Layers Upon Layers: Mixed Media Art

Artist Profile: Christy Grant

by Cyndi on January 31st, 2008

Artist: Christy Grant
Location: Mechanicsville (a suburb of Richmond) known for its Hanover tomatoes and good schools,Virginia

Blog & Online Gallery:
Art Chickadee’s Reflections
Christy Grant’s Gallery

Christy, how do you describe your work?
Layers, not unlike your site here, Layers Upon Layers. I’m happiest with lots of “stuff” going on in a mixed media piece. Sort of telling a visual story with lots of twists and turns. I like vintage papers of all sorts, love old photos, but also handmade papers and new products, too.

What is your creative process like?
Since I work full-time and not in art (I’m an office manager – definitely not an artsy profession), I rarely get a chance to spend more than an hour or two on art. Then I am a wife and mother so I have to work in time for art. I’m lucky enough to have a studio set up in the back room of our house. My husband has come to tolerate the “fallout” of an art storm when I’m working on something.

Once in a great while, I’ll have a piece seemingly dropped into my head where I can picture it in toto. Those come together quickly. More often than not, though, it’s a discipline thing of making myself go out there and create something. I admire those who can plan out on paper or even in their heads what they’re going to do. I’ve found that doesn’t work for me very often.

I often start with a color scheme in mind…usually a main color that has caught my eye and want to work with, and a couple of others. One of those two may just be a touch of color to add some visual excitement. I make a background of some sort…painted canvas or paper or it’s vintage papers glued down and glazed over. I pull through files of images searching for one that I really love or that speaks to me at the time. That becomes the focal point. Next I search for embellishing images to complement it. After trying several possible positions of the pieces, I glue it down. Then comes more glazing, dry-brushing or getting out my Pitt pens for adding details. I didn’t always work this way. I didn’t always try different layouts and stuck with the first that I tried. I don’t know when that changed, but sometimes I’ve found something more exciting and fresh by moving the elements around. Of course with that comes the risk of not being able to re-create your original layout. But, all of life, and that includes art, is best lived with some risk involved in my opinion.

I like music playing, but occasionally have had a movie playing in the background that I have seen before. I like many different styles of music so it depends on my mood that day what you may hear. I find that I do prefer to work alone as it’s less distracting. I love taking classes and going to workshops like Art & Soul, Art Unraveled, but enjoy that time to myself the most.

I think one of the most challenging things on working on a piece is learning that it will go through an “ugly” stage where you are tempted to throw it in the trash can, spray it with gesso or rip it up. If I tough it out past this point, I am usually rewarded. I work with acrylic paints mostly and you need to give them time to dry completely as they will change in intensity especially with white paint. What seems to harsh tonight, will “sink in” as a painting teacher said once, and you may actually find you need to add more the next day. When I find myself pushed to the frustration point, it’s best to walk away for a while and go to bed, go for a walk, play a video game with my son, talk on the phone with a good friend, (usually Mary), ANYTHING to take my mind off it completely for a while. Then, when refreshed, you see it with new eyes and often know what to do next.

Another thing that is a challenge and it can only be learned through experience (i.e.- making lots of art) is knowing when a piece is finished. Sometimes more is needed; sometimes it isn’t. It’s usually finished when you’re really satisfied with it. A good rule is, does this thing I’m considering adding really make the piece better for it. If not, leave it off.

What kind of training did you have which helped you achieve your current level of artistry?
I’ve always loved art. I remember drawing characters from the comics in the Sunday paper since third grade. Snoopy was especially prominent. My third grade teacher, Mrs. Miller, was the principal’s wife. I remember her taking me to see her husband to show him my drawings. Scared me to death! I thought I was in trouble. My mother taught me embroidery, rug-hooking and some general crafts. That led to needlepoint, macrame and then cross-stitch and on to just about any kind of craft you can think of. I took art from seventh through twelve grades in school much to my mother’s despair. She asked when I was going to take home economics and learn to cook and sew. I know she was trying to look out for my well-being. Well, I haven’t starved or gone clothes-less so I’ve survived.

I majored in horticulture in college and that has its own art form but it’s not the same. I loved the colors of the flowers of course. After I graduated and was out on my own, I taught Christmas crafts classes at my church for about ten years. I appeared on our local craft show for Ben Franklin craft show about ten years ago and demonstrated how to make some paper ornaments I’d designed and made using old family photos. That was my fifteen minutes of fame, I guess! I took a few painting classes at a local Ben Franklin and was really enjoying it but then my teacher retired. I hope it wasn’t because of me!

I’ve been fortunate to attend Art & Soul in Hampton twice now and am looking forward to a third time this year. I went to Art Unraveled in Phoenix in 2005 and that was wonderful. I highly recommend going to one of these large art venues to anyone who wants to grow in his or her art. It’s especially wonderful for anyone who doesn’t come from a creative family or have a cheering squad for them or no local art classes. Being surrounded by hundreds of other creative people whose minds work in a similar creative fashion is an experience that you will never forget! Then there’s making new friends and attending classes by teachers who have written books that you may have. I’m not normally star-struck, but I felt a bit of it the first time I attended one and saw Michelle Newman and recognized her from an episode of the Carol Duvall Show!

Is there a tool or material that you can’t imagine living without?
I love paints, especially Golden’s fluid acrylics. Give me those, a good black pen and some sturdy background and I’m happy! Throw in some vintage ephemera, buttons, keys, photos and my day is complete.

Today I am Thankful for My Friend

What inspires you to create?
That is not an easy question to answer. I think if you have the creativity “gene” you have to create just as you have to eat, breathe, drink, and sleep. It’s not a matter if I want to, if I go too long I have to or life becomes stale. Seeing a really great piece by another artist can inspire me, but taking a walk outside away from the computer, telephone, and other distractions can do it. Learning a new technique or trying out a new product or tool can get the creative juices flowing. Going to a museum and seeing beautiful pieces regardless of whether it’s my chosen medium or not, can really make me want to run home and play art.

What inspires you to keep going when the work gets frustrating or tough?
Talking to another artist friend you respect and trust to be honest with you or better still sending them a digital scan of your problem can be helpful. Even if you end up not using the suggestions offered, it can jump-start you again. If that doesn’t work, get away from it for a while and do something non-art related.

What is your best piece of advice for those who would like to rise in their level of artistry?
Subscribe to magazines that fit your style of art, go to classes, workshops and join a Yahoo or other online group. I’ve made a lot of friends that have enriched my life and my art through some of these groups and I’ve learned more from them than in all the years of art in middle and high school. If you can’t swing one of those workshops, take a class in anything art related where you can. I’ve taken classes at a local scrapbook store (I do some scrapbooking although altered art is my primary love), I’ve learned new techniques with inks and papers that I was able to incorporated into my style. If you keep your mind open to learning, your art will never get stale.

Most importantly, be your own cheerleader. It’s great to get kudos from others, but make it a priority for yourself and don’t let your art value depend on others’ opinions. Do the art that makes you happy.

In Touch with the King

What takes up the majority of your time besides your art?
My full-time job and family take up the majority of my time. We attend church weekly and my faith keeps me grounded in this crazy old world we live in. I work with second and third graders on Sunday mornings in Sunday school and they are inspiration in themselves. Their curiosity, boldness in asking questions and freedom in artwork. They still don’t have preconceived ideas of what art should be yet and if they like it, it’s art. I love that about them.

What are some of your other favorite things: foods, activities, colors, books, etc?
I like to read, garden, go for walks, and in the summer, you’ll find me in our backyard pool with my son in the evenings. Funny you should ask what my favorite color is. It’s almost gotten to be a joke on one group I’m in. Red. It’s always been red. I tried to make myself like a different color when I was younger and thought I should have a more reasonable one such as blue like so many others my age. My mom said as a baby I liked red. Why fight it? I’m not happy with a piece I do unless there’s a touch of it somewhere. So now when you see red_dolphin19@yahoo.com it may make a bit more sense…dolphins are my favorite animal, 19 is the day in October I was born and the year I turned 19 was a good year for me. As far as “artchickadee” in my blog title, my mom called me “chickadee” when I was a child some and I always liked that so I combined the two.

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POSTED IN: Artist Profiles, Collage, Creativity, Mixed Media, Paper