After attempting to make our own version of the Meade/Sheila milk collaboration with body paint, we thought we would experiment with acrylic paint to see if we could achieve a stronger coat of paint that could resist the milk for slightly longer.
The biggest difference that we recognise was the consistency
and thickness with which we could apply the paint. Acrylic paint simply applies
a brighter and stronger value of colour to the skin than the much more diluted competitor. This factor was much more important than we had originally
anticipated because while editing the photos in post, it was clear to see that
the two paints photographed with completely different effects. The body paint
became gradually more translucent as it was brushed with water; it also melted
into every crevice of the skin and created a second colourful skin that
looked somewhat realistic. Whereas, the acrylic paint kept its texture when dry and dunked in the milk. In the photos it's possible to edit the acrylic paint to look like
a photo of a painting.
After the success of editing the body paint dispersing into the milk bath I was excited to edit these photos in a similar way. However, I quickly discovered that I would have to go down a completely different route because the acrylic paint hadn't dispersed into the milk whatsoever. This was a new challenge that I was daunted by at first as I had no idea what to do with them. I had to release control and let myself play with Photoshop. I'm glad that I've gotten to a confidence level where I have the freedom to play with the software as I've worked hard to increase my knowledge of it. While experimenting the colours I started to play with the saturation as I wanted to capture the striking colours without losing the texture of the paint. I then found what I thought to be a good composition and did the same edits on a couple other photos. I was pleased with this first series as I love making work that has elegance to it and I felt the smooth, white, and perfectly still milk captured the elegance of the shot.
I wanted to push my creative vision further and see where I could take the colours. By over saturating the colours and playing with exposure I completely transformed the photos. The once clean background was now grainy and colourful. The once soft poses gained power and strength in their movement and gaze. I was so blown away by the finished photos that it inspired me to make a series of Pro-Marker drawings which I will be making a separate post about. I am in love with all the finished portraits.
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This final shot was a final thought in the shoot that we briefly experimented with but did not give much thought. While editing the milk bath shots I found these and was taken aback by the accidental innocence that we had captured. This shot was another push in the direction of taking my body paint into the real world. There is a juxtaposition in this photo because on one hand, this is a photo of a clearly naked girl caught seemingly off guard while she takes a bath; and yet on the other, the paint somewhat transforms her into a character that is out of place in an otherwise regular bathroom.
I want to push further with this idea of taking a painted person into the real world, but this would mean painting clothes and getting the public's reactions which adds a lot more problems to solve. I am excited to pursue this idea further once the lock down has been lifted.
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