I'm experimenting with making some cut construction fence-like pieces and coating them with either the matt medium or fabric stiffener so they're more fence-like. I'm going to be in a two-person show in March, in a HUGE gallery space in an old mill building. I'd like to try making an installation in a corner of the gallery using the construction fence-like pieces so both sides of the fabric can be seen. I have this idea in my head, and I hope I can pull it off. If I'm not happy with the stiffened fabric "fences," I can do it again, but quilt it, cut holes in it, and paint color on the back side so it's not white. I'll keep you posted.
As I'm working on the bigger pieces I'm thinking about, I'm also thinking of having some fun, short term, with the two little samples I made by shooting pictures of them in different locations, as shown above. This one is looking through the fence in a bedroom in my house. I imagine many different fun pictures, similar to those I've seen when people take pictures of their gnomes all over the world. I don't inspire to travel the fabric fences all over the world, but it could be fun to see different backgrounds through the holes.
Below are pictures of my two small experiments after I cut the holes in the fabric and stiffened it. It's impossible to show the different textures on the web, just like it's impossible to taste a recipe on the radio, but here's a quick description ...
This one I coated with Golden Paint's GAC 400: Fabric Stiffener (described below) from the Golden website:
- Dries to a very hard and stiff film.
- Most useful for priming fabrics (cotton, linen, silk, etc.) when stiffness is desired.
- Allows sculpting and shaping of draped fabrics.
I like the stiffness. It puckered a little when coated, and makes a decent fabric fence.
This one I coated with watered down matt medium. The outer texture is nice, but it's rather floppy.
A friend of mine picked up some Paverpol, which is also a fabric stiffener. I need to plan a rendezvous with her to pick it up. Then I'll give it a try and compare it to the other two products. I did read a warning about it online that said not to let any of it go down the drain because it can harm plumbing. When I try if, I'll have to find a different way to wash my brushes and dispose of the water after cleanup.
