Sculptural Painting

I took a break from my usual painting activities to prepare a special piece as a gift for someone. It is a woven heart made from three pieces of 300 pound Fabriano cold press paper. I made a half size mock up from thin card stock (top photo) to work out the details. 

The next photo shows the piece in progress, with the mock up on the right. I wanted to emphasize the dimensionality so I built up a spacer from 1/4" foam core. I used white glue to fasten alternate strips to more fully express the woven parts. I added some pastel strokes and some scribbles with colored pencil and then finished it off with an acrylic box frame.