Gilded Acrylics
Amy Shawley
While putting together the tutorial for the post this week, I was reminded of a great travel experience I had when I was in California for my book tour in February. I took a few days in between events to visit Julian, an old gold mining town in the San Diego mountains, and did a tour of the Eagle Mine. I arrived right after a big group had gone through the mine and, as it turned out, was the only person on my tour. It was so fun to have a one-on-one with both the guide and mine owner who were incredibly knowledgeable of the property itself, the mine, and the process of extracting gold. I got the opportunity to learn how to pan for gold, which definitely takes a strong wrist and some finesse! If you are ever in Julian, the Eagle Mine is a must-see!
The quest for gold traces back to antiquity and as a precious metal it has been highly prized for many uses, including artistic ones. Guilding objects and paintings could happen quite easily because gold is highly malleable and can be flattened into sheets without breaking - it also resists tarnishing and discoloration, and today ancient objects still maintain their brilliant luster!
Golden's Iridescent Golds also resist tarnishing, but this is mainly due to their being made not of actual metal but from tiny mica platelets that are coated with iron oxides and pigment to simulate the appearance of a metal. There are three gold options: Iridescent Gold, Bright Gold, and Deep Gold...
Today's simple tutorial uses Iridescent Bright Gold, because I love how it's rich yellow hue simulates the look of gilding! The inspiration for this project comes from the water gilding technique which is used to make picture frames. Gold leaf is applied to bole, a clay surface. To simulate bole, I'm using Red Oxide.
The steps are similar to the ones from last week's copper tutorial, except here I didn't obliterate the stencil edges, I kept them clean.
Stencil a standard gel or paste onto your substrate and let it dry completely. Paint a layer of Red Oxide (here I used Fluid Acrylic, but you can also use Heavybody) and let that dry. Using a slightly dampened rag, buff Iridescent Bright Gold over the surface with light pressure and circular motion. You want the gold to cover most of the surface and the stenciled texture, but leave some pockets of the red oxide exposed. This gives the appearance of a gold frame that has a bit of wear and tear...
Notice how the Red Oxide shows through in places but the surface is primarily gold. I'm choosing to leave this surface looking shiny and new with the look of untarnished gold leaf! As with all of the textures this month, you can build them up and use them as your final image, or as a subtle decorative element.
Using this technique, I made a background for a 4x4 inch painting of a hummingbird!
