Secrets in Limestone 1.0
This 8x54" silk banner depicts the underground layers of a limestone aquifer, flowing downward from the realistic, scientific depictions into the fantastical, surreal underworld of secret caves.
I painted the enclosing lines using a water-based resist (starch paste) and then filled in the spaces with brushed on dye, layering more resist over the dye in certain places to obtain color effects.
Obtaining larger areas of dye is challenging, but in cases where it fails and "watermarks" appear, they can add to the atmospheric effects.
My favorite area is this "lake" inside the limestone cave that is a blend of viridian green and black. While real aquifers do not have "lakes" of water, but rather layers of water soaked "sand" and rock, the few limestone caverns that admit visitors do occasionally flood during intense rains and then lakes appear.
The final layer is an imaginary zone of amethyst magic. All together, the goal is to express the genuine mystery that lays beneath our feet, either in myths or legends or in actual science, which is incapable of penetrating or visualizing every detail in this close space.