Waiting for the Macaque

Gingered Spam Salad
(Can you tell I emptied my spam folder today?)

Yield: 1 Serving (because with this you don't need friends)

1 cn Spam, sliced matchstick size
1/4 c Finely chopped ginger root
1 ea Small red onion, finely
Chopped
1/2 ts Garlic powder
1/4 c Freshly squeezed lime juice
Zest of 1 lime
1/2 ts Oriental dried chili powder
1/4 c Chopped cilantro leaves
8 ea Cherry tomatoes
Thai bird peppers and
Cilantro sprigs to garnish

Combine all ingredients in a sealed glass or plastic container to
marinate. Refrigerate at least two hours or preferably overnight.
Stir or shake occasionally to evenly coat. One hour before serving,
stir in cilantro. Serve on a bed of torn lettuce of your choice.
Garnish with quartered cherry tomatoes, Thai bird peppers and
cilantro sprigs.

Whew, that's out of the way.

For a long time I have been thinking about the tools that are my most used, well not just tools, materials too. So today I want to talk about gel mediums- the first thing I would grab if I had to leave my studio for the bomb shelter:





Mediums come in all consistencies, from thick impasto that is moldable to very runny extenders that easily pour, and each thickness has it's own properties. Mediums mixed into acrylic colors can change paint consistency, thickness, transparency, sheen, drying rate, absorption rate and even texture. But that isn 't the only way to use them. Below are listed the differetn types that Liquitex carries, but Golden is a favorite too- they just have slightly doifferent names for their products.

types of mediums: slow drying
gloss, gloss heavy, gloss super heavy
matte, matte opaque extender,
modeling paste and light modeling paste
fluid mediums and texture gel mediums

properties of all mediums- transluscent when wet, transparent when dry.
mix with heavy body colors to obtain paint similar in color depth to oils
when matte mixed with color, it takes on a satin sheen
extends paint, retards drying time

uses for gel medium:
gesso substitute (transparent ground) on canvas or other painting surface (can be colored with acrylic paint first)
collage or decoupage glue for adhesion of two surfaces together
binder for powdered pigments- saves money by buying powders and mixing it yourself
slows down drying time for reworking or allowing thick surfaces to dry more slowly and thoroughly
adds flexibility to paint film- works for shaped canvases or art that will be rolled
varnishes and glazes- surface treatment or protection
acrylic sheets or decals- now this is cool- try it!
airbrush, impasto, brush techniques
fabric painting: dying, staining, silkscreen, stencils, printing- use regular acrylic paints with fabric extender
image transfers, either decal making or direct transfer from paper.

In general, Matte vs. Gloss- matte has more adhesion than gloss. gloss increases brilliance of surface.

I always have three kinds on hand, a heavy body matte medium for decoupage, a matte gel medium for mixing paints or changing a surface to be more compatible with fabrics, and a gloss medium for fancy surface treatments. I buy the regular matte medium in gallon cans because I go throug it so quickly. The gloss I usually get in quarts, and the heavy body stuff I get in smaller amounts because it goes a long way in decoupage and I don't want it to dry out. There ya go, a lesson for the day. I will talk more about how I use mediums as I do different projects.