Plaster 2
The second lot of casting for the "Transmittance of Pity" painting didn't work! The results were better than before however. There were two main problems. Firstly I sandwiched the plaster between two sheets of plastic, one flexible one solid. The flexible one was easy to peel off, but the solid one tended to stick to the plaster, making it hard to separate without cracking. Secondly the card parts of the foamboard absorbed the water in the plaster, sticking it to the edges. I could try to waterproof the card, or put some vaseline on it (thanks Kathy!). A new moulding material would be useful though, or I could try to make a mould from the positives I've already cut. I have some latex for that.
This test was better than the others though. The surface was level and very smooth, there were no raised edges or lumps. The thickness was even and consistent, the air bubbles inconsequential. Generally it was a good test, and one or two of the more robust shapes were good enough to use. The difficult "mirror", the important and most difficult curly part of the painting will have to be recast though.
