Project Blog
Tracy Library Installation
High above the bookshelves of Tracy Public Library… an artist has started a project!
The background is well underway! And as I wait for supplies to continue that process, charcoal work has started!
Material testing… If you were at the library last week you saw the tan test square creating a focal point on the text background. I was testing a new transfer medium! Although the result was fantastic and I can’t wait to apply it to another project, it didn’t match with the previous medium. The square has recently been covered with the original medium and text.
The first image, started in charcoal, is the train that currently resides at the local Wheels Across The Prairie Museum. If you look closely you can see the number 9 on the front!
It’s all about the process!
The charcoal work is underway! To work in a large space at height, there are several techniques I will be using to transfer the outlines for the charcoal work. Outline transfer is used on projects of this size to help speed up the process.
Projection: The projector will be used whenever possible, this is a very effective way to outline an image onto the working surface. I was able to use it to transfer the railroad sign and the train because of the ledge over the library door.
Transfer paper: A combination of tracing paper and projection. Off-site the image is projected and outlined onto tracing paper. Once on-site, carbon paper is placed between the tracing paper and the wall and the image is traced over the top and transferred to the working surface.
Adhered: Serveral images will be worked off-site on heavy printing paper. The images are then fixative sprayed and adhered to the surface. This process allows the images to have a different visual than the ones drawn directly on the working surface.
Off-Site Production
I have not been in the library this week because all of the progress being made was done off-site. I have been printing text, and working on the images for the next section of the work.
The process of getting the text on the wall starts with the book itself. The Tracy history book is scanned, each page is cropped into three separate images and scaled. All of the pictures are removed and the pages are flipped, when they are printed they are backwards!
Several images for this project will be produced off-site. Once they are completed, they are sprayed with a fixative and ready to adhere to the surface.
Stencils are also being made at the studio. The images utilizing the text background as part of their aesthetic are drawn directly on the wall. This process starts with a projection onto tracing paper, then the image is carbon transferred to the wall.
Layout
Pictures are going up! Some are adhered, while others are drawn directly on the surface. Watch this week as the Tracy Blacksmith and Wagon repair shop are in progress on the wall.
There is a sample, in the pictures, of the layout for the next section of the wall. The samples are a rough idea of the layout for this type of project. They provide a scale to be able to properly size the images for the space. Layout samples and a little bit of math.
If you’ve been watching the progress, you may have noticed the images going up in a peculiar pattern, this is because they need to be layered correctly to achieve the aesthetic design of the work. As the work goes up there are large areas of background, they are left for images being drawn directly onto the surface.
Process Photos
I am very excited about the next section of images, the Imperial gas station, Craig’s Pool Hall, and a photographer that was photographed outside the post office.
Stop in at the Tracy Public Library to see the progress! It is so fun to watch the project come together!
Thank you to the library, the wheels museum, and the Tracy community for the continued support!
This project is funded in part by the Fine Arts Council of Tracy.
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council, thanks to legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
