... nature drove my professional career, I found joy in exploring “right-brain” creative projects – interior decorating, art collecting, antiquing, cross stitching, gourmet cooking, colorful clothing, wild shoes, and “bling” accessories. As a life-long enthusiast of multiple art forms, I decided to create my own treasures. With no formal training and self-taught skills, I have mastered unique techniques and produce original paintings with high-quality materials.

I vow to never devalue my artwork with prints, lithographs, giclées, or other duplication methods – documented in the Certificate of Authenticity included with each painting. I designed a unique Certificate of Authenticity and hand write the information about your painting, sign, date, and place a round, silver seal which I emboss with a notary-like tool that provides raised lettering: “Art by S. Knowles < SEAL > Authentication.” Each purchase also includes an anodized aluminum tag in either gold or silver engraved with “Susan Lynn Knowles, Art by S. Knowles.” The tag may be placed on a frame or a wood plaque below your painting to give it a “museum-like” identification. Samples of a Certificate of Authentication and Tag are provided on my Gallery page.

My resin paintings capitalize on the intense depth and superior, glossy sheen of working with epoxy resin and colored Mica powders. In production, these works are a sticky mess, but worth the challenge and beautiful end product. My fluid pouring acrylic artwork showcases my passion for amazing color combinations and provides mysterious textures, cell formations, and earthy designs often mistaken for marble or granite. Details on my process and technique are provided below.

Substrate: For a resin painting, I use a high-quality wood panel made of cradled birch. Gesso board is sometimes used for smaller pieces. Both provide a smooth, non-sagging surface that can support the resin’s weight. For acrylic paintings, I use a high-quality canvas or gesso board.

Priming: Gesso prepares the surface for painting. For resin work, this seal is critical on a wood substrate to prevent off-gases that would create bubbles in the resin. Depending on my selected colors and intended result, I use white, black, or clear gesso.

Color Selection: I spend significant time selecting the mica powders or acrylic paints for each painting. For resin paintings, I use mica powders to color the resin. Mica is a naturally occurring silicate mineral with naturally shiny flakes which are sterilized and ground into fine particles. These powders provide a metallic or shimmery, pearl-like effect. When mixed with epoxy resin, mica powders produce amazing color, mysterious depth, and exceptional luminescence. For acrylic paintings, many of my acrylic colors are metallic or iridescent.

Resin Preparation: For resin, the underside edges of the substrate are covered with electrical tape so that the drips that collect on the bottom will easily pull off with the tape. Any remaining drips are removed with a heat gun and “shovel” attachment. Resin is self-leveling, so a resin painting must cure on a completely level surface. The curing area is prepared in advance of painting with underlying parchment paper to collect inevitable drips. The substrate is elevated with artist pyramids and meticulously leveled in all directions using paper or index cards of various thicknesses.

Resin Product: I use artist-grade resin made by ArtResin. It contains a proprietary blend of UV light stabilization and Hindered Amine Light Stabilizers (HALS) to ensure it stays clear and does not yellow long term.

Acrylic Product: I use a mix of Floetrol, artist-grade acrylic paints, gloss medium, and a very small amount of reverse-osmosis water to obtain the desired consistency for pouring. Once paint is well mixed, I very gently fold into each cup a small amount of cosmetic-grade dimethicone. Its use increases the number of cells – the beautiful circles and ovals that create a unique texture and mysterious results, often mistaken for marble or granite.

Resin Process: One-to-one parts of epoxy resin and hardener are slowly and gently mixed together for 3 minutes. Once the resin and hardener are poured into the same cup, the chemical hardening process starts, and I have 40 minutes to complete the painting – the working time before curing starts and the resin becomes too stiff to manipulate or torch. Mixed resin is poured into cups – one for each color in the painting. Mica powders are then used to color the resin. Each cup takes about three minutes to gently but fully mix the mica powder into the resin. Once all resin colors are mixed, precious little time remains to do the painting - a challenge I enjoy. I paint with the different colors of resin. Generally, the resin colors are poured, finger-painted, dripped, applied or manipulated with craft sticks or other items with sweeping or decorative motions. The substrate may be tilted at various degrees and angles to achieve a desired look. Regularly, resin colors are reserved for targeted application in the latter stages of painting. Because resin is so sticky, I go through numerous pairs of nitrile gloves – “wardrobe changes.”

Acrylic Process: Most of my acrylic fluid paintings use a “dirty-cup” pour: I pour paint from each cup color into one or more larger cups with variations in pouring height, volume of paint, pouring pace and style, mixing technique, number of layers, and other alternatives. Generally, I pour directly onto the substrate in a desired pattern. Often during the painting process, the substrate is tilted at various angles and degrees to achieve a desired result. A small amount of each acrylic color is reserved for targeted application during the painting process.

Torching: At the end of the painting process, I use a propane torch, sweeping the flame directly over the painting surface. For resin, the flame removes bubbles, burns off any tiny dust particles that may have landed, and provides a magical clearing and glass-like finish. For acrylic, the flame evokes and further develops cells.

Curing: For resin, a cardboard cover is placed over a painting-in-cure to protect it from air-borne particles. Even a slight difference in leveling results in the resin slowly moving to the low point. So, during the first hour, I check the painting frequently for drips and adjust leveling accordingly. Resin work takes at least 5 days to fully cure. For acrylic work, the drying time is 2 to 4 days, depending on the paint thickness.

Finish: For resin, once it cures, the painting is complete and signed. No sealant or other product is applied. The amazingly shiny surface is simply the cured, colored resin. For acrylic, a complete cure of about 15-20 days is needed before applying any satin or semi-gloss protective finish and signature.

Please enjoy my work!