Artist Barbara Taylor-Harris Works Where 3D Pen Meets Paint

Artists are known for their willingness to experiment and so it should come as no surprise that in the art world, the introduction of a new technology such as a 3D printing pen is quick to attract interest and easily integrated into an artist’s toolbox. Mixed media artist Barbara Taylor-Harris truly enjoys exploring combinations and much of her recent adventure has been traversing uncharted territory in the integration of the 3Doodler into her work.

As with anything new, it wasn’t easy right from the start. At first she found it difficult to use the 3Doodler to create sculptures, a seemingly obvious use for such a technology.

Not one to be easily frustrated, however, she shifted to working with the printing pen on two-dimensional canvases and it was there that she had her first breakthroughs that have led her to mastery.

In a recent interview with 3Doodler, Taylor-Harris explained her journey:

“I bought it [the 3Doodler] originally to make sculpture, but when I started making linear designs I found that the plastic was quite fragile and it wouldn’t stand up. So I gave up on that at first and began to use it on paintings. On paintings what I found is that the hot plastic will stick to an acrylic base. So if I’ve done a base painting, I can then get the plastic to stick to the acrylic.”

Her initial difficulties with creating sculptures can’t be attributed to any lack of experience in sculpture. Before retiring in 2005, Taylor-Harris had been trained as a sculptor and worked as a teacher for many years. In fact, it wasn’t until after retirement that she decided to take up painting as a means of expression, first with watercolor and then later in mixed-media with sculpted canvases.

What she eventually found was the the 3Doodler provided her with another opportunity to explore both her mixed-media work and the creation of sculpture:

“It offers you the capacity to do things that you can’t do with any other material, for me that’s a huge boost to creativity. I can sculpt in stone, I can sculpt in plaster, but sculpting with plastic is a lot easier. It is possible to create sculptures with the 3D pen that would be difficult to create in other materials. You have to learn a lot about it to get thickness and stability. You need to explore and work with it as a medium.”

Taylor-Harris generally works on series that explore themes such as energy or the Everglades. Typically she will exhibit as part of several group exhibits per year with at least one solo show that allows her to showcase the exploration of her chosen theme. Her current project is entitled Willow-Dream and you can see more of her work, including explorations, on her Pintrest page.  Let’s hear your thoughts on this artist’s work in the Barbara Taylor forum thread on 3DPB.com.