I was at an art festival and saw one of the most unique displays ever. The artist had painted abstract art on a piece of aluminum (or some type of aluminum type sheeting) I, being a novice artist for many years, was very intrigued and would LOVE to learn more about it. I've done searches on the internet, to no avail. Anyone have any ideas?
I've known a couple of people who do this, you might try a search on Floating Panel. You could try to search out things on an artist called Gary Hume, as I know that his earlier paintings, certainly the ones for which he's known, were executed on aluminium. From what I remember of people doing this (some one on my MA made paintings on aluminium) the trick is in the priming, it being a non-pours surface. You need to rough the ground considerably and prime quite thickly. You also need to baton on the back, this will allow you to attach to the wall without ruining the face of the support, and prevent the possibility of warping. What looks great is if you recess the batons from the edge of the support, so that when against the wall they cannot be seen, this gives the appearance of hovering, and shows the thinness of your support. Another reason you might not be getting too many hits on your searches is the spelling, while not incorrect you might find art suppliers using the English, rather than the American spelling; aluminium rather than aluminum. I know that sounds petty but it might make a difference. The only other thing I know, while finding it a great surface to work on, smooth, bright, the artist I know also found it very expensive.
