Large Rocks for more creative space

It is difficult at times to find the best rock for a particular project. Many large rocks have slight flaws or holes in them that taxes rather than enhances my creative ability.Below are some samples of recent projects that have worked out well, because the rocks have been in good shape in the beginning. Mexican Pebbles are my favorite stones, but they only seem to be hand size before they become a little too misshapen for my purposes.This isn't to say that there may be some perfectly symmetrical ones out there. I am more inclined to stick with Sandstone or Tufa stone to accomplish the desired result

The Hidden Sun

This week's rock is a particularly round one that I painted black and indigo, to showcase the Total Solar Eclipse which was only going to be a partial eclipse where I live in Calistoga.The day began with a large cup of coffee to prepare me for a hike up the Oat Hill Mine Trail.I left home around 8 am and reached a high point above the Napa Valley around 8:45 am dripping with sweat and out of breath.No one else was around as I nestled myself lying flat on my back between two rocks that propped me up on a slight incline facing east. The sky was completely overcast and socked in with a fog that ultimately lasted way past noon.

My friend Eric texted me from Baker City,Oregon where lots of people were waiting in excited anticipation.I waited for something significant, but it just seemed to get a little colder and a slight bit darker.Gradually, I left this spot to head back down the mountain. Before proceeding down I left a little commemoration of the event wedged between the rocks for someone to find before the next Total eclipse occurs in this area.

This Week's Rock of the Week

I have continued to paint rocks using a tried and true method of rendering a more traditional, figurative image... in this case, a wave off the coast of an island at sunset.As an afterthought, I further finessed this rock by painting a small surfer tucked in the curl of the wave.He doesnt appear in this image, however.

This rock has allowed me to experiment with the qualities of both reactive (florescent), and phosphorescent paint. The image takes on a more brilliant appearance under a blacklight,which showcases the sunset as well as the foam cascading over the breaking wave.More of these types of rocks will be showing up as I move away from just the mandala or concentric type of motifs.This is the type of work I used to do in college, which has a much more illustrative style, that I had put on the "Back burner" for awhile.

This Week's Rock of the Week

This week's rock is a common motif of mine. I call it the starburst effect. Taking glow paint and having it emerge as if shooting out from the center of the rock.

Focusing on the center is the the challenge here.It is so easy to lose the symmetry of the overall design.

Usually, I place a hologram sticker in the center, and carefully place dots around the outside. Then with a sharp point, each dot is drawn towards the center.

When the paint is dry, I will add small dots on top of the droplets already in place, and voila. There you have it!

The Rock of the Week

Lotsa Dots !

Admittedly, I don't always have a clue what will appear on the face of a rock when I sit down to paint and decorate it.When adding the dots I have to keep the nozzle of the bottle clear because it can gum up pretty quickly.Keeping a sewing needle close by is important in this process.

The other thing is to watch out for air bubbles, because they will cause the paint to spit.The paint has the consistency of Elmer's glue and has to be "guided" more than "painted". Using tools like toothpicks, q-tips and rubber-tipped brushes are not uncommon to excel at this craft.

The Rock of the Week

This weeks rock features a motif representing a colorful sea urhin with a glass bobble in the center. I have done many rocks like this one in the past, yet they are still intriquing how easy it is to return to a centered focal point and to build around it.

Initially, painting mandalas on rocks with dots was something that got me started in the beginning. The build is challenging, especially when trying to keep the dots seperate from one another before drying.

How easy it is to accidentally bump into wet puff paint when you are not paying attention.

This Week's Rock of the Week

The rock you see here is an odd shaped stone found on the beach at Russian Gulch. The smooth yet triangular shape lent itself to a different sort of treatment than other stones it's size.The percieved center point of the design was placed off to one side which compliments the fan splay emanating to the outer edge. Many colors were added using felt markers along with the glow paint for luminosity.

The aqua background proved to be the best color to contrast the many colors you see here. This rock had been scanned and brought into Photoshop™ to bump up the colors and enhance the luminous quality.

The Rock of the Week

The rock this week is of an imaginary Napa landscape with an oak tree and some hills in the background. It has been a long time since my landscape painting skills have been called to task.The rock itself is as big as my hand and the shape of a soft shark fin.The acrylics used were reactive green and orange. Also used were a deep royal blue and some florescent red and yellow. The whole experience took about three hours or more to complete.It can be viewed under a black light with incredible results.The rock does not glow on it's own however.

The Rock of the Week

This week's rock is a palm-sized stone that was painted with the Americana Acrylics™ and the glow in the dark Tulip™ squeeze bottle paint.The whole process usually takes about 15 mins to a half hour to complete (after each drying phase)

It is always best to clear-coat the finished piece with either a Krylon™ spray or some other high-gloss or medium varnish like the Golden™ or Liquitex™ brand coating.

This design was my own sinewy strand motif that is supposed to portray an underwater or plant like symbolism.