This painting was a study in problem solving for me. I knew what I wanted, but I didn’t know how to get there. However, through my brainstorming and experimenting, I found and used some new and effective techniques that I absolutely fell in love with, including a stippling technique that made the texture in this piece just pop!!
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My Process
I wanted to create a realistic map of the Outer Banks, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to transfer the image to the surface of black wax in a way that would be easy to see. Carbon paper wasn’t going to work. I didn’t want to trace the map, either, and hope that the faint indented lines were easy enough to see. I finally decided to use a perforated hole technique.
- I laid the map over the wax surface, making sure the lines were where I wanted them to be.
- Using a needle, I punched tiny holes through the paper into the wax along the edges of the map and up the rivers, outlining the barriers of land and water.
- Once I perforated all the edges I wanted, I peeled the paper map away from the surface of the wax. This was a bit tough- the paper had a tendency of sticking to the wax, but with a little finagling I go everything loose.
- I retraced my perforated lines with the needle to make them plain lines I could add color to.
- Wearing latex gloves, I rubbed white oil paint into all the crevices. This is called an “incised line” technique, and you can also do it by painting over the lines with wax.
- Once the lines were filled as much as could be, I used a linseed oil soaked paper towel to wipe away the excess paint.
With my map outlined in white, I fused the surface lightly to bring back the lustrous look of the wax (oil can smudge things up a bit). Now, the texture!
Stippling Technique
The texture I added to the land portion of my painting is really the highlight of this piece. It gives the map a topographical look that is just awesome. I seriously love it soooo much.
- I used a tiny stencil brush, with course bristles, to add wax to the surface with a stippling technique. The definition of stipple is “to paint, engrave, or draw by means of dots or small touches.” I used small touches (up and down over and over again) with my course brush to create a build up of wax.
- Fusing is SUPER important when you’re doing this. If you try to stipple layers over and over without fusing, the brush will pull them apart and you won’t be able to build very much. In fact, I would say that the more often you fuse, the better. Just remember to do it lightly. Don’t melt all that texture you’ve just made!
- I would also say, that the top layer is the most important. You can paint and fuse to build up layers if you want some height, and then simply stipple the top layer. For big sections, this may be the most efficient way of doing it.
Well, there you have it! What do you guys think? Do you love it as much as I do?!