It could be acrylic washes, ink, water, charcoal, oil pastel, or all of them! As the work progresses, the marks I make and the media I combine with them create exciting and interesting effects. 

My process is completely intuitive; I don't plan an image and I don't have a picture in mind before I start a painting.

When I work, there’s no dividing line between what I’m doing and what the painting is becoming. But I can sense when the work is almost complete – when all it needs is just one final line or colour. Sadly, sometimes the entire work is spoilt, and there is no "control z" command to reverse the process.

This isn’t as counter-productive as it seems - it’s all part of the process. Most of my work is really two paintings for the price of one: the more media there is on the surface (paste, glaze, washes, crayon marks), the more interaction there is between myself and the work, and in some ways it becomes a two-way conversation.

And, often enough, all is not lost - at a certain point of uncertainty it is the liveliness of the textured layers that will direct the final markings, with many happy results.

Please leave a comment - I love to hear what people see in my paintings!

Phone or e-mail me if you are interested.
+27 72 6070 778
info@tontogirl.com

oil and acrylic on canvas

acrylic and pastel on canvas