Building the stretcher for my “Not #MeToo” painting
Now that the first layer of my 7-foot tall by 14-foot wide Not #MeToo: No More Casting Couch is done, it’s time to build a stretcher for this large painting.
Here is what the stretcher looks like when it is assembled. It is important that I mark every segment properly, since I have to be able to take it apart and put it together again when the painting is moved. Thankfully, the painting studio at St. Petersburg College in Clearwater, FL, where I teach studio art is not being used this summer, so I can work with this large structure without disturbing anyone.
Here is my cart with the wood for the stretcher and the rolled-up canvas. It is amazing that such a big piece can take up so little space in this format. That’s a good thing, since I will have to drive it up to Grand Rapids for Art Prize in our minivan, and it just fits.
My wife convinced me to stretch the painting when I returned home and put it in our living room instead of back in my small studio. This way, I can see the whole painting at the same time, and can adjust the lighting better to avoid problems with glare, which were making it difficult to paint on the first pass. We had to move our entertainment center in front of one of the windows, so that the painting would just fit between windows.
Here you can see me next to the painting in our living room for scale. I still have a lot of work to do on it.
My Not #MeToo piece has taken over our living room. I set up the halogen lights for it, but will use another spotlight as well. I still have to bring my tabouret and paints and chair downstairs from my studio, but this gives an idea of what this artist’s home will look like for a while. Our little rescue dog Carmichael was curious enough to sneak into the photo on the lower right hand side. Above my piece is my wife’s painting Into the Ocean, which normally looks pretty large at 4 feet tall by 8 feet wide. Now it is dwarfed by my painting. It is a good thing our living room has a cathedral ceiling to accommodate both works!
Check back next week to see how much progress I have made on painting the next layer!
To see my entire portfolio of paintings, please check out www.kevingrass.art! You can purchase original paintings and fine art print reproductions directly from my website.
Blog post 11 of 22
