The trip to Blogatanga and Sirigu was just as amazing as we thought it was going to be. We stayed in SWOPA which is famous for its basket weaving, murals and pottery. We balanced sight seeing trips with pottery, painting and weaving classes. By doing the painting course I was able to learn the meanings behind the geometric symbols which are now appearing in my paintings.
I really like the geometric designs not only because they make my work a little more unique but they also remind me of Sirigu. This painting is a small cute painting inspired by the mural designs and the guinea fowl which are everywhere. They are such cute birds. I used the mixed media Gesso painting techniques which I am working with in my grade 7 and 8 classes. I had no idea oils pastels, chalks , charcoals and watercolours worked this way in wet Gesso.
This technique is very similar to my previous style which incorporated rollers and textures but this time I added some small Sirigu designs and put Gesso through a stencil which is another mixed media technique that I am exploring with my students. I love the large pots as they were so round and were huge. It was incredible watching the ladies load up their massive pots on their heads.
This is the piece I created today inspired from the food section in the Sirigu market. It is more like my previous style incrporating fabrics, textures and rollers. This time I used stencils too to replicate a fabric design. I loved the splash of red colours in the market so decided because the tomatoes were so bright I would use a predominantly cool colour scheme so that the tomatoes would become a focal point. The black-brown adds great contrast which is why I still love using that technique of painting onto a dark background.
Rebecca Jardin's ART 