Gabor and Itzel at the Aquarium

"Gabor and Itzel at the Aquarium" is an example of the mixed-media works on paper that she does when she travels and teach abroad. The artist has developed a technique which is very uncommon it seems, except that artists have always known that water and oil repel each other. Normally, one would do watercolor first and then maybe, add oil pastel or another medium. But she sketches the subject first in charcoal, then spray it so the line drawing sets the composition. Then she outlines the lines in different colors with Caran d'ache Swiss oil crayons. Next Nan fills in partially each area with oil pastels or oil sticks, and finally, she paints different areas with watercolor which acts as a resist and fills in any remaining spaces. It gives the resulting artwork a textured look.

This work is part of her Pre-Colombian series done from sketching at the Rufino Tamayo Museum in Oaxaca, Mexico. Last winter she spent 5 days sketching in 2D the tiny 3D 3,000 year old sculptures. She then made up Mexican-like back-rounds and even gave them Mayan names. These characters are so human and showed a wonderful sense of humor so many centuries ago. The work is 20 x20 matted and framed.