Excavation

Hi Friends,

When a painting isn’t working, I often sand it down so I can reuse the canvas. But sometimes these sanded pieces are too pretty to paint over!

I think of these as excavation paintings. I’m sanding down through two or more layers of paint, and uncovering what was there before — paintings that are long forgotten. It’s like an archaeological dig, as bits and pieces of the different layers are exposed.

Here are a few recent examples of this work. I like the way these sanded paintings look, but they aren’t quite finished. What now? They’re so different from everything else that I do.

Cassandra Tondro experimental painting

Cassandra Tondro sanded painting

Cassandra Tondro abstract painting

Cassandra Tondro abstract painting

What old stuff have you uncovered lately? I’d enjoy hearing your thoughts. You can share them with us in the comments section below.

With love and appreciation,
Cassandra

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6 Comments

  1. Hi Cassandra
    I like these but prefer you previous style incorporating acrylic paint and silicone.

    Just out of curiosity, if you are painting on canvas within a frame, how on earth do you sand it down?

    I guess you are probably painting on blockboard or plywood?

    1. These are painted on canvas, not wood panel. When sanding I don’t apply a huge amount of pressure, and you can often see the outlines of the wood stretchers underneath. But since I was just planning to paint over them, it didn’t matter.

  2. I like the soft muted look of these but I agree they are not finished yet. I’m looking forward to seeing what you do with them.
    As always, I enjoy reading your posts.
    Sandy

  3. I kinda like the look of the sanded pours. Interesting. And what am I uncovering?? Well, a LOT of my handspun yarn. Decided to buy a little loom and try to weave some of it. But I certainly have a lot to learn about that. And, I still have two totes full of unspun wool to spin. I am wondering if I will ever get it all knitted or woven before I check out of this life. Ha Ha. But it sure is fun trying new things.

    1. How fun to weave using your handspun yarn, Susan! I look forward to seeing what you do with it. Yes, I have more projects lined up than I could possibly complete in one lifetime as well. Such is the fate of creatives!

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