My "Grapes of Wrath" art has been published !!

I entered a challenge from Stampington & Co. earlier this year to create art representing Classic Literature.  At first I imagined creating a mixed media piece of one of my own favorite books.  Then I began to browse through the vintage photos I have saved on my PC.  When I found the photo of two children working in the vegetable fields, I knew that was the one I wanted to use for my art.  I've saved this vintage photo for several years because of the look on their faces and the story that the photo told.  So this photo became the beginning of my art representing "Grapes of Wrath."

During my creative process for this art, I went to the library for a copy of "Grapes of Wrath" to reread.  It's amazing how different it read for me now from how the story was for me many years ago. 

After searching through my photos I chose another one - this time it was my father and his friend sitting on the running board of an old pickup truck - a photo from the 1940s.  I found a photo of cotton fields to add, and a US map showing Route 66 crossing the country. 

I wanted a brown and tan look to the art to echo the Dust Bowl feeling, and based the canvas in acrylic paints in those colors.  I added vintage lace, vintage papers and pieces of my handmade paper.  Under the photos I used burlap and wrinkled fabrics.  I printed quotes from the book and glued them to coffee stained tags, along with the cotton field photo.  I added a vintage car key, a vintage button and an envelope dated in the 1940s.

While the style of this mixed media was a bit different for me (I didn't include any of my own drawing) I really enjoyed the process!

You can find my "Grapes of Wrath" in Stampington & Company's magazine Somerset Studio Gallery, Winter 2011 issue.  Thank you Stampington & Co. for publishing my art!