OSB Board Collage Tests
I recently got a supply of OSB board, sometimes also called particle board or chipboard.
In college my final year projects were all painted on it, and when I tried to keep up painting after graduation, I continued using the stuff. It was cheap, worked very well with acrylics, and would ‘fight back like hell’ in a way I really liked while making my art.
Since I turned toward collage and mixed media I haven’t touched OSB, until just recently. The school I work at had one of its front windows busted out. The glass was eventually replaced and the laborers let me keep the 8’ x 4’ sheet of wood along with a handful of smaller scraps.
So, I decided to see how the stuff would mingle with my collage practice . . .
Above and just 3 of the tests/attempts I made.
Overall I don’t care for the results. The collage elements aren’t interacting with the chunks of wood chip as deeply as I’d hoped. I had to soak the paper pieces in water for a while before applying them, to have the texture show through (Test 3). In Test 1, the paper pieces, black squares and gold strips mostly, do look nice atop the soft paint washes that bring out and define the flakes of wood fiber - it’s a good contrast - but I want more exchange from the other media elements.
Something that I don’t remember being a problem with OSB in my youth, is the amount of cuts and slivers I got from the panels from just handling them. It’s like walking around with a handful of loose razorblades. The chipboard also sucks up moisture from everything that touches it - glue, paint, skin.
I think if I was to try something on a full sized sheet and really mess with it using thick adhesives, power sanders, hacking into it, and tearing off/reapplying materials, I would see more action and have a more satisfying experience.
Something to keep working on.
