At Last, the Top Seekrit Revealed.

Way, way back, I blogged about a project I called Top Seekrit. The project took awhile, due to the vagaries of winter weather and life just getting in the way, as it often does.

The painting was more-or-less finished in early January, and presented to the birthday girl who inspired it on the day of her party. Unfortunately there wasn't time to get it properly photographed. Plus, the clearcoat was still milky in a couple spots, which I have to admit made me more than a little nervous. What if it never cleared completely? You really don't wanna be the guy who ruins a pretty girl's birthday present.

Fortunately it dried nicely, and a couple days ago I finally had it photographed by my good friend John Watson.

But wait - I'm getting ahead of myself here.





It all started this way: she told me about a seahorse tattoo she had, and how she'd love a painting based on Charles (the aforementioned seahorse, of course). She'd already seen several of my first-generation metalflake paintings, and liked the look of those. So really, it was all just a matter of sorting out details after that.

First I did a tracing of her tattoo, which hopefully didn't tickle too much:

Then I refined that a bit, and defined the lineart better:

Next came the final ink lineart, ready to be transferred onto the painted surface:

(It was during this stage that I decided to add the little circular bits to Charles's crest.)

And how did all this turn out, you ask? Well, a lot like this:

Oh, and here's a little macro detail to give you more of an idea of how the metalflake paintings look in the real world:

What can I say? When I'm inspired the whole process is just... easier.

Bret Taylor
Vancouver, BC
March 31, 2012

P.S. As always, thanks, Tess.

A Few of My Favourite Things.

As you may have noticed, I've really been cranking out the art the past few months. Another highly educational period for me, especially since I started working on roughly 20 paintings at once. I realized once again tonight just how much I love playing mad scientist with paint.

That being said, there are a handful of products that really float my boat. So with your kind indulgence, I present the following list:

Liquitex Pouring Medium. Seriously, this stuff is the real deal. I've used many other manufacturers' self-levelling mediums, and most of them are garbage. Liquitex, though, has come up with the magic formula - the stuff dries hard and clear with no crazing, sets up fast, and looks gorgeous when it's done.

Tri-Art Liquid Mirror. Another product that absolutely raises the bar. I've used a lot of iridescent paints in recent years, and nothing else even compares for reflectivity. Even when it's relatively dark, Liquid Mirror will pick up any minimal ambient light and reflect it - it's almost phosphorescent in that respect. Washes of transparent colour on top of it barely affect the reflectivity at all. I'm told the secret ingredient is bismuth oxychloride, but let's call it what it is - magic.

Golden Iridescent Copper (Fine). I'm a little bit obsessed with copper. Even as a child I was drawn to its colour and sheen. When I built my bar in 2004, I put $500 worth of sheet copper into the top. Getting back to paint, there are many iridescent coppers, of course. I've tried 5 or 6 at last count, and I finally found what I was looking for with the Golden. So rich and vibrant it puts others to shame.

Montana Gold Spraypaint (various colours). A stunning array of colours, seemingly endless cans of paint, and a system of interchangeable nozzles in a wide variety of sizes. I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of what's possible with these paints. Expect a major push in this direction in my art in 2011.

Anybody else have paint or mediums they'd like to recommend? I'm all ears.