Alas!
Acrylic has never been my medium. In my hands I have always found it inelegant and clumsy. This is not to demean any of my wonderful artist friends who handle it so well. My pet peeve has been how quickly it dries. Nonetheless I do use it from time to time as underpaint or for other crafty purposes.
How then to be in such a quandry when I have been using acrylic to solve a problem only to have it create a problem of its own by NOT DRYING!!! I am not sure I can adequately express my frustrations.
I’ve been working hard to complete my sculpture series based on a 1937 10-volume set of books called “World’s Popular Encyclopedia.” Months ago I gave myself a “homework assignment” to create 10 sculptures based on the books. The idea was to choose a 2-page spread in each with TWO entries that I could use to define and guide each sculpture, while also incorporating each book in the finished work. I gave myself this assignment because after 3 years of nothing but “Better Angels,” I was not yet in the flow of new work. So here I am now, 7 pieces finished, two more within sight of the finish line, and I can’t get the paint to dry.
I am attempting to fill two plastic tubes and one larger glass tube with red paint. They won’t dry (or haven’t yet) or do dry partially and pull away from the plastic leaving gaps that are totally unacceptable. I’ve used gravity, the toaster oven and my hair dryer in the effort. I aim to succeed in the end – somehow. But haven’t yet. Meanwhile pictures of six of the finished sculptures can be seen on this website: Fir/Fire, Leonardo/Lepidoptera, Moon/Mountains of the Moon, Polar Regions, Spider/Spinal Cord, and Voice/Volcano. A seventh, Buckwheat/Buddha is finished but not yet photographed. Hopefully, paint will dry and Art/Artery and Heart/Heat will be finished and photographed within the week. Which will only leave Coma/Comet. Perhaps the most challenging of all.
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