Paste-afarian
Apr. 25th, 2022 09:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
offcntrThe first workshop Denise and I took, on Friday, was on creating decorative paste papers using natural colorants. We've made paste papers together before, using acrylic paints for color. This was a much deeper dive.
For one thing, Iris had us mix up our own colors. Each of us got a couple of cups of starch paste,* and a plant, animal or mineral pigment. Choices included cochineal (a bug), madder and indigo (plants) and a whole bunch of different earth pigments: red and yellow ochre, raw and burnt sienna, even an earth green from Verona, Italy. We mixed some liquid soap and glycerin into the paste, muddled the pigment with gum arabic, and then combined them to make a colored paste. As a potter, I felt obliged to pick an iron pigment; I chose yellow ochre.
For those who were concerned that natural colors might be pale or subdued, have a look at my palette. Clockwise from the top, that's Blue Ridge Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Luberon Red Ochre, Madder, Indigo and Cochineal.
We had great fun working on different substrates: Colored paper, navigation charts, Braille paper Denise had brought from home. I'd made some different combing tools from old credit cards and an expired driver's license, but some of my favorite pieces were just plain finger-painted.
We got a good bit of natural pigment theory, along with the hands-on experience of mixing the materials, but we also just had fun channeling our inner kindergartner. Especially me, who never actually attended kindergarten.
*Recipe:
1/4 part each wheat flour, rice starch, potato starch and cassava starch, dissolved in one part cold water to make a slurry. Slowly pour into 3-4 parts hot water, stirring constantly, and simmer over low heat until mixture thickens and turns translucent.
For two cups paste, add two teaspoons each Dr. Bronner's soap and glycerin, and mix two teaspoons pigment with the same amount of liquid gum arabic.
For one thing, Iris had us mix up our own colors. Each of us got a couple of cups of starch paste,* and a plant, animal or mineral pigment. Choices included cochineal (a bug), madder and indigo (plants) and a whole bunch of different earth pigments: red and yellow ochre, raw and burnt sienna, even an earth green from Verona, Italy. We mixed some liquid soap and glycerin into the paste, muddled the pigment with gum arabic, and then combined them to make a colored paste. As a potter, I felt obliged to pick an iron pigment; I chose yellow ochre.
For those who were concerned that natural colors might be pale or subdued, have a look at my palette. Clockwise from the top, that's Blue Ridge Yellow Ochre, Venetian Red, Luberon Red Ochre, Madder, Indigo and Cochineal.
We had great fun working on different substrates: Colored paper, navigation charts, Braille paper Denise had brought from home. I'd made some different combing tools from old credit cards and an expired driver's license, but some of my favorite pieces were just plain finger-painted.
We got a good bit of natural pigment theory, along with the hands-on experience of mixing the materials, but we also just had fun channeling our inner kindergartner. Especially me, who never actually attended kindergarten.
*Recipe:
1/4 part each wheat flour, rice starch, potato starch and cassava starch, dissolved in one part cold water to make a slurry. Slowly pour into 3-4 parts hot water, stirring constantly, and simmer over low heat until mixture thickens and turns translucent.
For two cups paste, add two teaspoons each Dr. Bronner's soap and glycerin, and mix two teaspoons pigment with the same amount of liquid gum arabic.