SPECTRAL (1999), BY GWENDOLYN GRAINE
ACQUIRED FROM THE ARTIST, TORPEDO FACTORY ART CENTER, ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, SEPTEMBER 1999
TORN CONSTRUCTION PAPER COLLAGE AND PAINT ON ACRYLIC, 7" BY 7"
While I was visiting my Dad, my sister Lee, and my brother Ward over the Labor Day weekend, Lee suggested that we take a visit to Old Town Alexandria. So, we all piled into the car and drove to Old Town to have some lunch and basically see what was going on. When we got there, Lee suggested that we pay a visit to the Torpedo Factory, an old (you guessed it) torpedo factory which has been converted into art studios. While we were there, we saw a lot of interesting art.

This work is fairly simple in design. The background consists of a sheet of torn Japanese construction paper. A collage of differently-colored torn paper was applied to the background. Then, three stripes of translucent paint were applied to the acrylic in front of the collage. The result is pretty cool... the color of the paper changes as light passes through the paint, and depending on your viewing angle, the effect changes. The paint even casts a shadow on the background. I really like this effect, and the colors really stand out against the white background.

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