Last week was a very hectic week. I didn't get a chance to start putting paper mache on the buildings of my diorama until yesterday. I have one layer on 3/4 of each building. (A total of five buildings.) The paper mache dried overnight and I hope to have time to put a layer on the other side of the buildings today. I am using the newspaper strip and flour paste method.
Ideally the buildings will look like a row of buildings from a small town, kind of an older style from a bygone era. They will be the backdrop for my devil and skeleton riding in a car sculpture which will be cruising down the street. I think the title will be Devil Looking for Trouble in a Small Town. I was originally thinking this piece would be a Halloween sculpture. The devil was a very popular Halloween decoration from the 1920s and 1930s. You rarely see a devil in Halloween decorations these days, so I will go in more of a folk art direction. Southern folk art many times has a theme of the devil causing trouble or tempting people. I am really looking forward to finishing this project and putting up a picture of it.
I like to recycle newspaper into my art projects. The newspaper is about all the good and unfortunate things that are happening in our world. It is about the things we hope for and fear, the things we create and the things we demolish. It seems only fitting that the newspaper should be recycled to make art, which is reflection of our lives.
Tip of the Day: When putting paper mache on an armature, the first layer is the most difficult. On vertical or rounded surfaces, the the paper mache strips tend to slip. I paint a layer of white PVA glue (Like Elmers) on the armature and give it a few minutes to become tacky. The paper mache strips will stay in place on the tacky surface.
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