Filed under: printmaking | Tags: art, chine colle, drypoint, Ink, Linoleum, printmaking, Prints, Visual Arts
So, I FINALLY finished carving the linoleum. I printed it! It turned out okay…I think that I’m going to try printing it again, to get the ink to not look as blotchy. This blotchy ink might be because: 1. I printed wet ink onto wet ink 2. of the type of ink that i used 3. I had large expanses of uncarved areas. If anyone out there is an experienced linoleum block printer…PLEASE give me some feedback! Any helpful suggestions for printing would be SO helpful. So here is the print:
Not bad…needs some work. I am also going to try printing it on different paper. I need to get more of that paper, though, so I’ll be heading to Utrecht at some point.
I also did a drypoint as well. I really like drypoint now. I didn’t at first. I’m not sure why I like it again. Perhaps because it is somewhat similar to just drawing. I am looking forward to layering my drypoints. The first print is the drypoint as is:
I know…boring/blech…I added chine colle, and it’s much better:
The blotches on the print are actually shadows from stuff on our windows. Yes, we need our windows washed, but it needs to get above freezing first. This morning, it was 17 degrees. Brrr. I’ll have to come up with a new excuse in the summer why I still can’t wash the windows. Right now, the temperature outside is to blame.
I made four solarplates, to be printed next week. I also made two carborundum collagraphs. This is a kind of sandy grit that you put onto a plate with acrylic medium. When it’s dry, you can ink the plate and the grit will hold ink. So, instead of etching texture into a plate, I’m adding it on the surface. Here are the plates:
I know. Hard to see because of the clear plate. Here is another one made on foamcore:
This should be neat. I’ll print it next week, and hopefully post the images. Unless, of course, they’re horrendous. Actually, I generally would post that anyway!
We did a group crit at one of my printmaking classes. It was the first time that I’ve had actual printmakers look at my work. It was great to hear their comments and feedback. As I’m a complete amateur, I don’t have an overall aesthetic to my work…so it’s kind of chaotic. My printmaking teacher used the word, “exuberant”, instead of chaotic. Perhaps I’ll stick with that for now.
Filed under: printmaking | Tags: art, chine colle, collagraph, Ink, intaglio, printmaking, solarplate, Stencil, Visual Arts
I made quite a few prints this week! It’s also been a lovely 55 degree day today. I think that we’re all giddy with the warmth and sunshine. It does feel wonderful to look up and feel the warm sun on your face and a fresh breeze…as opposed to biting wind and frigid air that makes your eyeballs ice over.
So…dabbling. Lots of dabbling this week. The prints are all over the map.
This week, I had a class with Debra Olin. She was wonderful! So talented and fun. You can see her work here. She showed us stencil work, and chine colle. Chine colle is sort of like collage, but one typically puts the pieces of paper to be glued onto the print not directly ON the print, but on the plate instead. When the plate is rolled through the press, the glue backed chine colle pieces adhere to the print. Very cool! I didn’t do much of it. Here is one with a collaged piece:
The large square is another piece of inked paper stuck on the larger print. Neat!
Here are some things that I did with stencils:
These were fun to do. I’m definitely going to play around with this stuff some more.
I also tried a collagraph. I wasn’t thrilled with it. I kept trying to rework it to improve it. A collagraph is a plate where things are stuck onto it, and those things are inked and a print/emboss is made from them. Here it is:
It looks like a circus. Hmmm…
In my other printmaking class, I made a couple of solarplates. I was pretty lukewarm about these. Also, you will notice in the brown print that there is a whitish margin. This is caused from the solarplate having a slightly curved edge, which allows light to seep in and make that mark. GRRRRR…shoddy plates. So, next time, I may try making a smaller image, and then cutting the plate edges, to hopefully get rid of this problem. VERY frustrating.
See the whitish margin? Frustrating. I was excited to do solarplates, because of the photographic possibilities. But, I haven’t yet done anything that I’m thrilled with. Perhaps the fact that I’ve only been printing them with one color…
This last print is one that I did at home. You’ll notice the sort of washed out look of it. This is because I hand burnish it, as I don’t have a press. I looks okay. I always seem to encounter some registration problem. I’m still happy with it, though.
So, what do you think? Do you like any of these? Throw them all out? Keep them?
Filed under: Fleeting thoughts..., painting, printmaking | Tags: art, india ink, Ink, lithography, painting, pinecone, printmaking, pronto plate, Visual Arts, winter
Today, an odd thing occurred…I was driving along the highway, and, for a brief minute or two, there was sunshine. But this didn’t look like winter sunshine. It looked like spring/summer sunshine. I actually had a momentary feeling of it being summer. HOW BIZARRE. I’m sure that you know what I mean…there is just a feeling associated with each season. It was so strange to have that feeling of summer for a minute or two, in spite of the fact that it’s February and we’re up to our armpits in snow. It was like a deja vu: “Oh…this is so familiar, yet weird…” I know. Just keep my eyes on the road and pay attention! But still…it was SO nice! I wish that it didn’t disappear…
Well, I’m still experimenting. I’m starting to feel that I need to work on something “bigger”. Everything that I do has just been little sketches. Perhaps I need to try to tackle something…MORE. Who knows what that means. Can one get loopy from the smell of ink? gum arabic? banana bread? (I made some yesterday).
Here are some of my latest sketches. I’m trying to think of things to potentially make a solar plate from. The black and white ink sketches are some thoughts. The color image is my first pronto print at home! Yay! It sort of worked! It’s one of those procedures that is a bit temperamental. The first few prints went well…then for some reason, things started to not work well. The ink wouldn’t stick to the plate, so that later prints are more faint. Sigh. Well, not bad for my first at-home attempt.
Did anyone else see that sunshine today? It was hovering over route 95 in Waltham…
Filed under: Drawing, Fleeting thoughts..., painting | Tags: arts, chicken, Collage, drawing, Igloo, Ink, painting, Rainbow Brite, sketching, watercolors
Well, this just about does it. Apparently, we are getting MORE snow. I’ve heard between 4 and…21 inches??? What kind of estimate is THAT? Anyway, all of this snow has put me over the deep end. I’m bracing myself for two days of winter ugliness. My husband has possibly embraced this whole snow thing more than I have…this is the IGLOO in our front yard that he built for my son:
Yes, you know it’s bad when you have an igloo on your front lawn. Hey, at least I’m not LIVING in an igloo. Sometimes, I am so cold in the house that it feels like an igloo. I’ve typed the word, “igloo” so many times now, that it’s starting to look weird. Hence, I am losing my grip on reality with all of this ice-hut-building/snowball-eating/northeast-cursing/blood vessel-bursting/stir-crazy/cabin-fever weather.
I’m trying to fight S.A.D. by using obnoxious colors. I’m not sure that it’s working for me.
Do any of you remember the toy, “Rainbow Brite“? I feel like I’m channeling her…
These are my neurons when I heard that we were getting more snow…
Now, I’m completely regressing…
I did this ages ago, and never wanted to post it. Well…I think that this is the time to post such randomness…
If this week is a series of snow days…you may not hear from me in awhile. I’ll be holding a plastic Elmo figurine and mumbling to myself in the corner of the room while my son asks me to “make Elmo talking…”
Filed under: Drawing, Fleeting thoughts... | Tags: abstract, art, drawing, Ink, printmaking, sketching, snowday, Visual Arts
This week I had TWO printmaking classes! Yes, I know. I am so lucky. I am also so grateful!
In one class, we experimented with trace monotypes. This is where you ink up a plate, gently lay a paper on top of the plate, then rub/draw/scribble on the paper, thus picking up the ink from the plate underneath. This can have cool results…some of my previous posts have some of these monotypes. However, a lot of it has to do with getting the ink consistency perfect on the plate. My attempts during my class on Thursday night did not yield the results that I’d hoped for…sigh. Back to the drawing board, or printing plate, or whatever…
In my second class, we are doing solarplate etching. This is using a copper plate coated with a light sensitive emulsion. You create an image on acetate, then put the acetate on the plate, expose the plate to UV light, and then the image is “burned” onto the plate. When you print this plate (intaglio), you smush ink into the recesses of the plate, and wipe of the excess. Then, the ink in the recesses gets printed. Neat! We only managed to make some test plates today. No printing until next week.
So, in spite of the fact that I did have two classes this week, I haven’t a lot to show for myself. Did I mention that we also had a snow day? Below, you’ll see how our outdoor table looks, and the lego creation that my son made on our snow day…
I’m in one of those phases when I have an expansive awareness of how much I don’t know, and how little experience I have in printmaking. I hope that there is a place for me in this art world…it’s hard not to be overwhelmed with other people’s talents. I know…you’ve got to start SOMEWHERE…I’m trying not to feel that I should just stick to architecture, or finger paints, or lego…
Can you BELIEVE this snow??? Doesn’t this look ridiculous???
The lego creation in process…very 2D…
This is what my solarplates look like…you can barely see that there are marks on them…
And some other sketchy stuff that I kept myself busy with…
Sometimes, I wonder if I should just stick to drawing! Or maybe architecture…this is what I used to do…
Hmmm. I remember that world…no room for errors…lots of information/people/details to manage…nice people…lots of stress, though…LOTS of it. Things are still stressful in my new situation, but they aren’t unhealthy. Plus, I get to see my family! 🙂
Filed under: Fleeting thoughts..., printmaking | Tags: abstract, art, Brayer, colorful, Ink, monotype, printmaking, red, Visual Arts
I was about to write, “it’s amazing how much frozen water can disrupt everything”, but then I thought of the Titanic. Hmm. Makes our perpetual cocoon of snow seem less formidable.
It’s hard to keep a schedule now. Snow days abound. Our thermometer read -6 degrees one morning this week. 15 degrees is starting to feel pretty good, and 32 is positively balmy.
I hope that in spite of the snow, I can make it to my two classes this week. I can see why taking classes in the winter can be a bit of a challenge. But, the light outside can be so great! When the sun is setting…all of those mounds of snow glow with a pinkish light, while the shadows remain a purplish-blue. Throw in some black, jagged branches, and you have quite a scene! I’ll try to remember to take a picture.
I’m continuing with my printmaking. I worked with the new brayer technique that I was shown in my last class. The teacher actually paints/draws like this. In fact, during class she “drew” a remarkable hummingbird with her brayer. (A brayer is a hard, rubber roller used to apply ink). Pretty amazing. I like working with lots of layers of ink.
I would LOVE to own a press someday. I know…dream on. They are $$$$. The images are just so much more saturated and crisp when you use a press, instead of hand burnishing/rubbing the back of the paper. If you know of someone who is somehow TIRED of their exquisite press, and would like to see it go to a good home…let me know.
Here’s my recent work…stay warm!
It feels like such a relief for me to be taking a break from straight lines, clean drawings, neat everything…In architecture, drawings are legal documents, or instructions. No extraneous or unclear information should be provided. CLARITY. Well, obviously…these kinds of drawings/prints have an entirely different purpose. How refreshing!
Filed under: Drawing, Fleeting thoughts..., printmaking | Tags: art, drawing, Ink, printmaking, Rilke, Visual Arts
I’m still on this microcosm theme. Tiny things…organisms…swirling around together…there’s something about imagining that miniscule world that is fascinating. We all rush around in cars, in subways…talking, laughing, frowning…and the whole time there are little worlds like this bumping around…inside of us? (Hopefully not on the grab bar on the subway…gross!) I remember peering into microscopes in high school, searching for that paramecium or ameoba. The ameobas were slow, but the parameciums could really move! Sometimes, we’d have to stain the solution that they were in, so that they were more easily seen. I guess these are the types of images I have in my head…peering and searching, appearing and disappearing…
So, this evening is one of my first printmaking classes! I am very excited. I am somewhat concerned, though, as there is no materials list. I’ve never had an art class with no materials list, so I’m hoping that all the materials will be supplied. If not, I’ll be bummed..either because I don’t have what is needed, or because we are just going to TALK the entire first class, which is NOT ideal. I know. Some talking is good.
I had lunch today with an ex-colleague. She’s wonderful, and it was great to catch up. It was definitely STRANGE to walk into my old office. Everyone is SO nice there, so it isn’t because I didn’t like being there. It’s just so odd to walk in as a spectator, not a participant. I remember the intensity of my existence there.
Wish me luck on my class tonight. I found a lovely poem about being a beginner:
If the Angel
deigns to come
it will be because
you have convinced
her, not by tears but
by your humble resolve to be always
beginning: to be a
beginner.
– Rilke
Filed under: printmaking | Tags: art, Ink, Printing, Printing press, printmaking, Publishing and Printing, Visual Arts
This week, I went to the studio of printmaker Nancy Diessner. She was kind enough to agree to give me a tutorial on pronto printing [a.k.a. polyester plate lithography]. It sounds exotic, but it is much less intimidating than true lithography. I’ll try to summarize it as best as I understand…marks can be made on thin polyester sheets either by hand (with a sharpie, for example), or by a laser printer/copier. So, it has the ability to print hand drawn images, or photographic images. Then, the sheet (plate) is saturated with a mixture of water and gum arabic. The oil based ink is then rolled on the plate, as is typically done…but the water magically repels the ink from the unmarked areas, and the marked areas accept the ink. So interesting! These can either be printed by hand or on a press. Luckily, Nancy has a beautiful press, so that we could print some of them by press. The ones printed by hand have a different feel, as they are lighter and irregular.
So, below are the prints that we made! They are a bit simple and crude…but there are amazing things that can be done with this type of printmaking…so don’t let these early experiments put you off…
This was printed on the press:
See the lovely emboss?
This was printed by hand:
See how it is lighter, and there is no emboss mark?
This was also hand printed…you can see where I rubbed with a bone folder:
This is more “photographic”, but is clearly different than a photo. Please don’t ask me why my child refuses to smile for photographs:
The last one was done on the press:
up close:
See? Wasn’t all that neat? These are so rudimentary, so don’t let that put you off the process. I hope to get the materials so that I can do this at home (without a press, of course!). My printmaking classes start THIS WEEK, so I am SUPER excited for what’s to come!
Besides the pronto plates, here is a hodge podge of other stuff from the week…a linoleum print:
detail:
Besides printmaking, my son and I created a contemporary apartment tower for his chutes and ladders people…note the lovely cantilevers and expansive views! If Fallingwater were tall and made of cardboard…:
And for those of you not in the Northeast…this is what the first blizzard of 2011 looked like:
These photos were taken at 9am…and the “snow emergency” was through 7pm…EGADS! Eventually, the snow in the seat of the chair was taller than the armrests. Sigh…is it spring yet? My ever optimistic friend, KP, was waxing poetic about the lovely blanket of powdery goodness…I was peering out feeling trapped! Perhaps if it was good snowball snow, that would have made up for it. 🙂
Okay, so here is another one in this series. I like this, as I both changed the paper, and I tried to have more ink. These are reductive prints, meaning: I start out with the plate fully covered with ink, and then I wipe away the areas that I don’t want to have color. Messy! So, this last time, I tried to leave more ink on the plate. Better.
slightly wonky 
