Make your own Photo on Canvas

My art project during the Thanksgiving holiday.

What you need:

one blank canvas
one black and white photo copied on a laser printer using the cheapest paper possible
one bottle of gel medium from a craft store
one paint brush (size medium)
one squirt bottle of water
one book

How it's done:

1) Paint a coat of the gel medium onto the canvas (lay it on kind of thick)

2) Take the black and white photocopied picture and place it ink-side down onto the canvas, on top of the gel medium. (picture will come out mirror reversed so if there are words then make sure you print reverse)

3) Lightly press the paper down onto the canvas.

4) Set aside and let dry overnight.

(Next day) Using the squirt water bottle, spray a mist over the canvas and lightly rub the paper in a circular motion. The paper will begin to come off in small wet balls (it gets messy). Take your time and don't press too hard. Apply more water as needed. The idea is to lightly rub the paper off, leaving the ink imprinted photo image on the canvas. Sometimes a little of the picture may rub off, just move away from the weakened spot and move onto another area. The imperfection looks natural so it's okay to have a few areas like that.

6) Once paper is rubbed off, mist canvas again and paint a thin coat of gel medium for a sealant. It will look milky at first but will dry clear.

7) Rip out book pages and place along edge of canvas and then top it off with some gel medium for a final sealant. I used a proof copy of my book, Angel in a Fur Coat.