five paintings on driftwood & drawers

Over the last year or so I've been experimenting more with painting on nontraditional surfaces like driftwood, book covers and pages, antique drawers and more.



My art already incorporates as much relevant material as I can find to enhance the story I'm trying to tell – a nautical map of the coast where a lighthouse stands; layers of train schedules, telegrams and driving maps over long winding roads, etc – so it only felt natural to play around on new surfaces as well. There was a little trial and error as I figured out how to prime and prep them (essential to making a high-quality, long lasting painting) while still keeping a very organic, "just found" look, but they proved to be the perfect way to make my paintings more unique and tactile.

Using driftwood from trips to Plum Island and vintage drawers mostly from the SoWa Vintage Market I created six paintings (some a few months old and some finished this month) that finally went up in my shop last week:

Letterpress Lighthouse, 19"x12" mixed media in a letterpress drawer

Available here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/195944576/

Per Via Aera, 5.5"x4" mixed media on driftwood lumber 

(SOLD)

Newport Harbor Light No. 3, 18"x7.5" mixed media in antique white flat drawer

Available here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/195956215

To Keep The Sea, 3"x 12" mixed media and vintage letters in metal and wood drawer 

(SOLD)

  

Newport Light No. 4, 6"x6" on canvas 

(SOLD)

Driftwood Dive No. 1, 5.5"x8" mixed media on flat driftwood 

(SOLD)

I announced these on my Facebook page last week and four sold right away, but two are still available in my Etsy shop. They're also with me at my booth at the SoWa Market almost every Sunday this summer :)