Wheatpaste

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"Wheatpaste"

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Wheatpasting • Poster Art

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Wheatpaste, or wheat paste, (also known as flour paste or simply paste) is a liquid adhesive used since ancient times for various arts and crafts such as book binding, decoupage, collage, montage and papier-mâché. It is also made for the purpose of adhering paper posters to walls. Closely resembling wallpaper paste, it is made by mixing roughly equal portions of flour and water (some argue using more water or more flour), and heating it until it thickens.

A similar flour and water formula is taught in elementary school (minus the low heat simmer) as an easy to make substitute for ready made adhesive. A typical application is in constructing streamers of paper rings made from colored construction paper. It can also be used to create papier-mâché.

Activists and various subculture proponents (such as hip-hop, punk, communist, and anarchist) often use it to hang-up propaganda and artwork in urban areas—usually during the dead of night due to the illegality of postering other people's property, or near traffic zones in certain cities—although it is just as commonly used by commercial bill posters, and has been since at least the nineteenth century. In particular, it was widely used by nineteenth and twentieth century circus bill posters, who developed a substantial culture around paste manufacture and postering campaigns.^[1] In the field of alcohol and nightclub advertising, in the 1890s Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec's posters were so popular that instructions were published on how to peel down the pasted posters without damage^[2]. Until the 1970s, commercial poster hangers always "cooked" their own paste, but since then many have bought pre-cooked instant pastes.^[3]. It is applied to the backside of paper then placed on flat surfaces, particularly concrete and metal as it doesn't adhere well to wood or plastic. Cheap rough paper, such as newsprint, works well, as it can be briefly dipped in the mixture to saturate the fibres. Due to danger of being apprehended, wheatpasters frequently work in teams or affinity groups. This process is typically called wheat pasting or poster bombing.

Wheatpaste is also known as Marxist glue, probably because of the left organisations that use it, and because its ingredients are staples which can be combined by the individual, bypassing capital and industry - a true example of non-alienated labour.

It is also used in fine arts preparation and presentation due to its low acidity and reversability.

1 Prominent wheatpaste artists
2 Tips for Wheatpasting
3 Etymology
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Prominent wheatpaste artists

Shepard Fairey of Obey Giant campaign
Buff Monster
Bäst
Michael De Feo

[edit] Tips for Wheatpasting

Contrary to the name, bleached white flour is better to use than wheat flour because it does not discolor your work or leave small brown flecks of wheat all over the top of your poster.
You can use a long broom as a brush to put your posters in out of reach places.
Use thin paper, or newsprint paper so the paste can sink into the fibers well. Thin paper also ensures that your poster will not be ripped down in one easy pull.
Adding sugar can increase the strength of the paste.
Wheatpaste works best on metal and concrete.
Applying a layer of paste around the edges of a flyer or poster will go a long way to keep it from getting ripped or torn.
Add a small amount of wood glue or PVA to your paste after it has thickened for added strength.
Home made wheatpaste will keep in the refrigerator for around 5 days before it starts to go bad.
Brushing a thin layer of wheatpaste over the top of your poster will weatherproof it a bit and stiffen your paper once dry.
Use only waterproof mediums to make your posters. The paste will probably smear your ink while you are putting it on if it's not.

[edit] Etymology

The words paste, pasta, and pastry have a common heritage, deriving from the Late Latin pasta (dough or pastry cake), itself deriving from ancient Greek pasta, meaning "barley porridge". In English paste appears with the sense "dough" in the 12th century, and with the meaning "glue" from 1440.^[4]