So the saga of my grocery bag art continues, but thanks to my artist friend, Scarlett Decker, whom I’ve known via the web for ages, I’m cooking up a new plan that will include spray adhesive and step-by-step foresight.
I kept racking my brain, trying to remember how I was able to assemble this piece for the Jerusalem Biennial back in 2015. I knew I used my trusty Nova Color acrylic polymer. I have used it for decades. I use the matte version, and I’ve used it for all my pattern paintings. I think the problem occurred when I tried to cover a large area of the bag without having a stable, flat backing.
In the Jerusalem pice, I used little pieces of paper, one piece at a time, i.e., receipts, matchbooks, bits of stationery, trash, and other small, lightweight ephemera. I also had it pinned to a wall when I painted the blue over it, and the rest.
The pattern paper is #125 weight. It’s as heavy as the bag paper, if not heavier. And the bag I was using was wrinkled from the start. I’ve since ironed it and it looks a whole lot better. I may even be able to save it. The composition will slightly deviate from my original idea since I want to start fresh again on the next. If I keep the one I’m working on, I don’t want to replicate it and have two.
Needless to say, I will be ironing all the bags before I begin doing anything to them. Now the plan is to cut, iron, paint in acrylic, spray adhesive, stick the paper and fabric, spray fixative over that and see if it will take oils. If it doesn’t, plan on being done with all the painting after the ironing stage.
In the meantime, today, we are rearranging our garage a bit to make wall space for the bags. I can’t exactly spray all that toxic shit in the house. Peee-yooo!
