Have you Tried Multimedia Artboard?

'Summer Memories'         8x10         pastel        ©Karen Margulis

 I was leaving for Chicago but I had to get my daily painting in!  I didn't have anything planned so I looked in my box of random papers and found a piece of Multimedia Artboard that looked interesting. I haven't worked on this surface in awhile so I decided to give it a try.

I first tried Multimedia Artboard several years ago at a Bill Creevy workshop at IAPS. I forgot how much fun it is  to use. If you are looking for a support that will not wrinkle and warp, a surface that is practically indestructible then you need to give this board a try. I remember Bill telling us that even acid wouldn't destroy it! All I know is that it will take all the abuse you can dole out.

Multimedia Artbboard makes a sanded surface for pastels as well as a non sanded surface. It is as thin as paper but stiff and very light. I found the sanded surface not gritty enough for me so I had taken the liberty of brushing on my own pumice and guess mix. I tinted some boards red violet and some orange.

Read more about Multimedia Artboard here:http://multimediaartboard.com

Multimedia Art Board with tinted pumice-gesso ground

I selected a piece of the purple toned board. I was excited to see how the random brushstrokes would work for my painting. I liked the texture but decided to push the first layer of pastel down into the grooves. I used my fingers. I used several applications of workable fixative to build up layers and create more texture. 

 Since this board take a lot of abuse I could have easily done a wet underpainting. In fact I could do as many wettings as I wanted and this surface would not buckle. This is the kind of surface that should net be thrown away. There is always something that can be done to rescue a failed painting even if it means trying another medium on top!

Note: I recently used a board for my experiment with Micaceous Iron Oxide paint by Golden and it was wonderful!!

Block in....click to enlarge and see texture

Tip: Multimedia Artboard is almost indistructible however it can and will snap if you try to bend or fold it too far. Other than than....anything goes!