So, armed with a memory stick full of photos, I attended the South Hill Park Arts Centre in Bracknell to do a digital media workshop making a fresco with the wonderful Janet Curley Cannon.
On day one Janet gave us a talk about digital fresco and the techniques developed in Digital Art Studio by Lhotka, Krause & Schminke (one of my favourite books, and the main reason I bought my large-format printer).
Janet also gave us a whistle-stop refresher session in photo-shop techniques and I used the following five images:
On day one Janet gave us a talk about digital fresco and the techniques developed in Digital Art Studio by Lhotka, Krause & Schminke (one of my favourite books, and the main reason I bought my large-format printer).
Janet also gave us a whistle-stop refresher session in photo-shop techniques and I used the following five images:
.........to make this digital collage for the fresco.
This was a really useful part of the session because I'd forgotten some of the basics of using layers in this way.
We then painted a mixture of InkAid digital ground and acrylic flow medium onto a sheet of mylar, and left it overnight to dry.
On Sunday it was time to print the image, and I had another useful session from Janet on using the Epson large-format printer with photoshop, and printed onto the digital ground.
The print was then left to dry whilst we prepared the fresco panel. We made a well with gaffer tape around a supported plywood board, then poured a mixture of rabbit-skin glue and white marble powder onto the board.
When the surface was tacky to the touch, we transferred the print from the mylar onto the fresco panel. It was really exciting and a bit like magic, watching the image slowly release from the mylar.
On Sunday it was time to print the image, and I had another useful session from Janet on using the Epson large-format printer with photoshop, and printed onto the digital ground.
The print was then left to dry whilst we prepared the fresco panel. We made a well with gaffer tape around a supported plywood board, then poured a mixture of rabbit-skin glue and white marble powder onto the board.
When the surface was tacky to the touch, we transferred the print from the mylar onto the fresco panel. It was really exciting and a bit like magic, watching the image slowly release from the mylar.
It's a lot like a polaroid transfer, but on a larger scale. I love the additional textures that were created during the transfer process, and when dry it can also be painted onto with encaustic paint (or other media).
It was the best workshop I've attended for a good long while. I loved South Hill Park Arts Centre, which was lively and full of action, sound, and visual art in a beautiful building full of people of all ages; exactly as a good arts centre should be.
I had fun with the other participants who produced some amazing images and we really bonded well; it really felt like we'd been working together for ages.
Janet's teaching style was relaxed and informative, and I loved the range of skills she covered. I'll definitely be going back in the spring to do another of her workshops in printmaking.
It was the best workshop I've attended for a good long while. I loved South Hill Park Arts Centre, which was lively and full of action, sound, and visual art in a beautiful building full of people of all ages; exactly as a good arts centre should be.
I had fun with the other participants who produced some amazing images and we really bonded well; it really felt like we'd been working together for ages.
Janet's teaching style was relaxed and informative, and I loved the range of skills she covered. I'll definitely be going back in the spring to do another of her workshops in printmaking.
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