5.10.2015

Sun Print Testing

Here are a few samples of sun printing using acrylic paint in preparation for an art day coming up this month with my art group. You can see a beautiful sample over at Alisa Burke's blog here using fabric and here using paper. This is definitely fun and challenging with having supplies ready, the patience not to peek too soon and to know where the sun will be within the approximate 2 hours it takes for the fabric to dry. Wind is an issue as well.

I used Golden Pthalo Blue (red shade) acrylic paint and a variety of fabric to see what would happen. I discovered I needed to add more water in order to really saturate the fabric. My first attempts dried to soon to get the desired results. I also discovered using white fabrics is the best for getting the brightest contrast.

On this first attempt, the fabric was not saturated enough and it dried too soon. You can see just a hint of pines needles on the left top piece and a hint of leaves on the right top piece. The top pieces are muslin and the bottom piece is a satiny material with a design (white on white). Although nothing happened with this print, I now have a beautiful piece of fabric.

These pieces, although I added more water to the paint, still dried too soon for full effect. The piece on the left is canvas and I used elastics and pine needles. The piece on the right is muslin and has netting from an onion bag. Will try this again as I think it would be beautiful on white fabric.

This piece came out the best (practice and testing is always good). Although I think it would be fabulous on white fabric. This is off white muslin. On this piece, I think I found the right mix of water and paint to really saturate the fabric and the leaves are laying flat on the fabric. The leaves are cut from the fronds of a small palm tree in our yard. I just let them fall as I cut without arranging.

It is definitely fun creating your own fabric prints and nothing was safe in my art room…coffee filters, dryer sheets are now blue and will also be getting printed in the sun. Testing fabric paint and dye are next. The sun print paper has been ordered and is on its way. A fun art group day coming up if the sun cooperates.

What are you creating today?

1 comment:

Ginny Stiles said...

So you are just putting acrylic saturated cloths with objects on them out in the sun to dry? Testing different fabrics and different concentrations of paint? This is not some unusual paint or some unusual fabric. Wow. Perfect sun for that today!