Angled Color Block Panel

Some of my artwork comes from salvaged materials or whatever I have laying around to act as a base of design. After building a desk for my wife’s home office, I was left with the long strips of smooth birch plywood. I thought the vertical dimensions of the remaining strips would work well for some new designs.

THE PROCESS…

There was no shortage of layering going into this piece. Unlike some of my fine pattern work, this one required a lot of strategic planning to correctly lay out all the color blocks, not to mention an entire roll of 2” painters tape.

The grid color blocks came out fantastic, but the piece felt rather flat compared to the intricate work I usually work towards. After much debate (and a little regret at first), I started adding background blocks of 1/8 inch stripes. This is one of those elements that will either make or break it. One stripe out of place and it would visually disrupt everything.

THE RESULT…

Not gonna lie. I wasn’t sure how this would end up, but I’m pretty happy with the results. Keeping a larger section of clean wood at the base gives it a sense of balance as such a vertical piece. The background stripes really added the level of depth needed to round it off. Add a little edge banding to clean up the rough cut edges of the plywood and it makes a welcome edition to my studio.

I’m looking forward to the next piece in this “genre.” After experimenting with the materials, I think it’s time to scale up. The piece measures at 24” W x 44”H. It’s currently for sale, but I may have a hard time parting with it for awhile.

Looking forward to your questions, comments, and critiques. Leave your responses below.

- Petr