question for fellow artists

[sundial]

Do you stretch your canvas? I go through cycles and I will probably start doing so again. There's something about the craftsmanship of stretcher bars and priming canvas. I get some of my best ideas doing these simple tasks.

[mimitabby]

I'd like to see what sort of art you do.
I do not stretch canvas, or tape paper. I just buy heavy paper and deal with it.

[redrhodie]

Well, I work in 3d, but I can relate. I like the slow way of doing things. Sometimes the journey is better than the destination.

[Flybye]

I stretch my watercolor paper but that isn't really canvas.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I used to stretch all my canvases between 20-30 years ago. Big 6x4 foot ones, linen. Oil paintings. I had lots of gallery shows. I liked doing it back then, but eventually got tired of doing all that large heavy stretching. It was hard on the hands, for one thing. In any case, I moved towards smaller paintings on wood and also sculptures by that time.
Stretching canvases was a sort of zen meditation preparation act for the intense activity of creating art. Nowadays i play music for my creative outlet instead (which I find more relaxing less solitary than painting), and I find my 'zen' connection in doing things like biking and roller skating and long walks.

[mimitabby]

I want to see your paintings too.

[shootingstar]

At this time in life, I'm just grateful to find a block of time..just to set up carefully in the liviing rm. (don't want to knock over dirty brush paint water onto the carpet..), paint, dream, paint and then roll up everything, to clear table for dinner...Time to stretch canvas??

When the Muse strikes, I prefer strike the canvas while it's hot, not when I'm trying to set up..

At most, you would get me to gesso the canvas/board...then there's the overall underpainting wash...alot of foreplay before the real thing.

Hey, yea I would like to see your stuff too, Lisa. Mine are pretty rudimentary..but it's stuff I've seen from my cycling trips..yes it's wonderful to fuse cycling and art passion together. My avatar is just block prints on tissue, etc. Looks more mysterious than it really is.

[elk]

I don't stretch canvas, but I do stretch linen for the embroidery.Sometimes I use tacks and sometimes I sew it onto stretcher bars...

All the work I do, except drawing, is verrrrry slow, but I have come to really love that. i surprise myself by how much patience I have...!!

Plus all that time takes on a rhythm and ideas simmer and develop, I agree.

My husband is a painter and he HATES it...

[shootingstar]

Mimitabby - did you paint your avatar for real?

[mudmucker]

I own canvas pliers and a magnetic tack hammer and always stretched my canvas. I like incorporating process to my work and stretching and priming canvas was always a part of that. I haven't done oils in a while, now I do watercolors and similar to Flybye I stretch my paper but that's a given.

[sundial]

I stretch my watercolor paper but that isn't really canvas.

No matter how much I stretched my watercolor paper, it always seemed to buckle a teenie bit. So then I'd have to place it under a heavy book. Then I tried the watercolor canvas and decided, what the heck, I'll just paint in oils and be done with it, lol!

[sundial]

I'd like to see what sort of art you do.

Intercession I, 36x48, oil, 2008

[mimitabby]

Mimitabby - did you paint your avatar for real?

yes, I did. I'm currently painting a series with bicycles in them.

Oh, Sundial, that's BEAUTIFUL!!! Wonderful colors!

[sundial]

Thank you, Mimitabby. I think you should design a jersey with one of your watercolors as the background. I really like the softness of watercolors and seems to be the most feminine media and what a better way than to advertise your art on a jersey.

[massbikebabe]

My daughter is the artist in my house, but I have never seen her stretch a canvas. I am the quilter and I do use a quilt stretcher, even more now because I have only the one hand to quilt with...so I quilt on the stretcher.



karen