Play is the exultation of the possible. Martin Buber
SACRED ART-PLAY
Helpful Hints or, Things I've Learned the Hard Way
Glue
I use a fine brush to dab glue in tight spaces. You could also use a toothpick or the tip of a pin.
My favorite all-purpose glue is artist's gel medium. You can get it in a matte or glossy finish and use it both to adhere things to a surface and also to coat your work like decoupage. It's available at artist supply stores and craft stores like Michaels.
Diamond Glaze is great for gluing small objects like beads to a surface. It can also be used to give the appearance of glass over an image; make sure you apply the glue slowly to avoid bubbles.
Gorilla Glue is the best all-purpose glue for strength and endurance. It is waterproof and bonds to just about any surface (it does expand as it dries and does not dry clear). Michael deMeng, assemblage artist and lover of rusty things, swears by it. Below he shares about his experience of the process of making art:
One of the best tips I've found is to use the pages of an old phone book to glue on. Turn a page and there's another clean surface. No mess on the table!
Paint
I use acrylic paint for the most part. It doesn't have to be expensive though. For many techniques the cheap stuff works even better!
The lid of a Cool Whip container (or any white dish) makes a great palette for mixing paints and it can be reused over and over again.
Seed Beads
When lining an area with beads, rather than applying each one individually, string them on thread with a needle. Apply glue to the area where you'd like the beads to go and then apply the "necklace" of beads to this spot.
An old muffin tin is a great way to keep a variety of beads and other small objects organized and within reach.
Paper
There are an infinite number of gorgeous handmade papers available out there but you can also create your own. You can make custom papers specifically for your project that will have your own unique style. You can swirl paint on a page, blow it around with a straw, drip it onto a page like Jackson Pollock, etc. Add layers and depth by printing on top of your paper when it's dry. You can use a variety of materials for printing. Try dipping paint in bubble wrap, packing peanuts, corrugated cardboard, or sponges and printing on your paper.
Antique Effects
Paper can be aged by using brewed coffee or tea. The tea should be brewed strongly using 5 teabags in 1/2 cup of boiling water. Coffee is made by boiling 1/2 cup of water and adding 2-3 tablespoons of instant coffee granules. Allow coffee or tea to cool down first. Then spill onto paper and allow to dry. Try crumpling the paper first to add even more texture and interest.
Use sandpaper or an emery board to distress a surface and then rub coffee or tea over it.
Kitchen Colorants
Vanilla extract adds a delicate brown color and smells delicious!
Try grinding up spices like paprika or turmeric and dissolving them in water to add color. You can use them like glitter to add color and texture.
Unsweetened Kool-aid
Food colors
Easter egg dyes
Fruits like raspberries or blueberries.
Beets (you can carve them and stamp with them too)
From Mixed Mania, by Debbi Crane and Cheryl Prater
Rust
You can create rust by soaking an object in a mixture of half bleach and half white vinegar. It can take a few hours to a few days. Lightly sanding the surface of the object speeds the process as does adding an object that is already rusted to the container. This is much less expensive than the special rust kits in craft stores but it doesn't work on all metal. This has a very strong smell so be sure and do it in a very well-ventilated area.
Metal Tape
Your local hardware store carries adhesive backed silver colored metal tape that can be used to decorate your project. You can score it and use ink on it to give it character or give it texture by drawing a design with a pointed tool like a pencil or chopstick.
Helpful Hints
Where to Find Things
There are an infinite number of possibilities. Root around in your attic, catch-all drawer, or closet. Check out your photo albums and copy the ones that speak to you (ink jet copies are fine as long as you coat your project with some kind of decoupage medium). Go to a flea market or thrift shop or garage sale. Check out Craigs List freebies. Your local hardware store has lots of metal objects that can be painted and repurposed.
Images - Magazines (finally a use for all of those National Geographic magazines sitting on the shelf), photographs (make copies - regular, not glossy paper), postcards, greeting cards, etc.
One of my favorite things is to do a Google image search on a theme or topic. All kinds of interesting images will pop up that you can print out and use on your shrine. Some of the images will spark new ideas and creative solutions.
SCRAP - is a store dedicated to caring for the environment by recycling and reusing things that would ordinarily end up in a landfill. They have a huge variety of cheap items for creative art projects.
2915 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Portland, OR 97212
(503) 294-0769
The ReBuilding Center - carries the region’s largest volume of used building and remodeling materials. It provides resources that make home repairs affordable to everyone, with the goal of promoting reuse. They sell drawers for $3-5 that can be used to create shadowboxes or shrines as well as a huge assortment of building materials like bolts, washers, drawer pulls, etc. that can be used in completely new and different ways.
The ReBuilding Center
3625 N. Mississippi Ave.
Portland, OR 97227
(503)331-1877
"It is a battle to get the work to finally start working with me," says deMeng. "Once that happens it's easy to get going; but when I'm first trying to make a decision of which way to go with all the various materials I've assembled, it's just sheer hell. It's like I'm pleading with the piece of art, 'Please tell me what you want from me!' Usually I get to this stage of, 'What am I even thinking? I'm not an artist. Who could even think that I'm an artist, I suck, I'm lousy, I'm horrible, I can't think of anything original to do.'
"Then, usually, at that point I start getting really desperate and trying weird stuff and then, finally, doorways start to open."
What Kind of Stuff to Use
Anything and everything!
springs, spools, tintypes, old watch parts, wooden printing blocks, metal wall brackets, wooden game pieces, antique door hinges, playing cards, tiny tree ornaments, mahjong tiles, vintage postcardes, quail eggs, bottle caps, chandelier crystals, old survey patterns, ... .
