Paul Mowbray Artist Craftsman

The Detail

This page details the processes and background in the forming of some of my artwork. Those detailed below benefit from a degree of background insight to help construct the atmosphere of the finished artwork.

'Alice in gold' was produced using the age-old technique of water gilding; this labour intensive process delivers an almost unequalled quality. In the final stages, gold leaf is carefully applied and polished with a smooth agate burnisher. This work includes a variety of gold leaf from 14– 24 carat. white, lemon, yellow, rose, green, red, and moon gold.

Above: The image on the left details the early stages in sculpting in the principle form. Right, the completed work.

Detailed here is a before and after image of the relief carving. In the left photograph I have sketched in the leafage within the hedge in the background and set in all the outlines of the elements. It takes considerable concentration to carve the illusion of depth and volume within the 8 mm depth of the original surface.

'Gift of earth 1', 2014, Painted gessoed panel with relief sculpture

'Gift of earth 2', 2014, Painted gessoed panel with incised and relief sculpture

'Lapis lazuli sources', 2014, Painted and coated gessoed panel

Lapis lazuli pigment was carefully extracted from the mineral gem stone. This famed ultramarine blue pigment of the renaissance had a value greater than gold and was highly prized by the artist. A synthetic version was however invented in the 19th century with variants subsequently developed including reddish and violet pigments.

Ingres 'the source' I wanted to build into the work via underpainting with a blue-black glaze. In the finished work it can be seen with a limited clarity. I wanted its inclusion to be obscured, a residual part swamped with blue modulation almost adopting the neoclassical original with a modern pixelation.

'Conduit I', 2009, oil on board

Art Sections
[ works 1 - contemporary ] [ works 2 - alternative ] [ works 3 - abstract diverse ]
[ works 4 - portraits ] [ works 5 - the detail ]