Experimenting with dripping paint

I prepared a small canvas by covering it with a  wash of pale yellow acrylic paint. I then used a mixture of different blue watered-down acrylics and allowed it to drip down the surface. The marks were created in response to a piece of music called The Night We Met- Lord Huron that I was listening to at the time, simply following what felt right rather than planning anything specific.

I found it quite difficult to control the drips, as the watered-down acrylic separated in places. I had to gently manoeuvre it with a brush to guide the flow. However, I actually liked the areas where the paint separated. It reminded me of tears. The music I was listening to was quite sad, and it made me think about loss and grief. The way the paint ran down the canvas felt emotional, almost like mascara running down someone’s face and mixing with tears. In some areas the paint appeared darker and heavier, and in others it became more transparent and diluted, which added to that feeling.

This piece was simply a response to how I was feeling while listening to the music. It was not intended to be developed into a larger work. My main focus was to experiment with creating drips. Next, I would like to try using ink to create more defined drip and splash marks to see how the material behaves differently.