9.22.2010

In Progress

A detail of the paintings I have been working on. I may have to start the whole painting over entirely though... My problem is that I have been experimenting with layering an archival tracing paper into my paintings. It is a very thin and delicate paper. I had found a way to apply it to my paintings without it buckling ("YES" paste and a LOT of burnishing with a bonefolder)but I have come to realize it is still buckling and wrinkling if it gets to humid or damp. I left my studio door open to air out some toxic fumes the other day and forgot about it~ and then came back the next morning to find this painting had some wrinkling happening.
You can't see my problem very clearly in this picture, but I promise you it is there. I am disappointed because I thought I had found my perfect, perfect way of layering and adding depth and a waxy appearance with this tracing vellum
*sigh*
We shall see. I am not giving up on it just yet...

Speaking of humidity and things getting wet... I never told you about our crazy mold-carpeted house that we came home to after our trip to NH. We went out and bought a dehumidifier immediately (lesson learned: be proactive with mold and humidity not reactive.) . That first night with all the windows closed we pulled 3 1/2 GALLONS of water out of our 2 room house in less than 12 hours. Crazy huh???

3 comments:

Liz said...

Kelcey,

It must be very frustrating at times to perfect a new process :/ So far, the piece looks amazing!! I love it. Keep at it, you'll get it!

I want to hear more about the mold sometime! How did you clean it all up? How exhausting and worrisome, I am sure, to come home to that! Maybe you can tell me more this week.. can we still get together?

Kat said...

maybe the wrinkling can be embraced (if not in this piece, then in others): it could be thought of as a sort of 'topography,' a layering in a different dimension...?

regardless, this new work is gorgeous!

Anonymous said...

I love Kat's idea of embracing the wrinkles. maybe emphasize them with light paint application just on the high points? I have done something like this and it ends up looking like an old plaster wall. For a smooth look, though, the thing that has worked best for me is acid free UHU glue stick and then burnishing with an old gift card. Those old plastic cards work really well for burnishing, in my experience. I love to read about the technical aspects of your work. Thank you for sharing.