I suppose I should question my sanity for wanting to stitch on a brown paper bag. It has to be the furthest thing from being archival. But I have to admit the bag is developing a certain suppleness that is quite attractive as I work the piece. Since the bulk of my work revolves around the temporary, and the subject matter of which was once on the brink of non-existence, the use of the brown bag, which is sure to rot away, is quite fitting base for the subject.
The fact of the matter is I'm not even sure of the archivalness of the felt backing, which I think is either polyester or a wool rayon blend. I bought the felt at Joanns, off the bolt, so who knows. I do know that I have felt I bought 10 years ago, acrylic/polyester, and it is brittle already.
It's all dust anyway, so I've decided to make my pieces and enjoy them now for what they are. I'm sure to hate it after all is said and done anyway, that critical eye always looks at a piece and says we can do better next time.
1 comment:
Sweetie, I have a friend who is a conservator (specialising in paper) at the National Library in Canberra. You know what she told me? IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU USE so long as you DOCUMENT it. That way, when you're rich and famous, the conservators have a fighting chance!
I love the texture and suppleness of much-rumpled brown paper. Unless you are doing something REALLY acidic (like collaging high acid paper like newsprint onto it) then I wouldn't be concerned about its archival quality. Light, IMHO, especially sunlight, is far more likely to do serious damage than anything you can stitch or paint on it. Have at it, I say!
Post a Comment