A step-by-step guide to creating mixed media backgrounds on canvases using papers, stickers and more. This guide will result in a layered, textured background perfect for adding your personal touch later on.
Supplies:
Book Pages, Sheet Music, Rice Paper, Textured Handmade Paper, Vintage Ledger and Ephemera, Scrapbook Paper, Tissue Paper, Old Maps, Brown Kraft Paper, Magazine Clippings and Collage Paper, Watercolor or Mixed Media Paper, Tracing Paper or Vellum, Old Postcards or Envelopes, stamps, stickers and stencils. Just look around your house and grab what you have or check out this kit. You will also need a canvas, gesso, paint brush, pens and acrylic paint.
Step 1: Prepare Your Canvas with Gesso
Lay out one canvas and cover it in a thin layer of gesso using the long flat brush.
Let it dry completely before moving on. The gesso creates a textured surface, which helps the other materials adhere better and provides a foundation.
Step 2: Tear and Arrange Paper for the First Layer
Select a mix of vintage text papers, ledgers, music sheets, and rice paper.
Tear these papers into various sizes (2"-3" pieces work well for layering) for a more natural, uneven look.
Arrange them on the canvas without gluing to get a sense of the layout. Aim to cover the surface without overlapping too much in this step.
Step 3: Adhere the Papers to the Canvas
Once you’re satisfied with the arrangement, glue down each piece with gesso. Apply a thin layer of gesso over the paper edges with your flat brush to blend them into the background. It is important to have gesso under and on top of each paper.
Allow this layer to dry fully before moving on.
Step 4: Add More Layers with Postcards, Mini Cards, and Stickers
Select a few vintage postcards, mini cards, and landscape stickers.
Layer these items, focusing on placing them strategically across the canvas (you may want to create a focal point by clustering several items in one area).
Apply a small amount of gesso around the edges to make these elements feel incorporated into the background.
Step 6: Add Rice Paper and Speckled Texture
Take pieces of the speckled rice paper and tear them into smaller pieces.
Place these pieces around the edges and in areas that seem empty to create balance and enhance texture. The rice paper helps to blend hard edges.
Add a light layer of gesso over the rice paper to blend it subtly into the background.
Step 7: Create Texture with Stamps
Once dry, paint a light coat of paint in one or more colors. Rub of paint here and there if you'd like with a paper towel to reveal some of the words and images.
Focus on the edges of the paper to create the effect of layers merging into each other.
Step 8: Define Areas with Pen Details
Once the paint layer is dry, use the artists’ pens to outline certain shapes or add subtle, sketchy details. This will add depth and make specific areas stand out.
Focus on tracing around parts of postcards, ledgers, or stickers to create emphasis and a more layered effect.
Step 8: Finishing Touches
Add a final thin wash of gesso over the entire canvas to soften and unify the look of your background.
Once the gesso dries, add drawings, a painting or sketch, leave as an abstract piece or add some ink with stamps.
This technique will produce a rich, layered mixed-media background with lots of depth, perfect for further embellishments, photographs, or art pieces on top. Enjoy creating!