Marbling Technique

My theme is based on the Cornish coast and most of my own imagery is based around the sea from different angles and perspectives. This got me thinking about  how can I translate ‘the sea’ using different mixed media techniques and textiles. To get the ball rolling on this project I decided to try a technique called marbling, this is where you add a thin layer of water to a flat surface or tray and simply add drops off ink to it, preferably oil based inks. Using a cocktail stick or end of a pencil gently mix the inks to create a marble effect.Get either paper, card or fabric and place it flat onto the surface of the water for a few seconds and the inks should stick to the surface revealing a marble like effect.

I really like the many different effects you can create, it’s very unpredictable, much like a storm which links to my theme.However I did find it difficult to control the colours during the process, perhaps next time I’d consider using the proper marbling inks rather that the silk paint inks, both of which use the same process.

This technique could be scanned in and used as backgrounds in digital designs or potentially stitched into using the right fabrics.

Here are my outcomes, majority onto paper or card.

 

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