Japanese Fireman

Here is my latest project. I'm not sure if I'm done yet, but it's getting close. I started with the idea of a Japanese fireman from a blockprint by Yoshitoshi. Then, I played with Spectra tissue paper. I got that paper at least a year ago, but wasn't sure what to do with it. But having watched a video from the Pacon website, I realised that it wasn't just for collage. If you apply water to it, it will transfer the colour to the page, and I found that if you spray it well, the paper will contract and create a striking zebra effect. It was too strong a pattern for what I was looking for, though, so I applied a dark blue acrylics glaze over it.

In keeping with the Japanese theme, I scanned some origami paper I bought in Japan in a paper shop in Asakusa, and I also photocopied a newspaper article (about what, I have no idea). Last night, I felt something was missing - I couldn't just have some random words that I don't even understand (but I kept them in there anyway). So I went to the Asahi newspaper website, used the Google Translate feature, found a page with a mention of the Fukushima nuclear plant, turned it back to Japanese and printed it. The 19th century fireman represents the bravery of the teams who have been trying to get things under control in Fukushima since mid-March, but is also a symbol of the futility of their efforts faced with such a complex task. (That's starting to sound like an "artist's statement"!!)

PS: the glue I use is Liquitex matt glazing medium. I find it's the best way to apply paper to the acrylic page. I then generally apply a transparent layer of matt & gloss medium over the page to unify the textures.