Grandparents – Art Journal Page

I have been doing a lot of illustrations lately, especially drawing people.  I like to shake things up a bit so I was, therefore, looking for something creative to do in my art journal that did not involve illustration.  This week’s Art Journal Adventure prompt was about cameras and photographs so that presented me with the spark of inspiration I needed.  I thought I would create a sort of mixed media scrapbook page, a background for some photographs.

I had a page in my art journal where one of my cats had spilled ink (technically my fault for leaving the lid off the bottle for even an instant) so that became the basis of my background.  I sploshed around a bit more ink, used some found ink to direct the puddles into specific forms (the circles and discs) and then left it to dry.  The monochrome background seemed like it would be best for some monochrome photographs so – thinking vintage – I printed out some photos of my grandparents.  It was then a case of positioning those on the page and, once I was happy with the placement, adding some washi tape and some little mark-making doodles.  I probably went way over the top and made things too busy for a background.  One of the washi tapes has cameras on it so that was an apt find in my stash.

I never knew my biological paternal grandfather (lower right) as he was killed at the end of the Second World War.  That left my grandmother (lower left) as a war widow in her early 30s with three sons to raise.  She supported them by working long hours in the local steamie while her mother, who also worked in the steamie, and a neighbour helped out with childcare.  I admired her strength and fortitude.  My Dad, incidentally, is the toddler in that photo.  The photo at the top of the page is the wedding of my maternal grandparents.  They were both a huge influence on who I am as a person.  I inherited a lot of my interests and passion and feistiness from my Gran.  My Granddad, meanwhile, was just one of the best human beings I ever knew and I feel blessed that I got to have him as my Granddad.  He was full of laughter and fun, was always nurturing and encouraging and endlessly supportive.  He is also responsible for my love of spicy food and my sweet tooth.