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I first used the medium in New York in 1989 when I was working on a series of bogus antiquities. The technique seemed to give objects an instant authority, as if they spoke from another era. Lime plaster is very old technology, but the chemistry is still fascinating. You have to work on wet lime with pigments simply ground in water and the properties of the lime do the rest. As the plaster hardens, the surface crystallizes around the pigment particles and locks them into the surface of the wall or panel. You would need a microscope to see this happening, but the result is a work where the colour is part of the surface, not just a coating.
Kindness will show how to mix lime plaster, using both wet lime putty and hydrated lime. Participants will prepare a fast-track surface for painting, without going into all the layers of a Renaissance wall. Kindness will also help participants choose time-sensitive brush and application techniques (fresh plaster must be worked on the day it is laid), and advise Participants on adapting their regular working methods to get the best from the medium.
Some materials will be provided as part of the workshop.
Image Credit: John Kindness, Sailor Torsos – Elements, 2013, Lime fresco on reinforced plaster, 56 x 66 x 15cm.