Resin, my love
It all started with the fading color on one of my artworks. Not only was this one pretty time-consuming to finish because of the size, but the fading color was the predominant color in the drawing and it simply made me sad seeing it get lost so soon.
It wasn't difficult to establish the "culprit" for this color fading happening so fast. The picture frame of the drawing hung in a very bright room - lots of windows, sun was shining in the room for the most part of the day.
I realized, I needed a backup plan for my artwork, since it was suddenly clear, how quick all can get lost.
Two different work processes resulted from this sudden awareness - I started to scan my work and looked for a way to protect the finished artworks.
I needed something to protect my drawings from the sun - some kind of a UV protection layer.
I tried different kind of transparent paint coatings. It wasn't bad, but didn't look very reliable or the scare I had with the fading color of the first drawing simply didn't let go of me easily.
I remembered the synthetic resin coatings sometimes used for floorings I got to see a couple of years ago at a construction fair and started looking online for the suitable version for artworks.
Patience never was my strong point so I decided, the best way to get to know this new material, is to try it out. I read the product descriptions and precautions, the reviews and advice for a suitable product on Amazon and ordered a little bit to try it out.
The little recipients in which the two different components were, came together with flyers regarding other products and contact info of the artist representative of the company selling this products. I looked her up immediately and was very happy to find out she is offering guidance for using this medium. Guidance in the form of workshops for different levels of know-how, advice by telephone and info, where to find out more about the products.
I tried to book a workshop about the basics right away, but these courses are very popular, so I only could book one in advance for the autumn 2019 - this was about a year ago, February/March 2019.
Last October I participated in my basics workshop with Stefanie Etter - the artist representative of the company selling this products in Germany.
Right after the first workshop, I booked the next one, for this last weekend.
This was the "master course". In the evening after the three-day-workshop, I booked the next one, for the coming fall.
I am fascinated by this medium. It is the complete opposite of what I usually do - very precise drawings and crosshatch with very thin tipped fineliner pen.
Resin is hard to control, it's messy until brought in the form one wants and even then, it is not exactly the way one imagined, but the material sometimes seems to simply be self-willed. It is susceptible for damage until fully hardened and the lack of patience will only bring one this far, since resin usually has to be poured in at least two different layers before completion and every layer has to be sufficiently hardened before the next one can be poured.
But the result is worth it, all the way - vibrant colors, shiny layer, pretty scratch-resistant surface and a better UV protection, for a longer time.
I realized, I would love to combine the two work methods - fineliner drawings and resin pouring.
I am only at the beginning of this new adventure, but I really love discovering the freedom this new medium brings with it and am looking forward to what it has to offer in the long run.
For more information about the resin I chose to work with and professional advice regarding this, I wholeheartedly recommend Stefanie Etter and the line of products she is representing.
Here are some impressions from the basics workshop, last year (5th/6th of October 2019):
Stefanie demonstrating how to work with resin - pouring the color
