Art Portfolio Two - Resin experiment

Yesterday I experimented with resin to see how it works. I bought the 150 ml pack, in which a 100 ml resin bottle, 50 ml hardener, a pair of plastic gloves, 2 stirring sticks(wood), 2 x 30 ml measuring pots and the instruction booklet. Additionally, I have used five small glass jars that I collected, plastic egg box, scissors, liquid food colouring, water colours and my face mask.

I was warned about Resin's smell so I started my experiment out in the backyard. I put the plastic gloves on as well because I already have a medical problem with my hands. Also, I put on my Covid medical mask which I am used to wear by now.

I began by mixing the Resin and the hardener together straight in the jar with two measuring pots, one for each material. According to the instructions, it should be 2 parts resin for one part hardener so I mixed 20 ml Resin with 10 ml hardener. And I stirred with a stick gently until most bubbles vanished.

Then I added few drops of blue food colouring and kept stirring till it blended and became one. After that, I left it out to dry. This first experiment was made to see how the blue colour mixes with resin.

For the second experiment, I used a pair of scissors and cut the tops of a plastic egg box, and placed on a transparent mix with the same portions as the first experiment, 20 ml resin and 10 ml hardener. This experiment was to find out how the resin will react to plastic when placed on top. Also, I wanted to see how transparent resin looks like without any additional colours.

The plastic top floated on top of the resin. And it started raining so I took the experiment indoors.

The third experiment was conducted the same proportions, 20 ml resin and 10 ml hardener. However, this time I used blue watercolour mixed with blue food colouring and I made the mix in a separate pot. After blending, I poured the mix into the third jar and carefully poured a small portion into the plastic top and placed it slightly in the resin and held it down with the end of a brush because it was floating due to the different levels of resin mixes in the plastic top and the jar.

 

The fourth jar was a 15 ml resin with 7 ml hardener and I mixed it directly in the jar with few drops of green food colouring.

For the fifth jar experiment, I used different proportions than before. I wanted to know how the hardener effects the resin drying time, so I increased it a little to see what happens. I mixed 15 ml resin with 10 ml hardener and added few drops of yellow food colouring.

Then I left them all to dry and see the result next day and check on them every few hours.

The first experiment was surprisingly sea water like. It became darker with time and the surface had a sticky feel to it.

The second experiment was and stayed transparent. However, the plastic top slowly sunk. and bubbles formed around it. The texture did not have much stickiness, but it was solid and glass like. 

The third experiment was also sticky but the blue colour turned to light violet and it lost its transparency.

The green turned red immediately when I mixed it and it stayed red. But the texture was good and sticky, the bubbles were almost invisible and the resin did not loose its transparency.

The yellow colour turned the resin to red immediately and stayed red, almost the same tone as the previous experiment. It took the same amount of time to dry but it became much more stickier.

Conclusion:

I think I have a general understanding of how resin works now. I have learned the following:

• It is best to mix the resin in a different pot than the one used for the artwork, and then pour it in. This way I will be able to modify the mixture as much as I want without worrying about making a mess in the final 'Aquarium', and it will be easier to control the level of resin I pour.
• The resin needs about 12 hours to harden, no matter how much hardener I add.
• Using colours is sometimes tricky. Therefore I need to make a preparation experiment to find the right pigment before making the final outcome. And the watercolour idea was very unpredictable so I should stick to food colouring and try to add less colours next time, because I want to make it more transparent than the first result. And the reason for that is that I want the content inside the plastic bottle to be visible.
• I must stick to the proportions given and continue adhering to health and safety measures (gloves, mask, outdoors if possible..etc).
• I need to figure out a way to hold the plastic bottle in place whilst the resin is drying.