This 3D horse wall art has a secret or two. It’s not really metal. And it’s not really old. But with the special effects of reactive oxidizing metal paint, it might convince you otherwise. By combining the oxidizing properties of reactive paint and the 3D properties of air dry clay, you can make beautiful, lightweight wall decor that looks like weathered copper or bronze.
You can also create dimensional decor with an authentic bronze patina–like the hammered metal texture leaf below—
or the true copper patina shown on this monstera leaf–
Reactive oxidizing paint is paint with an alter ego—like Clark Kent and Superman. When first applied, it looks kind of unassuming and normal. But add a special patina solution, and it develops serious wow factor.
Can you use reactive paint for items other than clay sculptures?
Yes!
The Modern Masters Metal Effects paint used in this tutorial can be applied to furniture, picture frames, and even exterior items—it is often brushed on metal awnings and rain downspouts to create an authentic copper patina. There are thousands of things that you can use reactive metal paint for. And it’s water-based, so clean up is easy.
Keep scrolling to find FREE downloadable patterns and a video tutorial of the entire process of making 3D horse wall art and then transforming it with oxidizing metallic magic.
gather these supplies
- Five 16 ounce packages of paper clay (Creative Paperclay or other good quality brand)
- cutting tool (clay clean up tool, craft knife, OR old X-acto knife)
- 220 grit sandpaper
- Modern Masters Metal Effects Oxidizing Bronze Paint & Blue Patina Aging Solution
- paint brush
step 1: download the FREE horse art patterns
Download the FIRST HORSE PATTERN SET. Print on normal copy paper. You’ll have 9 pages in this set that make up the primary section of the horse. Arrange them like this after printing.
Then download and print the SECOND HORSE PATTERN SET. The second set of patterns will also have 9 pages. Arrange the pages as shown below.
When cut out and taped together, the horse art patterns should look something like this–
step 2: set up your work area
Set up a work area with a non-stick surface. In the video below, I taped some non-stick paper to a birch table top to make a large work mat. You can also roll out your clay on a sheet of large plastic or vinyl. Anything that is non-stick will work.
step 3: create your horse wall art
Begin by combining four 16 ounce packages of paper clay. Then roll out the clay using a rolling pin or thick wood dowel. The process will be like rolling out a giant pizza crust. Flatten the clay slab until it is a little less than 1/2 inch thick (10 mm), but don’t worry if there are areas that are slightly thicker. That will just give your art some varied dimension.
Keep an airtight container nearby for storing leftover clay once you are finished rolling and cutting.
Watch the video to see the entire process of how to make 3D horse wall art and apply reactive bronze paint for an aged metallic finish.
finishing touches
To add interest to the horse wall sculpture, I added some tiny metal beads to the center of the “flower” section–
That recessed circular section could be filled with any number of things, so be inventive!
paper clay drying tips
If weather is warm, placing paper clay outdoors in the sun will speed the drying process. You can also dry the clay in front of an indoor heater, or in an oven set to the lowest temperature (around 170 F).
During the drying process, some edges & sections of the paper clay may lift up and curl as the exposed surface of the clay begins to lose moisture and dry faster than the area that is touching your work surface and not exposed at all. To minimize curling, you can dry the pieces on a wire rack (the kind made for cooling cookies) when the clay dries to the point that it can be picked up without losing shape.
Paper clay will also shrink slightly as moisture evaporates during drying. Occasionally, on large pieces, this can result in a small break. If this happens, simply use additional wet paper clay to patch and repair the break.
reactive oxidizing metal paint tips
Wear gloves while applying the oxidizing metal paint, as well as a mask and protective eye wear when using the acid-based aging solution.
For best results, directions recommend applying an acid-blocking primer before applying the metal paint.
Two coats of reactive oxidizing paint are recommended before applying the patina solution, and you will get more dramatic results if you apply the patina solution while the 2nd coat of oxidizing paint is still wet.
Practice on a test area first, and explore the different effects that you can get by applying the patina solution with brush, sponge or spray bottle.
Modern Masters metallic paints are water-based, so it’s easy to clean up with soap and water. This artist soap is excellent for cleaning brushes after using it.
In addition to the blue patina solution used in the video, Modern Masters makes a green patina solution as well as a Reactive Copper Paint that contains actual copper particles.
The monstera leaf below was coated with Modern Masters Reactive Copper Paint and then (while the copper paint was still wet) a blue patina solution was applied with a spray bottle. Within 24 hours, it developed this weathered copper patina.
This second leaf (below) was coated with two layers of Modern Masters Oxidizing Bronze Paint, and then a blue patina solution was applied on top with a spray bottle while the second coat of bronze paint was still wet.
Find patterns for both of these leaf shapes in this leaf art post.
Modern Masters Reactive Metallic Iron Paint is another option that you can try, and it contains iron particles which lead to the formation of actual rust when the rust activator is applied.
Have fun creating!
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