Stained Glass Fake-Out

To get students ready for the new school year, I planned a relaxing project for First Friday Art Club in September.  I've seen fake stained glass projects and had them on the "To Do" list for awhile, but a colleague highly suggested this technique, having recently succeeded in the same lesson with a mixed age group.

Blueprints, tracings and color

In order to create a stained glass project, an artisan will create a drawing.  The drawing will then get scaled to the size of the window or project they are creating.  The scaled drawing is called a blueprint and used quite like a blueprint for architecture.  My students were given some time to sketch out a plan for their blueprint using office copy paper.

Careful coloring

Once the blueprint was finalized, each student took wax paper to create their fake stained glass.  I tried to equate the simplified techniques to actual glass preparation.  Students were told to "cut" their glass by tracing their blueprint with pencil onto the less waxy side of the wax paper.  The less waxy side of the paper accepts the marker ink better than the shiny side.  Once their drawing was transferred, color could be added to the composition.

"This part is my favorite."

The coloring phase excited everyone like the coloring pages that have become very popular.  I had some concern that this project would be too simple and quick for this age group, so I planned to let any quick workers make another.  Luckily that was not an issue.  Each student took their time planning their projects and placing the color precisely inside the lines.

Bold lines and Big shapes

I suggested to keep lines and shapes big and less complex.  No glass maker wants to cut sliver sized pieces of glass.  Adding the lead came or copper foiling would make the process almost unbearable.  With that idea understood and coloring wrapping up, each project needed to be taped to a matte board frame with the fake lead came applied afterward. 

Puffy Paint to the Rescue

The lead came replacement for this project was puffy paint.  I showed the option to outline the shapes in each composition with black sharpie, but also showed the puffy paint example and everyone gravitated toward that look.  By framing the wax papers first, the projects were less flexible and easier to take home, even with wet paint. 

Simple instruments

This project is achievable for many age levels and has been proven successful with varied ages in the same class.  Sharpie markers are suggested for their ability to stay and not smudge on the wax paper.  Rulers, copy paper, puffy paint and pencils were other simple instruments used to created this relaxing project.  No glass means no fingers cut!

Hold it up to the Light

Holding these finished projects up to a window let them truly shine. 

Simple and Sweet

Larger shapes to give the viewer's eye more to view would 

make this composition even more lovely.

Simplified Landscape

This artist skipped the black puffy paint at first, but then added it later.  Good choice!

Color every Inch

This artist chose to color every inch of her composition. I feel this was the closest resemblance to stained glass and would love to see it in glass form....

any makers ready to take on that challenge?

This wraps up another month of First Friday Art Club.  Join us in October for harp & heART with Maryalice Little.  There's still time to register!

Thanks for visiting!

~erica

Cyanotypes

The SSC Library First Friday Art Club explored cyanotype printing on June 2.  Special guest instructor, Marnie Lersch, led the exploration.

Cyanotypes, GO!

Marnie defined the term cyanotype by breaking down the word.  Cyan is blue and type meaning print, so you can say this is like a blue print.  Having worked in a blue printing facility, we were lucky to NOT smell the diazo process, which can knock out a person with the ammonia fumes.

Chemical Overview

Students who arrived early got a chance to peruse the sample and supply table.  Marnie showed interested parents the chemicals which we would use to complete the process.  These chemicals are light sensitive, meaning they need to be kept out of sunlight.  Since they are hazardous, everyone was instructed to wear gloves while applying the liquid mixture to the fabric being used.

Safety First when Working

First step in this class was to prepare our fabric with the light sensitive chemical mixture. Using foam brushes, rubber gloves, and table cloths, each student was responsible for this step. We often remind our students that safety is always first when making art.  We only get one set of lungs and the skin we're in, so they have to last a lifetime.

Time to add the Goodies

Once the chemical application was dry, it turned a pea-green hue and it was time to get creative.  Using items we collected from the garden and an array of interesting shaped goodies, each student took time to compose their image.  This required a bit of thinking about positive and negative space, as well as transparent versus opaque density.

Wrapped and Protected

After composing their imagery, the students wrapped up their fabric on a cardboard sheet sandwiched by bubble wrap and secured with clothes pins.  There was a whipping wind to contend with outside and we did not want all of the loose items to go flying!

Waiting for the Sun

Once outside, the sun was in control of this project.  

Each student was a watch-guard protecting their projects from the wind.

Make your Mark

I tested this process and teamed up with a student with a bubble wrap experiment.  "What will happen if we leave the bubble wrap on?," we wondered.  As the sun processed the image, this student took a chance to use her body as her signature!

Expose in the Sun for about 10 minutes

After about 5-10 minutes of bright sun exposure, the chemicals on the fabric turned a slate gray/ green tone and Marnie told us to wash our fabrics in clean water.  This was a fast action of tossing materials into bins and rushing to the water tubs to process the image.

Leaves and Seashells were flying!

If you can imagine the flock of leaves, seashells, glass nuggets, and macaroni literally flying into storage bins, the mad rush panicked everyone to make sure they finished their projects before the end of class.  Washing the fabric in water surprised everyone at how fast the fabric turned from green to blue.  The imagery everyone composed was so gorgeous.  This project offered immediate gratification.  Who doesn't like that?!

Success

The variety of blue tones this process offers is quite lovely.  I have a blue love-affair and believe I will further explore this process in my home studio.  One parent who enjoyed the results of this process envisions a Cyan Family Room.  She took notes on the chemicals needed and borrowed some books to further investigate.  If you have interest to learn how to make cyanotypes, visit this Alternative Photography for more information.  

Check back in July to see what Steampunk Costumes our crew creates as they prepare for the ever-epic Library Unmasked: Steampunk Edition cosplay event.

Until then, thanks for visiting!

~erica