Frame Detailing

Turn of the 20th century B&W photograph altered with color pencil, silk and cotton fabric, beading, silk and cotton thread. 36" X 26 1/2"

Turn of the 20th century B&W photograph altered with color pencil, silk and cotton fabric, beading, silk and cotton thread. 36" X 26 1/2"

I‘m constructing the two large frames for the two largest pieces for THE ENCULTURATED WHITE MAN: If the Indians Had Won. Of the 16 pieces in this body of work, the two largest (38″ X 26″) hang on the wall. The rest are hung in the table top frames I refer to as shrines.

Following is the process for casting decorative elements to apply to the frames.

1) I sculpted the decorative element in Sculpy. Usually I would bake the sculpted piece as per instructions, but I chose not to.

2) The sculpted piece was covered with a thin layer of vaseline to act as a mold release. With a tube of 100% silicone caulk, I spread a thin layer over the piece and down the sides. After letting it dry over night, I added a thick 2nd layer and let that dry overnight.

3) Carefully removing the silicone mold, I left it to dry yet another day.

4) Using the vaseline again as a mold release, I smeared the inside of the mold with a thin layer.

5) I mixed the Durham water putty powder with a small amount of water to make a pourable slurry and filled the silicone mold. I tap the mold against the table to release bubbles. The putty dries rock hard and can be removed from the mold within 15 to 20 minutes.

6) There’s some cleaning up to do on the cast pieces. I fill holes with regular carpenter’s putty and sand with a file and sandpaper. I knock off and detail the rough spots with a dremel and small bit. It really does dry rock hard. I need about 60 all together for the two frames.

 

The 3" round piece was first sculpted in sculpy.

100% Silicone caulk for the mold

 

 

 

The mold

Putty mixed with a small amount of water. I use small dixie cups I throw away after each mix. I can only find Durham's Water Putty at LOWE'S.

A cast piece. It needs some cleaning up with carpenter's wood filler, sanding and grinding with a dremel and small bit.

Eventual placement of the cast decorative pieces. The finished frame will be 45 1/2" X 36 1/4". I'll be using Milk paint and gold leaf for color.

 

 

New Gourd Basket — Finished

This basket challenged the arthritis in my right thumb and forefinger, but I finally finished it. Maybe. I think it still needs a little something.

Anyway, the final steps, after weaving the pine needles, was to lace a gold thread through the weaving “alleys”.  Once the gold thread was applied (using needle work terms: couched) I melted pure beeswax and applied to the pine needles on the outside. The wax cools on the pot leaving it looking rather bad — especially when the gold thread work disappears under the layer of wax. I heated the oven to 175 degrees and laid the pot on its side atop a pan lined with aluminum foil.

With the basket heating in the oven, my main concern was the oil painted gourd — how will the heat affect the oil painting? All went well for the first 10 minutes until I began to smell the varnish and the painting beginning to darken slightly. The wax had mostly been absorbed into the warm needles but there were a few spots of un-melted wax. A hair drier managed to beautifully melt the bits of wax into the needles.

I discuss the theme of this basket in my November 29th blog: I’ve titled this piece the RAPTURE BASKET. According to Christian doctrine, at Christ’s second coming the believing dead  shall rise to meet him in Heaven. My painting shows the dead rising in search of heaven only to find planets. If there is no heaven, according to science, I’m thinking that Heaven may be a different dimension. And if physics tells us that there are parallel dimensions, one of them may be “Heaven-like”. Rather than waiting for death and The Rapture, maybe we all have, as living Earthly beings regardless of personal beliefs, access to that dimension one might describe as heavenly. What do you think?

New Gourd Basket (cont.)

The October 11, 2010 post about my new gourd basket left with a prepared painting surface. Below are photos of the images I painted in oil. I composed the images on tracing paper and transferred them to the sanded glossy gesso surface. Painting on a round surface presents composition problems — like the images needing to “match up” from an arbitrary beginning to an arbitrary end. I’m used to painting the entire canvas at once so it was a challenge not to smear or place my hand on wet surfaces. I used a glazing mix with the oil paint so the paint dried rather quickly (overnight).

I’ve titled this piece the RAPTURE BASKET. According to Christian doctrine, at Christ’s second coming the believing dead  shall rise to meet him in Heaven. My painting shows the dead rising in search of heaven only to find planets. If there is no heaven, according to science, I’m thinking that Heaven may be a different dimension. And if physics tells us that there are parallel dimensions, one of them may be “Heaven-like”. Rather than waiting for death and The Rapture, maybe we all have, as living Earthly beings regardless of personal beliefs, access to that dimension one might describe as heavenly. What do you think?

Rapture Basket, oil on canvas applied to gourd, pine needle basketry (in progress). 9" X 11" X 11"

Rapture Basket, oil on canvas applied to gourd, pine needle basketry (in progress). 9" X 11" X 11"

 

Rapture Basket, oil on canvas applied to gourd, pine needle basketry (in progress). 9" X 11" X 11"

Rapture Basket, oil on canvas applied to gourd, pine needle basketry (in progress). 9" X 11" X 11"

As you can see, I’ve done a few inches on the pine needle basketry. The finished height of this is to be determined. Gold detailing will be applied in the end.

All text and images copyright Tamara Ann Burgh 2010

Lots Going On

I have lots of going on in the studio:

1) Painting parts of the new Enculturated White Man Frame (#5).

2) Molding a sculpted trim for the frame using silicone and plaster

3) Parts of the new frame under construction and ready to paint

4) Silver leafing sculpted buttons for the frame

5) Three of the five finished frames (under wraps)

6) A Navajo weaving (covered) in process.

7) Painting of the next gourd — to be added to with pine needle weaving

New Gourd Basket (cont.)

Having lined the gourd with pine pitch (sap) I am ready to gesso the canvas applied to the outer surface. As per my “Crow Pot” (Sept. 18), I am wanting to paint a scene on the canvas that circles the pot.

I had made a paper pattern for the canvas and applied it with Elmer’s carpenter’s glue. For the Crow Pot and other projects, I typically cooked up a batch of rabbit skin glue. Rabbit skin glue is archival and rigorous, but I felt the carpenter’s glue was just as stable and seemed to attach better to the smooth non-pourous surface of the pot.

The paper pattern used to cut the canvas which was applied to the gourd.

Canvas applied to the gourd. Seams are clearly visible. This picture was taken before the pitch was applied to the interior.

I used a thick quick drying oil base gesso from Daniel Smith. I applied and sanded between several coats of gesso.

 

I lined the opening to the basket with grey tape to protect the pitch lined interior from paint dust. The canvas seams are disappearing.

Finally I drilled holes around the top for the pine needle basketry.

The canvas is now ready to apply the sketch. I’ll paint with oil using a transparent technique.

 

New Gourd Basket (cont.)

The steps I’ve taken so far in creating this new basket:

1) removed the top of a gourd

2) cleaned out the inside by soaking the interior with water and scraping out the meat, seeds and membrane

3) lightly torched the interior to burn away debris

4) airbrushed the interior with black acrylic

5) wrapped half of the basket with unprimed canvas using a paper pattern and applied with carpenters glue. I used to use rabbit skin glue but feel the carpenters glue works better.

Next is a layer of spruce pitch (sap) applied to the interior. I’ve done this a few times now, but have not yet honed in on a sure system. The pitch was collected over time from my walks through forested areas with my dogs first in New Mexico and recently here in Arkansas. The New Mexico pitch (sap) is from spruce trees and here the pitch is from tall pines. I’ve yet to identify the type of pine trees. A post from February 2008 shows a pitch treasure I stumbled upon while walking my dogs.

To soften the pitch, I put several nuggets into an aluminum pan sitting in a pan of simmering water. The sap on the bottom of the aluminum pan melted to a honey like consistency, however the the sap not directly touching the aluminum didn’t melt enough to spread. Finally, I abandoned the pan and put the sap directly into the simmering water. This kept it supple enough to spread first with a spatula then with my fingers dipped in turpentine. The turpentine kept the sap from sticking to my fingers.

Next I will add layers of gesso to the canvas exterior to prepare it for painting. The theme of the painting/basket is “Searching for Heaven”.

Collection of pitch gathered from spruce and pine

Hard pitch nuggets placed in aluminum pan inside pan of simmering water

Pitch is soft and supple but not spread-able

Melting the pitch directly in the simmering water proved to be more effective. Pitch lined gourd basket. Smells lovely.

New Gourd and Pine Needle Basket

My work days are a dance between taking care of my elder mother’s needs and making art. I have my own living space below her space. It works out quite well. I usually spend evenings watching TV with her especially if she didn’t need me to drive her somewhere, doctor’s appointment, housework, etc. and I had a productive uninterrupted day in the studio. Since we were both alone all day, I spend dinner and after-dinner hours in her company. I can’t, however, spend an evening watching TV without having some project to work on. So I usually plan ahead of time some art work that I can do in my lap.

My previous blog shows my last finished basket, much of which was made in front of the TV: pine needle weaving and loom beading. Most of the extensive needle work for the Enculturated White Man Project was also done at night while watching (listening to) television. The needle work for that project is done and is in the frame/woodworking stage. Thus, I have begun another gourd basket with the intention of weaving a rather tall pine needle top (while sitting in front of the television, keeping my mother company). Admittedly, I am a heavy television viewer and would be doing art work in front of the boob tube whether taking care of mother or not. My favorite programs are: Mad Men (AMC Sundays at 9:00), The Good Wife (NBC Tuesdays at 9:00), Project Runway (Lifetime Thursdays at 8:00), Hung (HBO, reruns Saturday night) and Big Love (HBO, reruns Saturday night).

The basket is cleaned out on the inside. I soak the interior with water to loosen all the fiber and meat then scrape it out. I airbrush the interior with black waterbase paint when it is dry. I made a pattern to fit around the circumference and applied canvas cut per the pattern and applied to the gourd with wood glue. I have used rabbit skin glue to apply the canvas to the Crow Pot, but I think the wood glue gives a stronger bond. I haven’t decided what I will paint on the canvas, but by the time I give it several coats of primer, I suspect I’ll know what the imagery will be.

Next I need to make a run to my storage shed and dig out the spruce pitch (sap) collected from trees in New Mexico. I’ll soften the pitch in a double broiler to apply to the entire inner surface. The pitch gives the gourd weight, a nice fragrance, water proofing (not that I’ll ever fill it with water) and a beautiful amber like finish.

Basket preparation. The canvas applied to the basket was cut from the paper pattern

The interior was scraped and given a brief pass over with a torch. I then airbrushed it with black water base paint.