| Making Marbled Trees
Dedree A. Drees 10/19/02 Sequential Design Class ddrees@ccbcmd.edu |
(Plate 1 - Marbling art-Denis Diderot)
Floating and swirling colors on liquid, then capturing them permanently on paper is the traditional art of watercolor marbling. It is believed that marbling originated in Japan as early as the twelfth century and may have derived from a game of floating ink spots on water to see what shape they would take. In fifteenth century Turkey and Persia, a form of marbling called ebru or cloud art appeared in which the water used to float the colors was thickened with a vegetable size allowing the colors to be manipulated with greater control. Combs and styluses were used to tease the colors into patterns. By the seventeenth century, craftsmen in Europe were making marbled papers primarily for bookbinding. Since the 1980šs, a revival in marbling has grown to include artists and crafts persons in a wide variety of applications including book arts, fabrics, ceramics, jewelry and fine arts.
(Plate 2 - Marbling tools)
Having had success in the small but worldwide marbling community making marbled tree forms in normal paper sizes (double elephant), I decided I wanted to try them on a large scale. To make a marbling tray large enough for the five by eight foot prints I worked directly on the concrete floor. The floor was cold which was an advantage in keeping the size bath of carrageenen stable and viscous. The bottomless tray was made of 2 by 4 lumber screwed together with L braces. For the bottom, white paper was placed directly on the concrete so that the image would be more visible as it was developed. Then two layers of plastic sheeting were placed over the paper and 2 by 4 form. Everything that could be done alone was planned and executed before the scheduled event. However helpers were needed to handle the paper throughout the marbling session.
(Plate 3 sponging on alum, attaching ceiling angle)
To make five by eight foot marbled tree pieces, I chose Canson Mi-teintes paper, which comes in rolls 59 inches by 11 yards. The paper is tough enough to withstand handling on that scale. After sponging on alum water, we attached ceiling angle material to the long sides to keep it level while moving it.
(Plate 4 Perforating with pins)
Since the paper is stiff, we poked pinholes in it from the front side about 1 inch apart to prevent air bubbles. As the paper would meet the carageenan surface, the holes would allow air to pass through and not be trapped between the paper and the colors, preventing color adhesion. Later, I would burnish the back of the paper with a bone folder to flatten the burr from the holes after the paint was dry.
(Plates 5,6,7 Applying color and gall-water with droppers)
The tree form is constructed using the following steps. Before applying any color, a gall-water mixture is dropped around the perimeter of the tray to hold the subsequent colors in the center. In the center, about three vertical rows of concentric drops of color are applied. The colors used can be varied across the rows to allow for a chiaroscuro effect on the trunk.
(Plates 8, 9 combing the pattern)
The colors are combed into a nonpareil pattern to simulate bark. Tree knots are put in with a stylus. I used my usual combs to make the nonpareil pattern, but had to make several passes, as they were shorter than the tray.
(Plates 10,11 applying gall-water to form trunk)
Gall-water is applied to the sides of the tree trunk, which squeezes into a compact form. Branches are pulled out of the top with a stylus and reinforced with gall-water applied with a dropper. Roots are treated similarly. The stone pattern can be applied to the top as leaves or the bottom as ground. The color must be carefully balanced with gall-water to get the desired size of spot. Random unwanted spots can be lifted with tissue.
(Plates 12,13,14,15 lowering the paper)
To lower the paper into the tray, we had two people on either side of the marbling tank holding the ends of the plastic ceiling angle. The paper was carefully lowered so that it would make contact evenly, rolling out from the center in a U shape. We sprayed the back of the paper with an atomizer to relax it after it was laid down in the tray to further discourage air bubbles.
(Plates 16,17,18)
After picking up the image on the paper we lifted the slimy paper to waiting plastic sheeting and carried it outside to rinse with a garden hose.
(Plates 19,20 -Two finished marbled trees by Drees)
