Saturday, September 22, 2018

Memory Lane

A fossil shell found on the beach. These shells of Late Pleistocene age are not really rare, but they're great to find. I have used it in this artwork, but didn't stick it to the canvas permanently (see details and additonal photos below). What I like mostly is the pattern (smooth at the right; crenelated at the left as if two specimens have merged) and the way these shells grow. They are not flat but almost rolled up, creating a small calcium wave.
[Daily Abstraction 218092201. Painting available].


I thought it would be a pity to use glue or gel to stick this fossil specimen permanently to the canvas. Therefore I used a small hook in which the clam could be hung. The inner spoon of the shell itself is amazingly strong, so this construction works out fine. If ever necessary, the shell can be removed from the canvas. These shells are Late Pleistocene, approximately 100,000 years old.



Here's the artwork, sand and acrylics upon canvas, with the small hook attached to it. The painting is ready and varnished. I love to use drippings of paint. Put into wet sand, you only have to wait and see where the paint will go; creating interesting patterns in the sand.






The finishing touch (the shell, not my hand...), ready to be placed upon the canvas. As you can see there's another artwork waiting to be completed. I usually work on a couple of paintings at the same time. These small objects mostly six or eight at the same time.









So. What is it and where did I find it? The specimen was found on September 18, 2018 at a beach, next to a small nature reserve 'Kwade Hoek' in Stellendam (The Netherlands); a beach directly located at the North Sea. It is determined as Zirfaea crispata also known as 'Ruwe boormossel' (or Oval piddock in English). The official data:
Regnum: Animalia Linnaeus, 1758
Phylum: Mollusca Linnaeus, 1758
Classis: Bivalvia Linnaeus, 1758
Soort: Zirfaea crispata (Linnaeus, 1758)

The graphic paper shows the dimensions is in cm.