Computer virus - Art using computer boards and elements

I finished the book "Collapse" by Jared Diamond, and it put me in a somber mood. So as you can see this next piece reflects that. The book has given me a lot of ideas that I will be developing soon.

This painting represents a computer virus attacking an innocent victim via the "Love letter virus". The virus arrives by email disguised as a love letter and requesting that you open the attachment. The victim opens it and the virus awakes and wreaks havoc. The Love letter virus, aka the ILOVEYOU virus, was one of the most infectious viruses, and spread to tens of millions of computers. You can read more about it here.

The painting is one more in my series of mixed media art using computer components. These paintings are large (36x24in) and take considerable time to do. But I love coming up with these conceptual art pieces and recycling those old computer parts into something new and beautiful.

ILOVEYOU Computer Virus - Acrylic, transparencies,
and computer boards on canvas board (36x24in)

Below I describe my process for creating this mixed media painting with pictures of each step:

I started with a canvas board and attached the PC boards in a way that was pleasing to the eye.

Computer Virus painting - Computer boards attached to canvas board (Step 1)

Then I covered it with two layers of glossy white acrylic enamel. This accomplishes several things: It smoothes things out, makes them glossy, sticks the boards more to the canvas, and gives me a white surface so the bright phthalos of the virus will be even brighter.

Computer Virus painting - Acrylic Enamel Background

I then spray painted the areas infected using Montana Acid Green. I pulled apart some computer cables to make them look like branches or tentacles spreading the infection to other parts of the computer. I spray painted them and glued them to the canvas.

Computer Virus painting - Acid green acrylic spray paint (Step 3)

Then I took a large transparency sheet and painted some PCB circuits using naphtol red and phthalo blue on the reverse side. The reason I use transparencies is that it gives the look of a computer monitor. I pasted the virus code and other cool details in different places. I used computer parts as well as Lego pieces to paint interesting patterns. On the other side of the transparency I wrote RE: ILOVEYOU which was the subject of the email message containing the ILOVEYOU virus. This way it looks like the computer screen is showing the email message containing the virus. I made the word LOVE transparent so it's the first thing you see. And thus at first glance you the viewer are tricked into thinking that this piece of art is about love, when love is just the bait.

Computer Virus painting - Transparency with the ILOVEYOU virus (Step 4)

To give the appearance that the virus is exploding or ripping the computer apart I overlaid a semi-opaque transparency sheet that I had ripped and burned, and subsequently painted in blue. I enjoyed the process of creating this mixed media piece. I hope you enjoy looking at it.