It's been a while since I shared my techniques of using white tissue paper in my mixed media work. I have changed my technique slightly over the last six months.
I started using tissue paper about seven years ago when a friend asked me to recreate Eric Carle's caterpillar from his Very Hungry Caterpillar book on a large canvas for her daughter's room. For that application I used the tissue just as Carle had: altering colored, non-bleeding tissue with paint, oil stick, etc... I then cut the paper in shapes to make the caterpillar.
As I became comfortable with the medium I began to use it as a layer of additional interest in my mixed media pieces. I was taking encaustic workshop classes back in 2006, 2008 and loved the way the layers of wax lent a milky, translucent layer to a piece. I wanted to use the tissue paper to create a similar experience. I now use it to varying degrees, depending on where I want to go with a given piece.

Recently I became inspired to work some birds into my compositions as symbols of the human spirit. I have been doing a lot of seed pods and bursting blooms in various stages of 'becoming' to stand as the inner most expression of who we think we are in relation to the relationships in our lives. I came across a sketch I had done in my journal some time ago which served as a perfect jumping off image to go with. I want to push some boundaries in this piece in terms of varying detail and texture. Using tissue paper in between layers of paint allows me to build visual interest slowly. The surface changes with the addition of the tissue and it forces me to make decisions about what to keep and bring forth and what to leave more subtle.
 |
| sketched-in acrylic layer |
The first step is the acrylic layer on the wood panel. I lay in the basic composition and color balance. In the past I did pretty detailed sketches before starting a piece. I am now working more loosely and forcing myself to make more spontaneous decisions.
I go in with colored pencils to enforce lines that I don't want lose and to add subtle color that may or may not be seen clearly when I cover it with medium and tissue paper. This creates happy accidents that I can in later steps choose to enhance or leave as is. I think it creates a richer surface and therefor more interest in the final piece.
The colored pencils can also serve as tools to remove the wet acrylic layer - as in the circles in this lime green seed pod, revealing the red base layer.
I use white tissue for a few reasons:
I can make marks on it with colored pencil, oil stick and or acrylic before applying it to a piece. If I apply gel medium on the dry acrylic layer and then a second application over the tissue once it is smoothed down over the medium, the tissue essentially disappears, leaving any marks I made on the tissue as a floating layer on the acrylic.
- I can make surface bubbles on the piece - mimicking the effect of wax - by leaving the acrylic layer dry (no gel medium) and simply laying the dry tissue on the piece and brushing slightly watered-down gel medium over the dry tissue. The gel medium will soak through the paper, adhering it the the surface of the painting but will create many random air bubbles underneath.
Once this layer of tissue dries I then apply a second layer of Acrylic Ground for Pastels - watered down slightly so that it is not so thick. When this layer dries it allows you to add watercolor, colored pencil, graphite and of course, pastel.
From this point I can begin to really carve out the piece in terms of varying the detail, introducing the dominant color palette and adding subtly with watercolor. Detail can be added with the finer points on the colored pencil or ink pen. At this point it becomes more of a give and take between me and where this piece will take me. It's when the fun begins!
This piece is destined to be part of a group show I will be a part of this August at the One Mile Gallery in Kingston, NY. I may share a sneak peak when I complete it so stay tuned!
Happy creating - please share your experience with this medium !