Giant Band-aid - need help!

[AllisonR]

Hi,
I'm crossing over from the acrylic forum. May be over here a lot more in the future.

At the moment I want to create a giant band-aid. Like 3 feet or so.

So my first try was a round band-aid out of clay. DISASTER. Clay is too thick. No one knew what it was - people thought it was a bee-hive.



Then I thought some plastic, like shower curtain material and use a hole punch. But it will not bump up properly where the white padding should be, it more folds. And it won't keep the shape. (Also if you look at a bandaid through a magnifier or loop, all the little holes sort of pucker up a bit. They are not really flat. I'd like to capture this effect, if possible).

Fabric won't work, no way to make all those holes that won't unravel.

Then I thought - what about moulding material? Some of it is even the beige band-aid color. But I don't even know where to start. I thought, make a foam band-aid shape that sticks up where the padding is, then put a million chopsticks in it for the holes. Then pour or brush on moulding material. And let the moulding material be the final piece, after I take out the foam and chopsticks. Would this work? And what kind of moulding material should I use? Any better ideas?

[ArtsyLynda]

There are probably better products to use than mold material to make this. You could use the shower curtain idea and use spray adhesive to attach some fabric to it. Go to a sewing store and ask to see the various weights of fabric used as backing or to stiffen lighter fabrics. You could layer it to get the bump, then put the shower curtain material over it. Or, completely different idea, go to Michael's or Hobby Lobby and look at the "fun foam" which comes in various thicknesses. It holds various shapes fairly well from what I've seen from costumes friends have made for their pets or children with it. Or go to The Compleat Sculptor to see the huge variety of materials there are to sculpt in.

If I were trying to do this kind of project, I'd probably choose the fabric route as a simple solution to the problem. There are some very dense backing or fill materials (interfacing, quilt batting, etc.) and you can get all kinds of fabric or shower curtains to be the top layer. Once the fabric is spray glued to the backing, it won't be a big deal to punch your holes. And if you really wanted to, you could make a mold and castings of it. Keep us posted on how it turns out!

[papermatthew]

I've never used the stuff, but cloth with some "Paverpol" or "Amazing Fa-brick" textile hardener might be something to look into. You just dip the cloth in the hardener and then you can drape/sculpt it into whatever shapes you want - and I would think it would hold the cloth together even with all the holes (and help them keep their shape).

[AllisonR]

I'm going to try Goldens light moulding paste over a formed piece with chopsticks for the holes. With a layer of saran wrap or vaseline or spray silicone or some such to repel the paste from chopsticks. Plus a thin bottom layer underneath, maybe paper, just to keep the moulding paste from sticking to whatever it is put on afterwards. Will let you know how it works.

OOH - thanks for the info about Amazing Fa-brick. If the above does not work, I may try this.

[stonecutter]

a completely different approach would be carving it. from wood it would be easy to create,,, cut out a round shape, lower the outside to get the raised middle part, and then use a metal punch to do holes. the metal punches come in a variety of shapes, i am sure you will find one creating this effect the holes on bandaid have

[AllisonR]

Interesting ideas on different ways to do it. I ended up using just paints - with mediums added to thicken it and make it flexible like a bandaid. I used white batting fabric for the padding. I ended up making a giant grid on heavy paper with holes punched out with a chopstick, then used this over the drying paint to spray the hole pattern onto the paint, then used a pencil to make all the individual holes. Had to time it, as paint that was fresh would collapse the holes in on itself, somewhat wet and the holes would stick up too much, but too dry and the holes would crack and tear. Tested every few hours until ready. Was fun, though time consuming. Results below.

[ArtsyLynda]

Great job! Is there an art show you have in mind for this project or was it just "for fun"? They sure look like real bandaids to me!

[maryinasia]

yes, great job!

[AllisonR]

Originally Posted by ArtsyLynda

Great job! Is there an art show you have in mind for this project or was it just "for fun"? They sure look like real bandaids to me!

Thanks. They were made for the international competition Charlottenborg. Deadline tomorrow! Just made it. I'm submitting along with two paintings and two much larger sculptures I did not post. Going to be very tough though. I find out end of January.