Black Vase is a mixed media piece done on an 8" x 10" x 3/4" wrapped canvas. (That pebbly-looking background is the carpet.) Black Vase's inauspicious beginning occurred one day when I was cleaning off my brushes. I'd been painting on another canvas, using acrylic paints. I have a real problem throwing away leftover paint, so I usually use my brush to mop up the paint from the palette, and then wipe the paint onto a blank canvas. In truth, some of my best backgrounds have occurred that way!
Coming back to this canvas on another day, I decided to paint on the black vase. I added some white paint to try to make it look dimensional. At that point, I had a black vase on a burgundy background, and the idea that the picture needed flowers. Afterall, it was a vase.... I found the thought of painting the flowers to be rather daunting, since I really liked the background and didn't want to mess it up. So, instead of painting, I turned to my fabric stash.
Where I found this piece of fabric. It was originally part of a dress that I'd picked up at a thrift shop.
Here's a close-up of the fabric. I decided to cut flowers and leaves from the fabric, and glue them to the canvas. I'm guessing I used acrylic medium to attach the flowers, though it could have been Mod Podge, or white glue. All three go on white and then dry clear.
I took the canvas out on the deck to take a picture in natural light. This also shows the depth of the canvas.
Here's another detail picture, taken outside. All in all, I was very pleased with the way the picture turned out. It looks a lot better than it would have if I'd actually tried to paint the flowers!
