I've started to feel like the potato painting on canvas wasn't really going anywhere - it also doesn't make a lot of sense to use this "unconventional" painting tool on a conventional surface. After experimenting with multiple varieties of potato, I validated my initial suspicion that Sweet Potato would be vastly superior as a painting tool - and decided to continue using it, but decided to explore alternative sufaces instead. After my spontaneous decision to paint on Hessian for the CSM Grotto print show turned out so well, I decided to purchase some "potato sacks" and paint on those instead of canvas.
The first thing I realised was that it requires way more paint to cover these bags because the material is quite absorbant. I stuffed the sacks with plastic sheets/bubble wrap to stop the paint leaking through to the other side and sticking both sides together when it dries (so it can still operate as a bag) - although that might be something interesting to explore next time.
The second thing I realised was that it was going to take a lot longer to paint these potato sacks, because they are double sided and I have to wait for each layer to fully dry before I can turn it over and work on the other side.
For this first potato sack, I decided to use some neon acrylic paints. With the first layer, I was trying to get as much coverage as possible, so I smeared the paint quite thinly with the potato.
For the second layer, I used the potato to add more drip-like marks - which are much more textural and prominent. I like the sense of motion and constantly changing direction these marks have created. I decided the colours were too dark in sections, so I also added some white highlights - and I'm quite happy with how this is looking now. But, I need to wait for this side to dry before I can tackle the other side.
Next up was the "primary colours" potato sack. This set of paints came with a black, so the marks are appearing very dark when I use them all together. So, I decided to not have so much coverage in the base layer, to make more of the light-coloured hessian visible to contrast with the darker paint marks.
I added a second layer of drip marks using more colour and less black, which I think has improved the outcome. I'm not quite sure what to do next with this one as I'm not happy with it currently - so, I may just try adding more and more layers of paint and see where that goes.
For the third sack I have been using a random mishmash of rainbow colours.
Again I'm not quite sure where this one is going, but I think I might try "spraying" the potato sack with the left-over paint at the bottom of the paint tube to create a splattered texture over the potato marks.
I'm not quite sure what I am going to do with these sacks once I've finished the painting.... Fill them full of potatoes? Cut and sew into them? Paint text over the marks? I need to have a think.
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