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Silk-painting with gutta and other resists, using acid dyes. Scroll down the page. There is a separate section on steaming here.Wax as a resist, on silk, using acid dyes and several techniques and tools: click hereIndigo on silk, using various resist techniques: click hereShibori techniques on silk using acid dyes.
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Silk-paintingNote that any commercial brands and items shown in the pictures are examples, not necessarily endorsements. Items invaluable to one artist aren't always useful to another!When beginners start to silk-paint, they usually use resist or gutta straight onto white silk. The gutta should penetrate the fabric so that when dyes or paints are used, the resist acts as a barrier. On the top right is an early piece of my work (1989) completed when I was living on Skye. It was loosely based on Celtic myth. I used spirit-based gutta directly on to white silk, doing all the drawing first and "filling in" the colours afterwards.This method meant that all individual elements ended up with a white line around them. The second design (below, right) is from a fabric- length and was based on a Middle Eastern embroidery. Again, you will see all elements are outlined in white. The technique is particularly effective using bright, sparkling colours. For information on steaming, click here
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Silk-painting : layering dyes I eventually found this way of working very restricting because of the flat, graphic designs it produced, and over time developed a technique of layering dyes and resist. Then the lines formed by gutta showed up less, or not at all. It allowed designs to become more tonal and painterly. The 'lizard' example on the right shows three stages of working. On the right are the pale beige and browns used to freepaint a background. Gutta lines then drawn onto this ground are seen on the surface in the same area. They look dark but are actually clear liquid. On the left the second layer of dyes is being added around the outside of the gutta lines. Basically, clear gutta lines drawn onto a pre-dyed layer don't show at all if further dyes are only placed on one side of the gutta line. If dyes are placed on both sides, the line will finally show as the base colour over which the gutta was drawn. Gutta is removed by dry-cleaning after the work is steamed. The sequencing of dyes is thought through carefully, because the lightest colours and tones must be isolated and the darker areas developed around them at each stage. I often work freehand, doing the gutta work without a pre-drawn design on paper but when the design is more complex, I use a full-scale drawing. Paper masks and templates are helpful in guiding placement of design elements, especially when a light or white area, such as the white of an eye, must be isolated in the correct place before any dyes are used. I generally usually use Kniazeff steam-fix dyes and spirit based gutta for 'pure' silk painting work. Occasionally dyes are thickened with Manutex or a commercial thickening paste. Dry-cleaning is done after steaming, to remove the gutta. For more information on steaming, follow this link |
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Materials for silk-painting : applicators Gutta is most often applied with an applicator consisting of a barrel, a screw-on spout and a metal nib. Applicators come in many shapes. Metal nibs come in several sizes; typically from 5 - 8. 5 has the smallest hole and is most suitable for sheer or fine fabrics. With heavier fabric, more resist is required to penetrate adequately and form the barrier, so a larger hole is needed with which to apply it. A wire is supplied with nibs which keeps the aperture clear. Blockages can be a problem, especially with spirit-based resist. I currently use and recommend the gutta pro-liners shown on the right. They have a softish barrel and that plus their length allows my hand to be more relaxed. I have found them to be useful to arthritic students, or those with mobility or hand problems. They can be used for spirit or water-based resists. The pro-liners are available in the UK from Rainbow Silks and George Weil and Fibercrafts As far as I know they are not yet available in the US via any supplier. Resists can be bought in tubes (see picture in next section) with a spout included. |
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Resists: the R word Basically, resists are either spirit or water-based. Over several years' silk-painting I have not found water-based resists an effective product for my work (but see Resistad in the separate section below). Mainly this is because they do not hold up to layered dyeing, breaking down after one or two "attacks" of dye. Water-based resists are prone to bleeds and blobs. The lines also tend to spread slightly after application I can draw finer lines with spirit-based gutta resist. Lines cannot be broken down by water-based dyes, and it is much less prone to bleeds. Normally it must be thinned with spirit to gain the correct consistency. Gutta does react to the ambient temperature and is generally thinner in consistency when the weather is warmer. Care must be taken in storage because it is highly inflammable and it should not be left in a sunny spot as it tends to thin irreversibly and becomes unuseable. Gutta is a refined rubber-type product derived from the palaquium tree, which grows in south-east Asia. The product was historically known as gutta-percha and was used as a type of insulation, in cricket and golf balls, and as a glue. Because gutta resist is spirit-based, it must be dry-cleaned after steaming to remove the resist. This is a big disadvantage as it adds cost. Dry-cleaning fluids, such as Perchloroethylene (Perc) are also very unpleasant fluids for the environment. I have researched various "Green Cleaning" systems but have not found one which will effectively remove wax and gutta. Spirit-based guttas are also unsuitable for work with children or young people and so water-based resists must be used in schools and workshops involving the young. Note that if you don't dry-clean out the gutta it will turn yellowish and feel hard and flaky after a while.
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Resistad is a water-based resist made in New Zealand by Pro-Colour. I have started to use it recently and have found it very useful for my work. It holds a finer line than other water-based resists I've tried and does not break down with several applications of dye. It has one unusual characteristic in that it must be ironed before applying dye. It washes out after steaming, so, of course, doesn't need dry-cleaning. It also works very well when coloured with dyes. Resistad comes in three consistencies. I use the middle of the three in my work. It is "gloopy" and must be thinned with water before use! I have found that silk worked with Resistad must be placed close to the core of the roll during steaming. Too much steam (normally there is more steam on the outer edge of the roll) starts to break down the resist line before the dyes have a chance to fix. This has produced unacceptable work with fuzzy resisted lines. Cern'O is a new product I have been using since autumn 2007 and is purchased from Ateliers Creatifs who are based in Lyon, France. So far, they only have a website in French but they are very helpful and you can telephone hem and speak to someone in English. To find Cern'O on their website, go to the section Peinture sur Soie, and then proceed to Produits. Cern'O is similar, but not the same as, Resistad. You do not need to dilute it although you can add a few drops of water depending on your silk weight and nib. You must dry it and then iron it to fix before using dyes. Note that the instructions on the bottle have thus far recommended the use of a hairdrier to heat-fix, but I found this inadequate, particularly on 12mm silk crêpe de Chine and heavier. The Cern'O held up to the dye in the studio but came out of the steamer with the dyes bleeding across resist lines. Streaked and ruined. One problem that can be irritating is that Cern'O is white in colour and the line can almost disappear when it is dry and ironed and the time comes to apply dye. I have made mistakes this way because I can't easily see where to paint. It is possible to add dye to Cern'O to colour it but so far I have not done any experiments to test how successful this is.
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