DIY mid-mod abstract artwork

30 Jan 2020

Unleash the artist within and create your own stand-out artwork for any room in your home, like this one by Kate Alexander of Places and Graces.

You will need:

• Resene testpots in your choice of colours – Kate used Resene Turbo, Resene Roadster, Resene Party Zone, Resene Sorbet,Resene Moonbeam and Resene Noir
• A variety of small paintbrushes (angled ones are useful for getting clean edges)
• High-quality painter’s masking tape
• A picture frame – Kate painted hers in Resene Sorbet to match her artwork
• 1 sheet of quality art paper (at least 250gsm, as anything lighter will crinkle from the moisture of the paint)
• Printer and scissors - use Kate’s pre-designed shapes and layout (see below for downloadable templates) or paper and scissors to cut your own shapes to use
• Some inspiration – Kate’s mid-mod artwork was inspired by artists Inaluxe

Step 1 Paint your frame. Kate removed the glass from her frame first and painted it in Resene Sorbet. Be especially careful when placing the glass back in the frame to avoid cuts.

Step 2 Print, cut and arrange your shapes. Print out Kate’s pre-designed shapes and cut around the edges – leaving the inside of the shapes hollow. Gently tape your shape outlines to your quality paper – moving the layout around until you are happy with the balance. Finally, trace around the inside edge of your shapes with a pencil. Remove and discard the paper shapes.

To use the below templates, right click on the template and select ‘save image as’. Save the image to your computer and then print it out.

Use this visual as a guide for layout, or create your own.

Step 3 Paint each shape, going slightly outside the pencil lines. To get a smooth, clean edge of paint, use an angled brush and move the paper 180 degrees with each stroke, so you are not trying to create the whole shape from one angle.

Kate’s DIY artwork is painted in Resene Noir, Resene Roadster, Resene Turbo, Resene Party Zone and Resene Sorbet. The wall is painted in Resene Black White with colour blocks in Resene Turbo. The picture frame is painted in Resene Sorbet, the shelf is in Resene Noir, the picture frame is in Resene Sorbet and the tall vase (on shelf) and plant pot (at right) are in Resene Havoc.

project, styling and step-by-step images Kate Alexander, Places and Graces
final image Bryce Carleton

Published: 30 Jan 2020