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| These two pieces are the beginning of a new series of experimental work, with the computer as the medium. Both "Glencoe" and "Skye Crossing" were created using Fractal Design Painter 5. Working on a Mac, I used the mouse to make "Glencoe", and a Wacom tablet and stylus for "Skye Crossing", and did not use any scanned photos or images.
This is all marvellous technology, but some people ask (and sometimes I ask myself) "Why bother with all that technology, why not just use real art materials?" One thing about the computer is that you can be so experimental. You can save a painting at a particular stage and make several copies, each one to be a different experiment. You can delete potentially 32 brush strokes (a far cry from water colour!). I find myself working more loosely and freely--something I am always striving for. But then there is a down side: You lose that wonderful tactile feel of real art materials (you don't even get your hands dirty!). The finished product is printed on paper that is often shiny or slick . My printer's inks are not yet lightfast, etc. etc. etc. But that's all changing fast, and it's all fun.
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