2015
The Joy of Mixed Media
The Joy of Mixed Media
Mixed media produces artworks that are so interesting, so vibrant and one of a kind every time! I use various paints like watercolours, gouache and acrylics, inks and pure pigments. But that is not where it ends! Beautiful hand made rice papers, sheets from aged books, corrugated paper, string, hessian, fabrics and buttons! Nothing is off limits. But the trick is to resist over doing it and maintaining the integrity of the subject.
I have used mixed media for depicting the Sydney Opera House as well as a herd of black and white cows huddled under a tree in the afternoon heat. Pears in a French market have benefitted from overlays of hessian to create that gorgeous rustic feel. New York city with its vibrant street signs, traffic jams and New Yorkers hurrying to work have been depicted using mixed media very successfully with each paper selected being relevant to the city itself be it a street map, a New York publication or a Prada label!
Country scenes have also been successfully depicted using mixed media. One particular one called ‘Counting Sheep’ was inspired by the drawings of sheep on the label of a wine series of the same name! This particular painting is now residing in London in the home of an Australian who was determined to have an artwork that reminded her of her homeland and its beautiful farm lands.
An interior designer and journalist, Merilyn Chappel has been painting for over 25 years. Initially a watercolour artist, her work has evolved to encompass other mediums including acrylics and inks, but more recently mixed media. This foray into mixed media has resulted in uniquely textured, impressionistic works but these still exhibit Merilyn’s dramatic use of colour and design. Merilyn’s subject matter varies considerably from large dramatic landscapes to small interiors; from bold and colourful fruits to sensitively painted flowers; from Australian stockmen to French villages; from African giraffes to Australian dairy herds; from Sydney sailboats to outback towns – even shoes, hats and teacups have a look in!