Advice on alternatives to mdf for artwork please

[laurajscott]

Hi, I am new here and looking for some advice please. I am an artist (with no experience of woodworking!) I make layered wall sculptures which are usually 20-30cm wide and made from shapes laser cut from mdf. I am attaching a picture to show what I mean! They are attached to the wall using z-bars (aluminium hangers).

I have been asked to make some much larger pieces (1 metre across) and I am concerned if I continue to use mdf at this scale the pieces will be too heavy. As they scale up, the thickness of mdf I would want to use would scale up too. For example, one artwork would be made up of 2 layers of 9mm mdf and 1 layer of 12mm mdf, each roughly 1 metre square. It works out to around 28kg I think?

Can anyone suggest an alternative material I could use? I thought maybe ply but I have been advised it can splinter when cut and one of the main reasons I like mdf is when laser cut or mechanically cut it has a perfectly crisp edge. Also I'm not sure how much lighter ply is.

Any advice welcomed. Thank you.

 

[CHJ]

If you are laser cutting then why not remove the material from the inner areas of the rear pieces, the back sheets only need to have surrounds wide enough to attach the front panels to.

You then have material for a host of smaller pieces from the same stock.

 

[dynax]

I agree, this would reduce the weight considerably,

 

[laurajscott]

Thanks for your replies. I did consider this, it would certainly reduce the weight. But I assumed I would need pieces of this size and thickness cut mechanically and not laser cut. Doesn't laser cutting take a lot longer the thicker the material - and is therefore more expensive?

Also how to attach the wall fixings if the pieces are hollow (barring the front sheet of course)?

 

[Brentingby]

What about making frames and covering them with fabric? Or a film that shrinks with application of heat?

 

[JWD]

Yeah the back two panels could be hollowed out and a cross brace left just on the back one to attach the z clips.
maybe also do some research on french cleats - these may be a cheaper alternative to the aluminum and possibly even stronger if you do need to do heavier pieces

In response to your latest comment, if you have access to a workshop table saw (or know someone with one) you could ask them to do it for a price? someone with a cnc machine would be even better.

best of luck

 

[bugbear]

All the cuts appear to be straight, and convex. These could be done with a simple (powerful, cheap) saw instead of a laser.

As a material, how about hot wire cut polystyrene? (styrofoam, or EPS foam, available in various densities/strengths)

BugBear

 

[woodbloke65]

Also how to attach the wall fixings if the pieces are hollow (barring the front sheet of course)?

Button Fix, see here: http://button-fix.com/ - Rob

 

[laurajscott]

Thanks everyone for your replies, I really appreciate you taking the time to help me. I'll definitely look into removing some of the hidden bits to lose some of the weight and do a bit more research into fixings. Thanks again.

 

[Rorschach]

If you could teach yourself how to use a track saw (not difficult with a bit of practise) you could make most of these cuts yourself and it would allow you to remove pieces from the back as suggested. A good blade will give you very crisp cuts and an offcut of thick mdf with with some 240 or 320 grit sandpaper would tidy up any little fuzzies in seconds still leaving a crisp cut. You would then only have to pay for laser cutting on more intricate shapes so save yourself a good bit of money too.

Aside from the track saw you will also want a nice large flat work table to lay out your MDF sheets. Have another sacrificial sheet on top too that you can cut into with the saw.

 

[novocaine]

LDF?
https://www.timberproducts.com/products ... panels/mdf

 

[pcb1962]

If you're going to use a saw, rather than laser cut, you'll get a cleaner edge if you use MRMDF (medite) instead of standard MDF