Large Format Painting (Ceiling Tile Project)

The main idea behind this project is that you get used to painting on a larger scale. You do not have to paint on a ceiling tile if you do not wish to. You may instead do a painting on a large piece of paper that we can supply you here at school, or you may purchase a large size canvas or canvas board from an art supply store. There are other materials you can paint on such as signboard, or masonite. You can coat these materials with the latex primer we have here at school to seal them before you begin drawing and painting.

KEEP IN MIND, IF YOU CHOOSE TO PAINT ON A CEILING TILE, YOU ARE AWARE THAT IT IS THE SCHOOL'S PROPERTY, & YOU AGREE TO LEAVE THE PAINTED TILE AT DENAIR HIGH SCHOOL. It has been a tradition here since 1996 to display the tiles in classrooms around the school. These tiles add to the character of individual classrooms, and the school as a whole. If you wish to create a large-scale painting that you would like to take home, and not leave here at school, then choose one of the materials listed in the paragraph above or discuss other options with your teacher.

Preparing the tile: Before drawing on the tile, it is going to take some preparation. We do not paint on the front side of he tile due to the rough texture that most tiles have, we prepare the back and paint on it. This entails a couple of steps. First, if there are any markings on the back, such as code numbers in ink, these marks need to be removed. To do this you must sand them off with a piece of sand paper or an electric sander. If you don’t remove these marks, they will bleed through your painting and show in the finished product. Second is to seal the raw side with latex primer. This will keep the very absorbent, and porous ceiling tile from soaking up tons of paint. If you chose large paper to work on, then neither of these steps is necessary, however, materials such as signboard and masonite will require the primer.

When applying the primer, apply two to three LIGHT coats. This will take several days, as you should only apply one coat a day, and let the primer dry thoroughly, before applying the next coat. Your tile is now ready to transfer your image to.

Transferring the image: Since the tiles are a soft, easily damaged, vulnerable material, it is a good idea to minimize the amount of erasing and redrawing. This is why we transfer the image from the picture you have selected using an opaque projector. This too, requires some preparation.

If you are going to paint the tile yourself, you will get a half tile which is 2’x 2’. If you are going to partner up with one or two people, you will get a full tile which is 2’ x 4’. As with most your projects in the past, the picture you are working from will need to be the same proportions as the tile, paper, or canvas, you are transferring it to. Since ceiling tiles will have images transferred to them via the opaque projector, you need to get a printout of your image, that is not only proportioned correctly for a half or full-sized tile, but it can be no longer or wider than 6”. Larger images won’t fit onto the projector we have here at school. If you are familiar with image manipulation on the computer, then you may complete these steps on your own. If you are not, then get a knowledgeable classmate, aide, or the teacher to help you prepare your image. This would also be a good time to incorporate your name/s and other text into your image, if you so desire.

Once you have your 5” x 5” printout (for half tiles), or 3” x 6” printout (for full tiles), you are ready to project your image onto your tile. You can review the projection video that was made for the "Celebrity Collage" since it entails the same process to set the project up. This is the link. If you don't feel comfortable doing this yourself, have the teacher’s aide or teacher help you get set up. There are many angles to deal with when projecting an image, so try not to move the projector once you start the tracing process. It’s best to begin the tracing at the beginning of class, since having to re-align the image the next day can be very difficult, and we almost never get an exact re-alignment.

You are now ready to begin painting your ceiling tile. If you need a refresher on some painting skills, then read the next handout on painting your ceiling tile.

Now that you’ve finished your drawing, you’re ready to begin painting. Painting can be a lot of fun, but there are many different rules; too many rules to discuss on this single page. Therefore, we’ll only look at some of the more general rules on how to paint.

1. Move from background to foreground. This rule tells you to paint what is furthest away form you first. For example, if you were to paint a mountain scene, you would paint the sky first, then the mountains, then the trees, etc. This rule is useful because you can paint the sky sloppily, covering the mountains, and then take time and care painting the mountains over the sky after the sky paint dries.

2. Move from the general to the specific. This rule tells you to paint things that are larger with less detail first. For example, if you were painting a face, you would paint the head first, before painting details such as the eyes and parts within the eye. The larger area you paint the larger brush you should use. Knowing what brush to use usually takes some practice. Ask your teacher what size brushes you should use for particular areas.

3. When possible paint from light to dark. In other words paint lighter things first. Sometimes this rule will fight or contradict other rules, so you’ll have to decide which rule you should follow in a given situation. For example: A scene with a dark blue night time sky and a white statue in the foreground can’t follow rule 1 and this rule at the same time. You will either have to paint the sky first, following rule 1, or the statue before the sky to follow this rule.

4. When working on any one particular color or area, you should have a minimum of three flat brushes. The largest brush will be for the base color, one of the smaller brushes will be for adding lights and the other for darks. First, you paint the entire area using the big brush with the base color. While the base color is still wet mix in the lights and darks with the smaller brushes. If the base color dries before you get to blend in lights or darks re-wet the area with more base color. You should also have at least one small line brush to add lines and detail to your painting.

5. Keep in mind that simply reading and following the steps above won’t make you an artist or guarantee that you will automatically turn out a great painting. It’s going to take some practice and some coaching from your teacher. If you’re stuck on a particular area, make sure you get help from your teacher, and if you missed the demonstration, make sure that you get a brief personal one. If you mess up don’t fret - just about anything can be fixed. However, the sooner the mistake is caught, the easier it will be to repair. Do your best, take time and care, ask for help when you need it, and you will turn out a project you can be proud of – guaranteed!!