Thursday, September 15, 2011

DIY Franz Kline Large-Scale Abstract Art



I've been bookmarking paintings just like this for several years now. For someone who redecorates DAILY it's a real good sign when I like something for that long. It means I must really, really like it and I won't be trying to sell it to you on Craigslist within the week. It might even last a year!

I love the graphic face-slap of the black and white and the heavy strokes, and I feel like it really balances out the fussiness of an old home.

Dudes, it is NOT easy trying to introduce the 60s to the 20s. Sometimes you put them together in a room and they get all awkward and quiet and shuffle their feet and then you realize your intergenerational design marriage has failed. Slowly I'm learning how to make these opposites do the rhumba together in this neo-English mini manor house of mine.

So yesterday I finally got out some materials and made myself a real, live, super-fake Franz Kline.



It's not finished, and I hung it up unframed and wet being the instant-gratification princess that I am. It's crooked and hanging on an old nail. If anyone sneezes, it's a goner.



My art critic oldest child says, "You need to feather the lines more."

My husband said, "What's up, Picasso?"

My youngest has probably already wiped a booger on it.

After it dries, I might feather the lines more and maybe build up the paint a little for more texture. It's a simple and super-cheap project, but it's deceptively complicated trying to get a few lines to look just right.



Materials:

A pre-gessoed (prepped and ready to paint) canvas from Michael's

left-over exterior latex semi-gloss paint from Glidden in Onyx Black (from my front door)

oil paint in white

a regular 4" paintbrush from Home Depot (don't get those short, cheap ones...it would be impossible to achieve the look of a bold stroke)

a pencil for sketching

an old nail for impatiently pounding into your lovely wallpaper to see the results

Technique:

To make it easier to get the proportions right, I printed the picture out from my computer and divided it into quadrants. Then I penciled out quadrant marks on my canvas. This was really important and only took 15 minutes or so.

I sketched out the lines, and then painted the negative space white first. Then I added in the black strokes and spent about an hour feathering the edges, standing back to look, and adjusting elements that just didn't look right.

The total cost (because I bought the canvas with a 50% off coupon and had old paint) was about $25.

I plan to make a simple black frame for it, and even hang it on a real picture hanger. Soon, I promise.

28 comments:

  1. Excellent. Love the black-n-white boldness with your smiling wallpaper.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've been wanting to knock out one of these babies as well...I too, am a complete instant gratification princess so now you have convinced me to embrace my innerfranz.

    ReplyDelete
  3. At first I thought the first photo was your living room, and I'm thinking "yo, nice pillars!" Glad to see you didn't go there. May have suggested decorator rehab.....
    Your version of the painting is really great! I love it with your wallpaper and the light. Can you make me a simple cream silk shell with broad brushtrokes? You do sew, right? I'd wear that.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The people who live there require large pillars to hold up their egos...without them they would be crushed under the sheer weight!
    You know that couldn't be my house...it if was there would be three dining sets a a dozen chairs in there! Storage bonanza!!

    I will paint you a Hanes t-shirt and cut the sleeves off. How's that?

    ReplyDelete
  5. FAUX ART.

    i have been considering this myself.

    *well done.*

    ReplyDelete
  6. I like it! And it looks great with the wallpaper. Not copying stuff is overrated anyway :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. We can just shorten the description to f'art

    ReplyDelete
  8. It's hard to come by experienced people about this subject, however, you sound like you know what you'rе tаlking about!
    Τhankѕ

    Stop by my blog post; http://www.zpenergy.com

    ReplyDelete
  9. Mу family membeгѕ alωays
    sаy thаt I am wasting my time herе at web,
    except Ι know I am getting κnow-how all the time by
    reading thеs gοoԁ articles or гeviеws.


    Stop by my рage :: cccam free server

    ReplyDelete
  10. For the reason that the admin of this ωeb ѕite is
    worκing, no dοubt verу quiсkly it will be rеnowned, due to its quаlіtу сontents.


    Review my page ... http://xops-repository.awardspace.com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hі everyone, іt's my first visit at this web site, and paragraph is truly fruitful designed for me, keep up posting such posts.

    Here is my web site - http://best-cccamserver.com/sky-italia/
    Also see my website: card Sharing how to

    ReplyDelete
  12. This is very intеresting, Үou're a very skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your magnificent post. Also, I've sharеd your web
    ѕite in mу soсial networks!

    Look at my web page ... server dreambox cccam server|server cardsharing|skybox f3 cardsharing|cccam|cardsharing anbieter|cccam pay server|cccam server premium|dreambox|server dreambox|buy cardsharing|cardsharing|cardsharing server|dreambox 800|free card sharing server|satellite cardsharing kings|test line cccam|card sharing|card sharing servers|cardsharing canalsat|cccam line|cccam test line|free cccam server|sat keys|satellite cardsharing| cccam server|server cardsharing|skybox f3 cardsharing|cccam|cardsharing anbieter|cccam pay server|cccam server premium|dreambox|server dreambox|buy cardsharing|cardsharing|cardsharing server|dreambox 800|free card sharing server|satellite cardsharing kings|test line cccam|card sharing|card sharing servers|cardsharing canalsat|cccam line|cccam test line|free cccam server|sat keys|satellite cardsharing| cccam server|server cardsharing|skybox f3 cardsharing|cccam|cardsharing anbieter|cccam pay server|cccam server premium|dreambox|server dreambox|buy cardsharing|cardsharing|cardsharing server|dreambox 800|free card sharing server|satellite cardsharing kings|test line cccam|card sharing|card sharing servers|cardsharing canalsat|cccam line|cccam test line|free cccam server|sat keys|satellite cardsharing|

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hеllo cοlleagues, nіce piece of ωгiting and
    nice arguments cοmmented at this place, І am in fact еnjoуing by these.


    my wеb blog - http://ts11.gazettelive.co.uk
    My website > user-pic

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thаnks on your marvelous posting! ӏ seгіously enjoyеd геаding it, yоu might
    be a great аuthor.I wіll bе sure to bookmarκ уour blog anԁ will often come back lаter οn.
    I ωant to enсouragе you to ԁefinitely continue your gгeat wгіting, have а nice holiday wееkеnd!


    Нere іs my blοg - http://www.nineteenfifteen.com/member/16620|dreambox

    ReplyDelete
  15. Do yоu have a spam problem on this website; I also am a blogger,
    аnd ӏ was wonderіng your situаtion;
    wе havе deѵelopeԁ somе nice methοds and we аre looking tο swap methoԁs with others, pleаsе
    ѕhoot me an еmаil if interested.


    My blog post: skybox f3 cardsharing
    My web site :: dreambox

    ReplyDelete
  16. Superb, what a blog it is! This blog provides useful
    information to us, keep it up.

    Here is my page :: visit the following page

    ReplyDelete
  17. They aim at miming various good qualities of the counterparts of the assumed celebrity.
    This glass would cost less than $1000 and would be available to almost all the people in Britain.

    Thus they can choose from the many available sources.


    my homepage Latest Daily News

    ReplyDelete
  18. Small women are believed to find it more complicated
    to use fat than larger women as they have got a smaller calorie need.
    What you should do is to focus or target a particular group of muscle for once or even twice a week.

    This can be achieved by adding more weight,
    increasing the number of repetitions, or by adding on additional sets.



    my webpage: relevant web page

    ReplyDelete
  19. Helping optimistic people excel - in 7 areas of life is
    her mission. The reason this is important is because you will have a stronger knowledge base
    and bag of tricks to keep you going on the
    rougher days. If the answer is I''''''ll do whatever takes''''''''.


    My website ... exercise and fitness tips aerobic exercise

    ReplyDelete
  20. Laughter is a best solution of fear, anger and boredom.
    I can also would suggest taking a few minutes to successfully
    snicker not to mention grin available at funny pictures ( imagenes de
    humor ) and then funny videos ( videos divertidos ) to assist you in
    the quest with cheer in addition to stress reliever. And if you are not ready for it, then believe it, your boredom will stay.



    Here is my weblog - free funny pictures and signs

    ReplyDelete
  21. This simple app provides lots of funny facts that you
    have ever known. These make great funny pictures, and can be as blatant as the example I just gave, or as simple
    as a spelling mistake. Now, people from all ages like to watch the funny videos.


    Also visit my blog post ... where can i finds funny pictures at walmart

    ReplyDelete
  22. People are very interested to watch the latest crime news.
    He tells the tale of a young boy, a tot, who was riding a toy car near the
    railroad crossing. Indian business news tells about the facts that Indian market is most preferred by the foreign investors and also about various other factors like quick
    population growth, high economic growth, English knowledge etc.


    Also visit my site :: http://www.latestdailynews.com

    ReplyDelete
  23. Thanks for the marvelous posting! I certainly enjoyed reading it, you will be a great author.
    I will make certain to bookmark your blog and definitely will
    come back very soon. I want to encourage that you continue
    your great work, have a nice day!

    Take a look at my page :: http://articlesfind.com/Insights-Into-Painless-Biotechnology-Solutions.htm

    ReplyDelete
  24. One can find lot of such funny sports moments very easily.

    There you have it, folks, in a nutshell: the chief feature of My
    - Space is that it's quick and easy enough to use that you can post a bulletin or check a friend's page and be done in the two minutes that it takes
    your boss to come over to your desk, suspicious that you're once again not working. Music: My - Space is indeed the friend of music, but it has close ties with the independent artists, who make up for what they lack in record contracts and money by being My - Space-strong, building a strong fan base and creating loyal street teams, which then take on a lot of the advertising on the band's behalf.


    Also visit my homepage :: www.azdnb.com

    ReplyDelete
  25. So, while I am no roving reporter I am endeavoring with my menial reporting skills, to
    bring you. Office goers and people who are travelling often do not get time to read news from the newspaper
    or watch it to get good information they could subscribe for sports SMS alerts.
    This secret Taoist soak will wash any lingering worries down the drain and give you a fabulous and
    fresh start.

    Here is my website :: Latest Daily News

    ReplyDelete
  26. If a wide search is made on the internet, services
    can be utilized easily that are provided by them. Also, find
    one that has includes videos explaining the latest news because
    that is sometimes the best way to see it. Every now and then, new stars emerge and disappear in the blink
    of an eye and every smallest detail about the same becomes important
    celebrity news.

    Feel free to surf to my web-site hot news

    ReplyDelete

Do you have something to say? I'd love to hear it...

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails