I get the question if “bloodwork” actually means I use blood in my painting fairly often.
The answer is yes, I use my blood in some of my painting, and if the painting is described as having blood in it, it has my blood in it.
It’s been quite the experience over the years to do this. There are members only posts on the website that talk about the processes I’ve undertaken about it, where I got the idea, all that stuff. At one time it was such a pain in the ass to collect my blood by myself, I charged a lot for these paintings and they took a long time to complete. Who knew you could just buy phlebotomy equipment online?
Nowdays, A friend of mine who is a phlebotomist comes over periodically to draw blood for me, which I then freeze and store. I use blood to pigment acrylic mediums, usually heavy gels and molding paste.
Painting with blood is a fascinating process to watch – when I first work with the blood mixed in a heavy gloss, it has a creamy consistency and peachy-orange color. As it dries and cures the color deepens to a beautiful brick red and becomes opaque. In molding paste, it stays a peach color and creamy consistency. The many coasts of varnish I complete these pieces with look amazing, and in time I want to play with epoxy for a thick, glossy finish.
I also use complimenting acrylic paint colors in the pieces. Though using my blood in my work has become more consistent, each bloodwork piece is a unique and special testament to something meaningful in my life, and I, historically, rarely sell them.
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