FMP

Plaster and ink sculptures

After two weeks of making the first batch of plaster sculptures coloured with ink, I returned to find that the pigments from the ink had risen to the surface in interesting patters. The different pigments used to make up the colour stood out more than the original colour, and gave the plaster experiments some really unique and interesting techniques.

It depended not he texture of experiment as to how the pigment had spread, but it was obvious that the pigment would form more around textured areas, bends, and edges, while avoiding creases. 

The experiments that I used a Prussian Blue ink displayed varying pigments, from purples, blues and browns, to yellows, greens, and oranges. The one piece I had used a Lemon Yellow ink stayed yellow, but the pigment had risen to the surface and become a lot brighter, and also had a section of orange on it.

The experiment where I had purposely stood a lump of plaster into ink still had the gradient of colours running through it, but the yellow I had stood it in was no longer visible on the front, but on the back, the yellow could be seen, along with the blue and pink, and a lot of brown pigment. There is also a bright pink band around the bottom of the experiment where it had been in the ink.

From this, I realised that I could experiment with purposely mixing ink into plaster and leaving it to rise. Since the theme of my FMP is change, it actually fit in very well to what I was looking at.

I began my experimentation by deliberately mixing two different colours of ink into a plaster mix. The colours I chose to use were Orange and Violet, but because I added them into the plaster while it was still unmixed, you couldn't see the colours, but a slight greenish blue tint in the colour of the plaster. 

I chose these colours because I wanted to see if the Violet, like the Prussian Blue, had multiple different pigments that made up the colours. I chose orange because I liked the idea of the colour combination, and wanted to see if I could mix a considerably lighter colour with a darker one, to see if the colours would separate and become clear.

I tried creating various different types of sculptures that all had different textures because I wanted to fully explore whether my assumptions about where the pigment would form would be correct. 

The first of the experiments was very rough in texture but had some smooth areas, while the second was made using a technique in which you create an enclosure to pour the plaster into, and secure it using clay coils around the edges., and so had a mixture of smooth an textured areas, and also had some edges where holes had formed in the plaster. I had purposely let the plaster thicken, as I had experimented before, before putting it in the enclosure, so that different textures would be created.

The experiment I had put into the enclosure already had a streak of pigment running through it.

The laster experiment was made using plaster that someone had left over, which was near to setting. Rather than let it go to waste, I poured in some Violet ink, which didn't get mixed in properly as with the previous mix, but treated a marbled affect which runs through the sculpture. 

I am unsure how this particular experiment will work out because the ink wasn't properly and thoroughly mixed into the plaster.

After leaving the sculptures for a day, some of the pigment in one of the experiments had already begin to rise tot he top of the plaster.