While doing other work today my mind wandered to my diamonds. What I find ‘successful’ about them and what I don’t.

My favourite diamonds I have made have loose, drawn outlines, using a dip pen. The smaller diamonds the lines are relatively fine. The larger ones I used a bamboo dip pen.

Some diamonds are ‘complete’, ‘whole’ diamonds, others twist and turn, blend into the background, dissolve, reemerge, etc.

Dip pens slide easily over paper but not so easily over canvas. It also depends on what the canvas is made from. A fine tooth linen? Cotton? Pre-primed with acrylic primer? Or acrylic primer + absorbent ground?

I still find myself holding back but I’m not sure how I’m holding back. I have done so much experimenting over the years to get to this fuzzy, unreachable image/painting in my mind. I’m still not there. The search continues…