Silk Painting How to

Silk art can be used for paintings, interior décor, and wearables, including scarves. Silks are available in many textures, finishes, and weights. The protein fibers of silk are translucent. In a silk painting, the dyes are bound to the fibers. Because of this, light passes through the silk much like a prism, giving the painted silk its lustrous glow.

Momme (mm) is a Japanese unit of weight used in silk production. The heavier the weight, the higher the momme number. Consideration must be given to final use when a silk is chosen for a project. 5mm up to 12 mm are suitable for scarves. 10mm and 12mm, are used for clothing. 8mm, 10mm,and 12mm can be used for framed art.

The quality, texture and weight of the silk will influence how dyes and resists are accepted.Some weaves are habotai, crepe de Chine, satin, gauze, dupioni, and bourrete. Habotai and crepe de Chine are perfect for most silk painting applications.

Silk paintings are generally created on white silk. Special dyes are painted onto the stretched silk using a paintbrush. The dyes flow into the fiber and bond with the proteins, becoming a part of the silk thread. This is different than oil, acrylic, or watercolor paints which sit on the surface of the support. Painting on silk results in a work of art with a shimmering luminosity, not found in other mediums.

In order to obtain a defined design, various resist methods are used to contain dye in specific areas. These “resists” may be waxes or guttas (solvent or water-based). Serti is the name of the traditional method of using gutta to fence in an area for a certain dye. Batiks traditionally use waxes as a basis for their designs. Shibori is a dye approach using only fabric folding, scrunching, or stitching to create design.

Paintings on silk are generally steam set - locking the dyes into the fiber and making the color of the painting reasonably lightfast and washable as well as brightening the colors.

In modern silk painting new techniques and products are continually being introduced providing never ending possibilities for the creative silk painter.