Two More Boxes Finished

By Martha Marshall | Jul 31, 2008

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“Sprinkled” - Acrylic on Cradled Masonite
8 x 8 x 2″

This one is finished with exception of another coat of varnish. There will be no difference in its appearance from what you see in this picture.

And this one, finished:

I’m still enjoying these squares. Candace Knapp says I should make some really big ones.

What do you think?

Working with a Limited Palette

By Martha Marshall | Jul 30, 2008

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I did this series of acrylics on paper a while back, and they’ve been hiding in a portfolio ever since. A second look makes me feel that maybe they could be allowed to live. In this series I limited my palette to raw sienna, yellow ochre, black, white, and touches of metallic bronze (in the drips and swirls.)

Because the palette is just black, white, and two analogous colors, I can mix those to get harmonious tints and shades.

There are five paintings in this series, which I titled the Arabesque series. These are numbers four and five in the series.

How Do You Explain your Work?

By Martha Marshall | Jul 29, 2008

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If your visual art could simply be explained in words, then why did you make it, or paint it, or sculpt it? Couldn’t you just have written it? That’s my question to those who ask me to explain my work. But we’re still asked to explain, and so I try. I know that it sometimes helps the viewer understand intent and become more connected with the work.

Here’s an interesting July 15, 2008 article in The Guardian to expand on the point.

Do you feel you need to explain your art?

Here is pretty much the perfect articulation of how I work, which I found on Judy Wise’s blog. In one of her recent posts she introduces Jesse Reno, a young Portland, Oregon artist who is completely unself-conscious when talking about his process. I love the ease with which he “explains” what he is doing. Watch and enjoy!

More Milk Paint Information

By Martha Marshall | Jul 28, 2008

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In my web research about milk paints, I received the following reply from Anne Thibeau, President of The Old Fashioned Milk Paint Co., Inc., in which she has provided some great information about both casein paints and milk paints. She has convinced me (I didn’t really take much convincing) to try milk paint.

Hi Martha, Thank you for your interest in milk paint. Certainly, more and more fine artists are using our paint in their work. We feature the work of one in our website gallery, Dominic White- http://www.milkpaint.com/gallery-white.html

We also donated a lot of paint to be used in a mural created as part of an Earth Day celebration in Central Park this year- http://www.peacexpiecelive.org/

I think you’ll get a lot out of our website if you poke around a bit.

I used to use the milk paint in my abstract paintings in college, not long after my father developed his formula in the mid-seventies. I’m not currently painting, but after college I worked for a company that made all sorts of decorative mirrors and while I was primarily working in their stained glass/leaded mirror department I remember spending a little time in the gold leafing department where they used to use some nasty casein paint in tubes on the frames before leafing. I say nasty as I recall the solvent was formaldehyde and it had an unpleasant smell…. not the case at all with true milk paint- very little odor, fast drying, you may layer colors and use as a wash or as a thicker medium depending on how much water you add to the mix- it’s really quite versatile. It is true that the regular milk paint formula will waterspot white spots if it gets wet and has not been sealed, however our new SafePaint formulation for walls has far better water resistance and is actually washable once cured, without having to apply a topcoat. Both formulas are very durable otherwise- they harden with time like concrete and are very difficult to remove.

There are a few people who sell small one ounce samples of our original formula listed here- http://www.milkpaint.com/purchase_sample.html

Please let us know if we can be of further assistance.
Best Regards,
Anne Thibeau, President
The Old Fashioned Milk Paint Co., Inc.
(978) 448-6336 ext. 10

I am very glad to get this information and can’t wait to start experimenting with these paints.

Environmentally Friendly Casein and Milk Paints

By Martha Marshall | Jul 27, 2008

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“Vision Quest”- Acrylic (not Casein) on Paper
Image size 5 x 7
Available in my Etsy shop

Is anyone old enough to remember when casein paints were the latest thing? I am. I used them for a while when I was a young artist exploring different paint media, and just before acrylics replaced them as the next big thing. I remember that I enjoyed working with casein paints, but soon became enamored of the fun and quicker-drying acrylics, and I was off and running.

Lately I’ve been thinking about investigating them again, so have begun some research on them. They are environmentally safe and biodegradable. The biodegradable part would be OK, because I don’t plan to bury my paintings in the dirt. I might try some experiments with caseins in my current textural paintings. I’ve already learned that one wouldn’t want to use them to build up texture, but they can be used over texture that’s already created. They are a little bit vulnerable to water damage, so it’s advised that they are sealed with an acrylic varnish.

The whole idea started percolating again when I saw a reference to milk paint in a new Etsy blog Design Style Guide. From there I started wondering if the milk paints used in home design and and casein tube paints were essentially the same. Common sense tells me that they are. I would want to be able to paint in large scale, and the casein tube paints just wouldn’t quite do it. But in combination, they would work well.

So if you’re interested in knowing more about these paints, here are some links. Also, If you’ve used casein and/or milk paints in your artwork, I’d like to hear about that too.

Painting at About.com’s article on casein paints and milk paints

Bio-Shield Zero-VOC Interior Casein Milk Paint - a mixable interior paint from greenerbuilding.org

Here is a link for kits to make your own casein paints using natural pigments.

Real Milk Paint Site with a ton of information plus a milk paint recipe that you can make from scratch.

This could get you going on a Sunday’s worth of surfing. Have fun!