and worn. I feel a need to honour it by using it in artwork rather than leaving to languish unseen in my hot press (airing cupboard) I hope to use more of it in the future.

As before, I have used affirming/inspiring words on watercolour paintings and framed these with glass tiles.

The background canvases are painted in acrylic and on some I have added some angelina fibers.

A few watercolors for you to look at.

Here is a small selection of my watercolors, some of which are available to buy at Aisling Kiernan . etsy. com

Reap What You Sow!

This series of paintings is about the effort we put into life directly equating what we get out of life. I wrote an article about each individual painting which is available on my other blog, What a Beautiful World We live in . blogspot. com

New Year's Day Necklace

Another little piece of jewelry.

This was created with a piece of Coral that I found 2 years ago on New Year's Day on the Coral Strand in Connemara, Co. Galway. We had gone away for New Year with another lovely family, the Shaws, and while walking on the beach in the freezing cold early on New Year's Day we picked up shells and coral which wash up there. It is such a beautiful place. There is no sand, just crushed coral and shells washed up by the Atlantic Ocean. The taste of salty spray in the air is so invigorating. Oh, and the Peace of the place would set you up for the year.

We had the beach to ourselves except for one brave lady who was swimming in the clear fresh water. She emerged from the waves and calmly walked up the beach on this very blustery day to gather up her towel, before giving us a cheery hello and proceed barefoot across a field to a nearby house. I do hope she had a roaring fire to welcome her when she got in.

Connemara is one of my most favorite places on this earth. I think it might just be my spiritual home. Perhaps I will retire there.

Inspiration Pendants

This is one on the pendants which inspired the mixed media pictures Joy and Peace. This one is strung on a simple silver 18" chain. It was made with some watercolor painted paper, a special word and attached to a glass tile and finished with a bail and some diamond glaze.

Peace

The very first of a new series of artworks combining my love of painting and jewelry making.
I had such a great time playing with the different elements in this piece. I started with a pendant that I made from watercolor painted paper and an inspiring word which I attached to a glass tile and finished with diamond glaze. I have some more of these pendants which I hope to put into my etsy shop this week. Then I painted some silk fabric and some canvas and embellished it with silver relief and angelica fibers and crystals and bits of ephemera from around the studio.
I will definietly be doing more of these and hope that the viewer gets even an inkling of the Peace I felt when creating it.

Joy

This picture was created using fabric painting, beading, embellishment, and watercolor painting and inspiration! I had so much enJoyment in making it. I was in the Zone. This was one of the first of a new series, which was displayed in November at the Mullingar Art Guild Annual Art Exhibition. Over the coming weeks I hope to create some more similar works which will be for sale in my Etsy shop. I am trying to remember how to link it to my blog. Probably wont manage it for this Post!!!
I was a little disappointed at how the photo of this work turned out. Another skill which I will be trying to improve in 2011.!