Most of my paintings (actually, about 99%) are done in acrylic. Why? Personally, I like the fact that it dries quickly and can be painted over in less than an hour, as opposed to the time involved waiting for oil paint to dry. I also like the fact that I can just start painting on just about any surface without having to gesso it first. Further, I like the shiny finish acrylic provides, and all the fun stuff that you can mix in to give it texture. Finally, and most important to me these days, is that I can get acrylic for a heck of a lot cheaper than oil. Yeah, I may not get the truly vibrant colors and re-workability (is that even a word?) that oil provides, but I'm willing to make sacrifices. I've also done a couple of pieces recently in fluorescent poster paint, which is also an affordable medium. I like the way the colors vibrate, and also enjoy transforming a medium that most people would consider 'tacky,' and giving it artistic value. One of these paintings (under a blacklight) can be seen below.
Although I had been painting with those nasty watercolors for kids since I was pretty young, I didn't seriously get into painting and grow to like it until high school. I credit Johnye Nielson, my art teacher at Chatfield High School, for getting me interested in painting.
I have finally started photographing some of my completed paintings with a digital camera that a friend lent me. It doesn't give the best clarity or color representation in the world, but it does give you a better idea of the type of work that I do.
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Double Exposure (Scholastic Golden Key winner) 18"x24", acrylic |
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Firecracker 18"x12", acrylic |
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Migraine 15"x19", fluorescent poster paint |
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Isolation 8.5"x11", acrylic |
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Unnatural Organic 56"x24", fluorescent poster paint |
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Egret (commissioned portrait) 18"x24", acrylic |
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self portrait 8.5"x11", ink and brush
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Neurotic 8.5"x11", designer's ink and brush |
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All images and content ©2000 by Amanda Sapir