Rubber Floor Mat Painting

Intro: Rubber Floor Mat Painting

I live in the semi-tropics, and we have a problem with fungus and termites here, things that can affect the longevity of canvas and wood.  I imagine that synthetic rubber floor mats should have better longevity than traditional painting bases.  Acrylic paints stick very well to the material. 

Also, there is nothing to say that a square needs to be hung in the traditional manner.  I find that hanging these unusual paintings  diagonally is much more exciting.  Also, the interlocking edges of the floor mats make a much jazzier edge than the straight edges of traditional canvases.

Framing is an obvious challenge for paintings with non-straight edges, and DIY frames have never been a strong point of mine.   Commercial frames can be expensive.  I solved the problem by extruding silicone rubber around the edge to make wavy-edge frames that follow the contours of the mats.  Although the silicone does not stick at all well to the rubber, the silicone locks onto the jig-saw edge.   Another instructable will probably come along later, once I get more experience with the framing.

STEP 1: Painting Techniques

The floor mats do not really need a gesso coat for the acrylics to stick well, but I often use one anyway, sometimes with color added.   All the traditional painting techniques used for traditional canvas painting work. 

The floor mats are mold made, and can have a variety of textures, such as smooth, screen, and floor plate textures.  I prefer to paint on the smooth ones.

STEP 2: Studio Ideas

As an easel, I use a piece of plywood that can be raised and lowered on two vertical pipes by means of PVC  plastic holders  that slide up and down on the pipes and are held in place with hose clamps.  Holes are drilled in the plywood for the placement of nails upon which the floor mats rest.  The nails can be pulled out and re-positioned in other holes, if needed.  Clips at the top made of clothes pins keep the floor mat from falling forward, since the easel is vertical.   

Work lights clamp onto a horizontal piece of pipe suspended from overhead.   I use daylight fluorescent bulbs.  

I like to work on several paintings at once.  To store half-finished paintings, I make springy wire holders that hook onto the wavy edges and let me hang them in the air.  For one thing that keeps them out of the reach of my cats, who love to sharpen their claws on floor mat material.

STEP 3: Frames

Silicone rubber comes in standard colors, like clear, white, black, gray, and brown.  A simple black frame is easy to make by extruding directly from the grease gun cartridge of silicone around the edge of the painting. 

The rubber floor mats tend to warp when hung on a wall.  The silicone frame tends to keep the mat from warping.   I work a stiffening piece of aluminum channel material onto the back to further prevent warping. and give me secure points to attach the hanging wire to.   I use Gorilla Glue to stick most of it to the back surface of the floor mat and lock the ends of the aluminum into the silicone frame with more silicone.   Thus far, no problems.

Silicone rubber does not stick well to the rubber floor mat material, but since it locks onto the edge's wavy protrusions, it stays in place.  Since it doesn't stick to the rubber, one can make a cut through the frame and remove it if needed.  Fancy color variations can be made using clear silicone and powdered pigments for special colors.  

Another instructable will probably be coming along when I get more experience with the framing.  

Comments

[SparkySolar]

Love Art

[verbatin01]

i love the crossover from the traditional trumpeting angel. very creative!

[ilpug]

Loving the paintings!

EVA foam rubber like that is one of the most versatile materials. I have made costume armor, knee pads, all kinds of things with it.

[Thinkenstein]

Glad you like the paintings. What is your favorite glue for working with the EVA material?

[ilpug]

Well, when it comes to costumes, I scratch the surfaces of the foam with a wire brush and use hot glue, it works great, as long as you distress the surface. Using Plasti-Dip to paint the foam gives a great effect too.

I have made some pretty useful safety padding with this foam, using little more than hot glue and a sharp knife.

[Thinkenstein]

Thanks. I'll have to give the hot glue a try.

[rimar2000]

Beautiful pictures, Thinkenstein. You are a truly artist.

[Thinkenstein]

Thanks Rimar. Glad you like them.

[mikeasaurus]

I also like the irregular edges. Does the texture come through once painted? Maybe there's room to experiment with tearing chucks out of the canvas or sanding areas before painting, lending more to the textured look.

I like the addition of a silicone frame, but think I prefer it plain. Nice compositions!

[Thinkenstein]

Texture is visible through the thin paint layer. Some people like textured surfaces to paint on. I prefer the smooth surface. Some come with sort of a screen texture. I suppose you could use the texturizing techniques you mentioned.

I like the unframed edges, too. It would be interesting to have a group of painters each contribute one to make a big "quilt" to cover a large wall.

[Ninzerbean]

You are a really good painter - what a sad one the first one is though. Such a bucolic scene - then, the tire.

[Thinkenstein]

Yep, there are people in the picture by proxy. It's kind of what a beachcomber would see.