Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Subversive Paint-By-Number (Moonlight Dancers)


Subversive Paint-By-Number (Moonlight Dancers)
Originally uploaded by randubnick.

Last time I visited my aunt in New York City, she showed me a paint-by-number set. I hadn't seen one of those since I was a kid. She invited me to paint, and I said, "Well, okay, but only if I can make it a subversive paint-by-number." I started to paint while we talked, making the color choices arbitrary rather than realistic, and keeping the paint as transparent as possible to let the numbers show through. I wasn't finished when it was time to leave to go back to Boston, so my aunt told me to take it home and finish it. I've been working on it, on and off, and finally finished it today. Once I had all the shapes filled in, I used some transparent washes of color, crossing the borders between the original shapes. In just a few hours, I am catching a morning train to visit my aunt in New York City again, and I am going to take this little subversive paint-by-number along to give to her.

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