Acrylite Eyes
Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 10:13PM One of the most satisfying parts of making these masks are forming and painting the eyes. The mix of air brushed colour, black pupil, and a piece of white vinyl to act as a light reflection bring a focal point and human element to the faces created. Normally I use ABS sheet styrene at 1/8" thickness for this, heating it up in the oven until it loosens up enough to become malleable, then forming it over the desired carved form and letting it cool to take shape.

Unfortunately I have run out of my supply of styrene. I can't say that i've done rigorous research on how to acquire it in Montreal, but I think I've found a good solution.
Artists often become hoarders, taking in trash and scrap material from the streets in hopes that they will one day use it for something important. It often drives them to madness, which I can relate too, but also has it's benefits.

A year or so back, after construction had been completed at a house down the street from mine, I had stumbled upon a sheet of Acrylite FF thinking that it may become useful in the future. It mostly served as a flat surface to draw on, but after some research and testing I am happy to say it will serve as a good substitute for the eye forms.
It becomes malleable, like sheet styrene, in the oven after 8-10 mins at 310F, and maintains it's form after cooling down. The only drawback is cutting off the excess: it's more brittle than the styrene and needs to be scored on both back and front side to avoid hair cracks which could eventually ruin your form.

Though I would prefer to have white styrene for most projects, I look forward to experimenting with this material for this specific mask. Being that this character is supposed to be part fish, I think the glossy translucent Acrylite could produce a pleasing effect with some paint applied on the underside.
I will keep you posted.
Bye for now.











