I decided to try painting on a black surface. My friend Nina of methodtwomadness.wordpress.com gave me the idea with her wonderful light-on-dark sketches.

I have had this pad of black paper for ages. Once in a while I try a sketch or two, but for the most part, this black pad has been lying dormant.

I subjected one sheet to my ‘fold and dunk’ process with visions of a Paul Klee-ish masterpiece dancing in my head. I was really surprised when the ‘coal black’ of the paper leached into the sink water in which it was soaking.

I squeegied the paper onto my board and, when it was nearly dry, I glazed it with a combination of titanium white/gouache. The folds in the paper did not accept the pigments as well as I thought they would. The end result was a dirty chalk board look. (Show of hands: Who remembers dirty chalk boards from school?)

I used watercolor crayons next to draw a portrait using some shapes that I have used in the past.

Here is my abstract portrait on darkish paper:

Abstract Portrait 021817
12″x9″ Coal Black Drawing Paper 60#