Stencil-and-Scrape Approach to making Art Papers

"Stencil-and-scrape" is how I've dubbed this approach to using stencils; I've blogged about this technique before, but today's post differs in several ways, mostly in that here I'm creating translucent papers for my large collages on canvas.

Why translucent papers?  Because I build multi-layered abstract artworks, and I want to lay translucent papers over earlier layers so that portions of those earlier layers will show thru the papers.  This adds depth and interest to an artwork.

Today I'm using that technique with my 9" x 12" StencilGirl mask Tangled Pods L344.

In an effort to ward off potential confusion, I'll start by showing my entire Pods series:

Tangled Pods L344 looks like this--

Its reverse image, my 9" x 12" stencil Dangled Pods L490, looks like this--

Then there is my 6" x 6" Small Tangled Pods s582, a mask that looks like this ....

 

And there is its 6" x 6" reverse image -- my stencil Small Dangled Pods s581:

In the hope that I've deflected confusion -- rather than creating it! -- I now return to today's demo, which uses my 9" x 12" mask Tangled Pods L344.  (The blue color shown here is not what you'll receive when ordering this mask.  Yours will be clear.)  

Below is the stencil secured to the work surface with masking tape....

  

The photo below shows a sheet of deli wrap masking-tape secured over the stencil.  (In this demo, I started with deli wrap but later switched to white, sturdy tissue paper.)

The photo directly above shows the way I place acrylic paints across the top of the paper; here, I've used orange, yellow and red heavy-body paints.  On the far middle right is the old credit card I'll use for the scraping.

In the two photos below, I show the first scrape and the second scrape; the credit card has been pressed into the paint at the top of the tissue and scraped downward over the tissue, with enough pressure to capture the contours of the stencil openings. 

  

My next step was to set aside the scraped papers to dry.  While they dried, I taped another sheet of tissue atop the stencil and made rubbings, using water-soluble crayons.

 

Now came the need to make this rubbing waterproof, so it can later be used on one of my large collages on canvas.

The method of waterproofing I chose was to spread matte gel over the surface:

This, too, needed to be set aside to dry.

Below are the papers created with the stencil-and-scrape technique  -- with acrylic paint ....

 

And below is the paper I made with water-soluble crayons; the matte gel has now dried, so the paper won't lose any color after being added to a collage on canvas.

 

Below are two collages on canvas made with these papers --

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