Mixed Media. Labeled. Pigeonholed. Bah Humbug.
Playing with materials seems to be my go to method of avoiding artists block. I’m currently exploring all the alternative surfaces for watercolor that I can find. Aquabord,canvas,wood panels with a special ground, postcards treated with ground and mounted on panels. This brings me into the challenges of mixed media, and whether or not it makes me a mixed media artist ( does it really matter what my medium is? Do I need to categorize it?). Because I varnish these works with clear acrylic, it makes it more then watercolor, a ” mixed media”.
How is it that oil painters can paint on multiple surfaces and use varnish (or not), pastelists can spray their work with a fixative ( yet it’s still considered a pastel, and not mixed media). I give up.
I’m not going to limit myself with labels that I do not really understand. I’ll just paint, and use any means necessary to get my desired results. Call it what you will. Limiting myself is not what it’s about anyway, it’s about pushing the limits, and then pushing them a little further.
