I have been experimenting to see if I could create art from old CDs. This builds upon an ongoing project to re-use CDs for home decor. I am still in the process of creating wall hangings and wind chimes which I will feature in another blog. But it struck me, I could be even more creative!
Create Art From Old CDs
This all started because I had a large number of old CDs and DVDs that were of no use and could not be recycled. I was convinced I could do something with them rather than add them to land fill. So I spent ages working with them and dipping them in acrylic paint.
Faced with a table covered with old CDs that had been given a ‘face lift’ with acrylic paint made me stop and think. Some of them were so beautiful, was there not an additional step I could take to do more with them?
I decided to scan them into my computer and see what they looked like.
Working With Scanned Versions
I scanned the CDs with a background of a white canvas. It was a bit fiddly, with constant cleaning of the scanner glass. Some really didn’t work very well. But others looked quite hopeful so I carried on further.
The next step was to immerse myself in what I call my ‘digital dark room’. To see if I could indeed create art from old CDs. My definition of ‘art’ in this instance being create a piece that I could upload to sell in my art storefronts. Some of this proved easy, some very fiddly and frustrating. But in the end the results are a new collection of images that look just great on home decor and gift items.
New Collection Of Mixed Media Images
The new collection is now available to purchase from my RedBubble store. As they are square images they work particularly well on wall art and home decor. But some of them look beautiful on gift items such as aprons.
I have endeavored to maintain the color combinations and patterns on the CDs, while adding enhanced textures, vignettes etc to create a complete image. For example, the one above ‘Planet Earth Floral’, is a CD where I covered the hole in the middle with tape and then painted the whole circle. It reminded me of a satellite view of Earth so I gave it a dark vignette to suggest space and a glow around the planet.
For a few of them, I let my imagination really go to town. ‘Sketchy Business’ keeps the original flow of the acrylic paint but with just a hint of color. I added a texture suggestive of pencil sketching and I rather like how it looks.
I also had fun exploring how I could break up the flow and lines by adding a montage effect.
I was so glad I decided to try a different route with my experiment! They came out really well. Now, as the weather is improving, I need to get back to stringing these CDs together as wall hangings and wind chimes. It is surprising how much fun you can have by re-using something that is essentially rubbish!
Before you go
My name is Dorothy Berry-Lound an artist and writer. You can find out more about my art and writing at https://dorothyberryloundart.com.
You can follow me on Facebook.
Thank you for reading!
These are cool arts to try. I’m now looking for some old floppy discs. I want to make some flower pots using floppy discs.
Using them on flower pots would be really cool Fadima! Just need to seal them with something like ModPodge. Thanks for your comment.
Ooh I love these so much – it’s such a creative idea! It’s lovely that you tried to stick with the colour combos, the colours all look so fabulous! Thank you so much for sharing.
I am glad you like them! They have been fun but also time consuming and at times a bit frustrating, so I am delighted with how they are turning out. Thanks for your comment.