Mixed Media

A painted wood piece with thread layered on top was a really fun project that got me back into making art.

Framed geometric artwork on wall featuring circular and linear patterns in blue, orange, and red hues.

Wooden board on table with blue paint, paintbrush, masking tape, and art supplies

Background

I was dog-sitting for two weeks last summer and decided to try a completely new art form. I had an idea of painting a pattern on a piece of wood, and then layering colored string over the pattern in ways that would affect how the color paint would look. It was a project that took me right back to my freshman year Design 1 class, as I was doing a lot of taping, painting, measuring, and cutting shapes with an X-Acto blade.

Framed abstract geometric wall art with circles, lines, blue, orange, and white colors.

The Details

To create the piece I first create the design in Illustrator, mapping out the painted shapes, color palette, and where the thread will go. Then I create a 1/16 inch grid over the entire board and transfer the shapes and then the tedious bit - mapping out and then drilling the hundreds of tiny holes through the wood for the thread to fit through. This is the most labor intensive process by far but also very rewarding.

Once painted, all the thread is strung through and attached to the back. The next important part is the frame. I created a floating frame with a 1/4 inch gap around the piece. I then painted the inside of the frame a dark blue to offset the piece against the light colored pine board. A hanging bracket is then attached to the back of the frame and the piece is complete.