B is for...

So this week I have been working on a mixed media piece for the "Life's a Beach" theme magazine submission to Cloth, Paper, Scissors. I'm really excited about this piece. I've put so much elbow grease, sweat and tears into this (luckily no blood, ha!) I feel as good about this as I did on my "Silence is Bliss" piece that surprisingly won a Staddy Award. I only pray that this submission will past the editors test and to be possibly chosen for print. Oh I'm nervous and excited! *fingers crossed, prayers said*

Here is my piece I'm entering (with detail close-ups).





The Description: Inspiration for this piece came from the vintage postcard that adorns our refrigerator year round - the swimsuit pin-up. I found this postcard at one of my favourite antique shops years ago. I did not want to deface the postcard in the process of building this piece, so I photocopied it. The background contains pages from an old chemistry book I had gotten at the thrift store. I thought the correlation of the "chemistry" with the pin-up was very tongue-in-cheek. I added several layers of different colour paint and once dry, defaced the paint by scratching, carving, and sanding it down to create the look I was going for. Then I added watercolour towelettes for the sky, clouds, seaweed, and water. And "sea salted" watercolour paper for the sand, with large remnants of sea salt still attached for "sand" effect.
Embellishments of beach related "B" words were added from an old thrifted dictionary, I hand-rendered the "B" typography and finally I unwove a small yardage of dyed hemp to provide aqua blue thread for the small bits of embroidery. The threaded segments in the painting signifies the attachment of the sky, water and land as a unit working together. Living the "beach life" on a daily basis, I think I captured the amazing pallete of colours the water and sky provides at any given time.