Bringing Pen Plotter Art to the Grand Palais
I’m beyond thrilled to share that my latest piece, Synapses, will be featured at Art Capital - Comparaison 2025, held at the Grand Palais in Paris! The exhibition runs from February 19 to 22, 2025.Learn more about the event here. This project is especially meaningful to me because it marks my first time experimenting with canvas and watercolors. It’s been both a challenge and a joy, pushing me to explore new creative depths. Can’t wait to see it all come together!
About Synapses
Synapses comes from my fascination with abstract forms that suggest something real. I love how shapes and patterns can make us see things that aren’t actually there. With this piece, I wanted to explore how ideas come to life in the brain—the way synapses connect and spark new thoughts. I’m especially interested in those moments when instinct takes over, like choosing between two colors when you can’t decide.
The Challenges I Faced
Finding the Right Canvas
I needed a canvas that worked well with watercolors. After testing several options, I settled on the primed cotton Phoenix P6031. It has a smooth texture and keeps the paint from bleeding too much. It took a while to find the right one, but it made a huge difference.
Picking the Right Inks
At first, I tried Dr. Ph. Martin’s Tech Drawing inks because they’re UV resistant, but the colors didn’t blend well and looked faded. Then I switched to Ecoline watercolors, which gave me the bright, smooth blends I wanted, but they’re not archival and fade in sunlight.
Finally, I found Schminke Waterdrop ink, recommended by Jenslabs. These inks are UV resistant because they’re ink-based and provided a beautiful finish with excellent lightfastness. Since it’s ink-based, it’s UV resistant and offers great lightfastness with a beautiful finish. Huge thanks to Jenslabs for the suggestion.
Balancing Ink Levels
Getting the right amount of ink in the pen was crucial. Too little, and the lines looked pale and lifeless. Too much, and they turned thick and messy. Finding that perfect balance took some trial and error, but it made all the difference.
Fixing the Line Order
For this piece, I’m using Truchet tiling, which has one major drawback—I can’t control the order of the lines. If a new line overlapped a dried one, the result was too dark. I spent hours rearranging the lines in my files to fix this. It was tricky, but in the end, it was worth the effort.
What’s Next?
Working on Synapses has pushed me to experiment with new materials and techniques. I’m excited to keep working with canvas throughout 2025, and I already have more pieces in the works. A huge thank-you to Nima Nabavi (Instagram) for encouraging me to try canvas during the Plotter Fest 2024 in Peekskill. His support made a big difference in this creative journey.
If you’ll be in Paris in February 2025, come see Synapses at Art Capital - Comparaison 2025. You can learn more about the event here. I’ll also be sharing more behind-the-scenes updates soon!