Okay, let’s talk about this Gloria Cejudo thing I tried out recently.
So, I kept seeing these really bright, sort of chunky art pieces popping up here and there. Someone mentioned the name Gloria Cejudo, said that was the style, or maybe the artist? Honestly, wasn’t entirely sure, but the look caught my eye. It seemed kinda raw and expressive. Thought to myself, “Okay, I’ve got some old paints, let’s see if I can make something that feels like that.”
Getting Started
First thing, I dug through my storage bin. Found some acrylics, mostly half-used tubes, nothing fancy. Grabbed a couple of small canvases I had lying around from ages ago. I also remembered I had this tub of texture paste, you know, the stuff you mix with paint to make it thick. Perfect, I thought. Didn’t bother looking up any tutorials or anything specific about Gloria Cejudo’s technique. Just had a few images in my head of that bold, textured look. Figured I’d just feel it out.
The Actual Doing
Alright, so I squeezed out some blues and yellows. Big blobs. Then scooped up some of that texture paste with a palette knife – an old plastic one – and started mixing it right on the canvas. Man, it was goopy. Way thicker than I expected. I tried spreading it, making peaks and valleys like in the pictures I remembered. It was kinda fun at first, like playing with mud pies.
Then I started adding more colors. Tried layering a red over a still-wet blue patch. Mistake. Ended up with a weird brownish purple. Not the vibrant clash I was hoping for. Okay, lesson learned: maybe let things dry a bit first? Or maybe use the knife cleaner?
- Tried scraping some paint off with the knife edge. That made some interesting lines.
- Used the wrong end of a brush to scratch into the wet paint. Also kinda cool texture.
- Attempted to blend colors smoothly in one corner. Nope. Texture paste made that impossible. It just stayed lumpy.
The whole process was messy. Got paint on my hands, my shirt, the table. Had to keep wiping the knife. Getting the texture to look deliberate instead of just accidental blobs was the real challenge. Mine mostly looked like accidental blobs.
What Happened in the End
After a couple of hours, I had two small canvases covered in thick, drying paint. They were definitely colorful. And textured. But did they look like the Gloria Cejudo stuff? Not really. Mine felt kinda heavy and overworked. The colors weren’t as clean and bright. More like a happy accident that got a bit out of control.
It wasn’t a total waste of time, though. Got my hands dirty, experimented a bit. Used up some old materials. It reminded me that making things look effortlessly expressive usually takes a lot more skill and practice than you think. So, my attempt at the Gloria Cejudo style? Let’s just say it’s now part of my ‘learning experiences’ pile. It was something I did, a way to spend an afternoon, but I wouldn’t call it a success in replicating that specific style. Maybe needed different paint, or just more patience. Who knows.
