The concept was good, the execution... not so much. I had drawn the outline of my thumb holding the book. I then added white gouache to block out the print beneath my thumb. I let it dry overnight, thinking that it would become permanent and I could paint over it the way you can glaze with watercolors by letting them dry thoroughly. I wanted to mix the skin color on the page by adding Naples Yellow and Permanent Rose and letting them blend. But they were too wet, I guess, and the white gouache began to dissolve and mix in. Then the paper began to buckle and soften. After letting it dry, I switched to watercolor pencils. They were probably the better medium for this idea, but they don't blend smoothly enough to create a skin tone. I guess I'll resign myself to the fact that this piece probably won't hang in the National Gallery 8>)
But this was a good entrance to my next project which is to collage or draw on found books. I have a whole collection of books that have been given to me that I probably won't read and are of no value to second hand dealers. For a hardened library worker like myself, it has been extraordinarily hard to deliberately deface a book. This was a baby step on the road to literary destruction!
