GPP Street Team Crusade #44

I've always loved Michelle Ward's art and fondly peruse her "Street Team" blog and the monthly "Crusades" or challenges she posts there. Well this month, my hands were itching to do something different and this looked too cool to pass up. The challenge this month is "In a Scrape" -make a painting but NO brushes allowed! She shows tutorials and examples to help everyone along.


I started with a gessoed canvas (gesso applied with a palette knife of course!) to add a bit of texture to the base, then I just started scraping layers on. I grabbed my little bottles of Stewart Gill Colourise paints at first, to add matte base layers, then I came in after it was dry with my Byzantia colors to add a little shimmer. Then I took my palette knife and scraped a little bit of Black Soot Crackle paint by Ranger. After it cracked I came in as a last layer and added Metamica Silver to highlight some areas. It still didn't look "finished" (I doubt it ever will!) so I took an old credit card and with the edge made some lines. I can't say it's a "pretty" picture, LOL. It's grungy, and peeling and has so many layers I think it may have a personality disorder.  But you know what? I like it. And I actually completed my first challenge at GPP. I think after I post it to the group and it sits for awhile I might give it a focal point by adding some big stenciled numbers on it, spray paint style, to commemorate Crusade #44. 


Happy Autumn Equinox everyone! The Chicago area celebrated fall with 90 degree weather! BLECH.