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Collage Art with Water Marbling

Posted by DecoArt on Jan 18th 2023

January 20, 2023

Collage Art with
Water Marbling

Many water marbling techniques lend themselves beautifully to use in landscape and abstract collages! Follow along with this project to get inspired to create a colorful piece and learn some new ways to expand your art making process.


Level: Intermediate

SUPPLY LIST


OTHER SUPPLIES

PAPER TOWELS

SCISSORS

TRAY FOR RINSING

NON-STICK TABLE COVERING

WATER SPRAY BOTTLE

IRON

WATERCOLOR PAPER

MEASURING CUP/SPOON

WHISK

CANVAS

TIP:  Set up water marbling area first and do all the wet work at once. Allow to dry and iron all. Seperate prints by color to make choosing pieces for collage easier! -This project is perfect to use up all of your previously printed water marble sheets.


SECTION 1:
CREATE MARBLED PAPERS - GREENS, BLUES, & REDS


Step 1

For the first water marble prints, use the following colors: Green, Tropical Blue, Light Blue, Blue, and Red. Start by pouring a Green line down the middle to create a base color.


Step 2

Then pour a squiggle line of Tropical Blue across the tray. Within that squiggle line of color, alternate adding the rest of the colors.






Step 3

Using a Specialty Water Marbling stick, drag the tip of the stick through the design across the tray, horizontally. Continue doing this back and forth. This action creates a pattern similar to the traditional "Gelgit" pattern.


Step 4

Once you have a design you like, place a piece of the Water Marbling Paper onto the surface (allowing the center of the paper to touch first). Carefully pick up the print by the corner and place in the rinse tray, face down. Agitate the print to rinse and remove any size/excess paint. Remove from the rinse water, drain off water and place face up on paper towels to dry.






TIP:  Have a paperclip or pin handy to unclog dried paint from the writer tips of paint bottle.


Step 5

There will be paint left on the surface of the size. At this point you can pull another print as is, or you can manipulate the surface further by adding more paint and swirling with a marbling stick. Place papers on the surface as before to make a print, then rinse face down. Each subsequent print will be lighter if no additional paint is added. When finished taking prints, clean the surface using the Cleaning Papers. The surface is ready for the next set of colors when the cleaning paper comes up clean.









Watch full video here   


SECTION 2:
 
CREATE MARBLED PAPERS - ORANGES & PINKS


Step 1

For the next set of water marble prints, use the following colors: Pink and Orange. Start by pouring a Pink line down the middle to create a base color. Then drop Orange stones randomly across the tray, these are called "stones". Continue to alternate adding more pink and orange stones.



Step 2

Using a Specialty Water Marbling stick, swirl the tip of the stick through the design across the tray.



TIP:  There are infinite color combinations and patterns when doing water marbling. Some use traditional techniques, and some are completely random, but each print is always unique! For this collage project you want to have a variety of color combos and prints to choose from, but I will show you three different options for colors and patterns. For more inspiration check out these links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGs5Uiri3hA&t=43s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TBp8iRkwWQ&t=13s


There are endless creative possibilities for collage art with Water Marbling.


Step 3

Once you have a design you like, place a piece of the Water Marbling Paper onto the surface (allowing the center of the paper to touch first). Carefully pick up the print by the corner and place in the rinse tray, face down. Agitate the print to rinse and remove any size/excess paint. Remove from the rinse water and drain off water. Then place paper face up on paper towels to dry.

 



Step 4

There will be paint left on the surface of the size, take another print or clean the surface. NOTE: Each subsequent print will be lighter if no additional paint is added, which is a nice way to have a variety of saturation levels for each color way. When you are finished taking prints, clean the surface using the Cleaning Papers. The surface is ready for the next set of colors when the cleaning paper comes up clean. Some paint may have dropped to the bottom of the surface, this is normal and will not effect your prints. (As long as the surface of the size is clean.)

 




SECTION 3:
CREATE MARBLED PAPERS - PINKS, YELLOWS, & GREENS


Step 1

For the next sample water marble prints, use the following colors: Yellow-Green, Green, Aquamarine, Yellow and Pink. Start by pouring a Yellow-Green line down the middle to create a base color. Then drop Green stones randomly across the tray.



Step 2

Pour a line of Aquamarine back and forth across the surface, horizontally. Do the same with Yellow.





Step 3

Then, pour a line of Pink back and forth, vertically, across the surface. This will create a design that looks like "candy sticks". Place a piece of the Water Marbling Paper onto the surface (allowing the center of the paper to touch first). Carefully pick up the print by the corner and place in the rinse tray, face down. Agitate the print to rinse and remove any size/excess paint. Remove from the rinse water, drain and place face up on paper towels to dry. There will be paint left on the surface, take another print or clean the surface. Rinse each print and place them face up on paper towels. When finished taking prints, clean the surface using the Cleaning Papers.


Step 4

Allow all of your prints to dry face up on paper towels or hang to dry. On top of a piece of clean watercolor paper, iron each print face down. Organize your prints by color to make choosing designs easier, when using them for collage.



SECTION 4: CREATE THE COLLAGE


Step 1

Find a landscape inspiration photo to draw up a template, or use the project Desert Landscape template below. I chose to do a square canvas, but you can do any size canvas or paper. (Just adjust your template to fit the surface.) Sketch out where the collage pieces will go on your surface.

GET THE TEMPLATE


Step 2

Use your printed template to cut out each piece and trace that shape onto your chosen water marbling design. Cut out each piece. (Note: It is helpful to have one template to cut out and one as reference.) Work on one piece at a time. Lightly spray each cut out with water. Brush Matte Decoupage Medium onto the canvas surface as well as the back of each wetted water marbled paper cut out. Lay piece carefully onto surface and spread out with flat brush using more Decoupage medium.






Step 3

Work from background (sky, mountains, ground) to foreground (sun, cacti, bushes). Once completely dry, paint the edges using Perfect Peri, Americana Acrylics using a flat brush. Allow to dry.



Step 4

Add any additional DecoArt Decoupage Medium to any needed areas to create an even surface. Allow to dry.


Step 5

Paint the edges with Americana Acrylics in Perfect Peri. I loved how this color really made the collage's colors pop. Feel free to add a different Americana color of your choosing. Another option would be done during the collage process by wrapping the water marbling papers around the canvas' edge.