Wabi-Sabi

Wabi-Sabi is a Japanese technique (and philosophy) that refers to the qualities of imperfection. I thought this would be a fun thing to incorporate into my next painting and art prompt: paint something using a new technique because it looks like fun.

I used various patinas, torn paint and splattered paint to achieve a rustic and imperfect piece. Some wabi-sabi art prompts could be: rust, patina, peeling paint, torn papers, stained fabrics, old worn books, or chipped and broken items.

First, I created an imperfect painting surface using an acrylic sculpting medium to paint base layers onto a board. I love how textured this looks.  I alternated layers of gel medium and the sanding back of areas until I had the look and texture I wanted. It reminds me of layers of peeling paint.

I wanted to give the piece an aged and dirty look.  I achieved this by rubbing graphite paper into all the nooks and crannies of the textured background.

 Next, I added bits of torn paper.

The last thing I did was drip and splatter black and white paint over the painting.

The wonderful thing about trying a wab-sabi art piece is to be reminded that, sometimes, imperfection is simply... perfection!