out to sea

I recently enjoyed catching up with an artist friend who lamented that it was "time to get back to work!" ~ and I found myself pondering that phrase all afternoon. In my quest to "see things from a new perspective" I thought, why not get back to play instead? I had been mulling over new ways to see color, value and design, so I decided to explore these concepts in a form other than paint. I began by tearing up strips of colored tissue paper and then arranged (and rearranged) them on a background of sturdy watercolor paper until I found a design that I liked best. Then I glued them down with tiny dots of glue to create this scene (just enough glue to keep the fragile tissue paper from falling off the page).
I like how the spaces between the colors work with, and become an important part of, the design. And, allowing the tissue paper to be loosely applied seems to give the scene an overall feeling of energy and movement, I think.
This would be a fun and inexpensive project to enjoy with children (or the young at heart)...and so I wonder...would different textures and thicknesses of paper like that of magazines and newspapers work equally well?...and what about strips of discarded old watercolor sketches...or construction paper...or...
Gray days and cabin fever are so "last year" folks -- there are just too many new perspectives and golden horizons waiting to be discovered just beyond the sea.

"Somewhere beyond the sea, somewhere waiting for me, my lover stands on golden sands and watches the ships that go sailing..."
(Beyond the Sea...by Robbie Williams)