My friend Johnnie from Saved by Love Creations helped me make some Andy Warhol Pop Art for my playroom. She used her mad Photoshop skills to make them colorful and comic book looking. I sent Johnnie these pictures of my kids…
and she worked her magic and they came out looking like this…
Aren’t they so awesome? I love how she took the picture of my daughter looking upward to look like the sun is shining in her face. Johnnie printed them out on 20” x 20” poster paper for me.
I got some 1” MDF cut to 19” x 19” then I used some 3M 77 Spray Adhesive to adhere them to the MDF. I sprayed the MDF and the back of the print. It makes it SUPER sticky. Then I placed the MDF carefully on the back of the poster. You definitely want to get it right the first time, there is no replacing it once it is down. Then with my hand I pressed it flat and burnished it down.
After it was dry I flipped it over and used an Exacto knife to cut away the excess. Then I used some sandpaper and sanded downward to make the edges look a little worn.
Then I used the magic stuff. It is called Z-gel, it is a canvas texturizing medium If you google “canvas texturing medium” there are a few other brands, but I got the Z-gel from a local shop for free so I don’t have any secret sources. They use this stuff in frame shops to take $5 poster prints and transform them into what looks like an oil painting. Oh..yah…and then they sell them for $100.
Using the lines the print already had, I took a one inch foam brush and “painted” the poster. I tried following the lines and curves that Johnnie created. I created texture where there was supposed to be some definition with simple brushstrokes.
Thin strokes are the best. The kind where you don’t even see the white of the glue. This stuff is photo safe and great on posters, prints and giclees. It dries super quick. So if you want to go back and highlight areas later you can.
While it was drying I primered and painted the sides white.
After it was all dry I used screws and wire to create a hangar on the back. It is very important to use screws and not nails when you work with MDF.
Now it looks like I painted these myself with oil paints. They have a neat shiny texture to them. I love the way they look hanging in my playroom. It adds some charm and whimsy to my otherwise messy playroom.
