Filed under: printmaking | Tags: art, chine colle, drypoint, Linocut, printmaking, Visual Arts
A rainy, grey day here in the Boston area. My son has caught a cold, so I’m trying to avoid having him cough on me excessively.
Last night’s printmaking class was a lot of fun…just five of us trying anything out that comes to mind. Everyone does such different stuff. I wish that I could show the other students’ work as well! You’d see how interesting and diverse our things are.
I had made a drypoint plate, which shows up in several of the works. I also did a lot of chine colle this week. I had some interesting origami paper that I incorporated into lots of these pieces.
I’m also working on a bigger linocut. It’s going much more pleasantly than my previous one, as I’m using a better kind of linoleum. I’ve decided that the classic, “battleship grey” linoleum is a pain. This one is a golden color…cuts more easily…doesn’t crumble as easily, and is generally more pleasant to work with. I’ve also pulled out my woodcarving tools, as my little Speedball set of tools is limited and clunky.
So, here are the prints from last night. I like the greys with the bright pops of color. My favorite is the last one…
All of the pictures are going to be dark, as there is no sunlight today! This one above is the drypoint plate with chine colle. I did this a few times:
And again:
I was experimenting with how I removed, or wiped, the ink from the plate. Some are better than others! See how “inky” that one is?
Then, I took a break from that drypoint plate. I had springtime colors on the brain…in amongst the grey…
Even brighter:
I’m not sure if I’m finished with that one.
A bit of an experiment with scratch foam…kind of like the styrofoam trays that you get from the grocery store. I like the fact that the pieces look like they are part of the sky, but somehow the overall isn’t great. I need to help it somehow…suggestions?
Some layered chine colle…I’m not sure if I’m finished with this one yet either:
I like this one the best, even though the registration was off. I started with a monotype, then I decided to put my drypoint plate on it. Unfortunately, the plates weren’t the same size…but I didn’t care…spoken like a true novice:
What do you think? Helpful comments? Advice from experienced printmakers? I have to say…I look over these prints, and most seem incomplete. So, I’ll see if I can revist them at my next class…
Are you as tired of winter as I am??? I planted some bulbs this year, so I am hoping to see some pops of color in a couple of months! Until then, I have to stick with ink…
Filed under: painting, printmaking | Tags: art, Linocut, Paint, Visual Arts, Watercolor painting
Not much to show since my last post. I have several things in progress. Nothing remarkable, but it keeps me busy. I’m working on a linocut. I am now realizing that while I love the way block prints look…I find actually carving the block to be tedious. I can only do it for a limited time before I get bored and have to do something else. I think that this is because I’m impatient. I want the image done NOW. Having to wait while I carve it takes patience and perseverance.
DOES ANYONE OUT THERE DO LINOCUTS? If so…do you find the cutting of the block tedious?
(i do)
Maybe I should just put on NPR, and the whole thing will go along more pleasantly…
The next images are of a watercolor and a trace monotype, which I’ll add watercolor to afterwards. I like watercolor. I don’t feel that it’s very easy, but I like blobbing around the transparent colors. I know. If I was doing a more complex picture, perhaps I would find it too hard to enjoy! Perhaps I should try a still life, or something. I’m certainly not doing anything en plein air. My paint would freeze. Yes, the warm weather is long gone…this morning it was a chilly 19 degrees. 19 DEGREES!!!
I’m lukewarm about this trace monotype too. The picture is of the back of the paper. I almost feel like the pencil drawing on the back is more interesting. I’ll see how it goes…I may have needed the ink to be darker. Who knows. You can let me know your thoughts when I finish it…
This is a bit of a random post. Here’s a paper cut that I did ages ago.
Papercutting is kind of interesting. It has tons of possibilities. Once again, I think that the process of cutting the paper is not as much fun as other stuff. It’s much easier than hacking into that lino block, though…I can see getting carpal tunnel from that.
This is school vacation week. We’ll have all the kids home quite a bit. I have a feeling that I’m not going to get much done, other than making meals/cleaning up from meals/putting away toys/tripping over toys/passing out on the couch from sheer exhaustion, etc. I’m going to have to try to do artistic things while managing the household…you know: dust kitty sculptures, junk mail collages, spilled cereal installation art…the usual…
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... | 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: Fleeting thoughts..., printmaking | Tags: art, cabin fever, cambridge, education, printmaking, snow, Visual Arts
Today is a snow day here. Schools closed…cars buried…cabin fever…
This is the first moment that I’ve had to think…my three-year old son is not one for just lazing around. He’s a man of action, and he expects a partner in crime at all times, namely, me. I’ve been Big Bird, Elmo, someone named Harry, Richard Rabbit from Peppa Pig, and countless other characters during our playing today. In other words, I’m fried.
My snow day today also meant that my printmaking class today was cancelled. Oh well! But I DID have my other printmaking class last night. It’s at a fairly new arts center called Maud Morgan Arts in Cambridge. I’m taking a class called Print Sampler…with FOUR different, highly respected printmakers. Each teacher will teach two, non-consecutive classes. Last night, we have a fabulous teacher named Jan. Her last name escapes me right now. [edit 1/26: Jan Arabas] Truly, in one class I already feel that I learned SO much. Who knew what kind of fun stuff you could do with a brayer? I do wish that she had brought some images of her work, just for inspiration. The group seems varied and nice, so I think that it will be great…assuming that I can attend all of the classes.
Last night, I also had a drink with my dear friend KP. She’s the one who finally pushed me to get this blog going, and who is a constant font of thoughtful and kind guidance. Anyway, she pressed me to have my posts share more information…not just the images. One question she asked was, “why printmaking?” Good question…I don’t have an eloquent answer. So, what is printmaking? In essence, it is transferring ink from a matrix (copper plate, wood block, etc.), to another surface (typically paper). This impression from the matrix is a print, and it is this process that sets it apart from painting, drawing, etc. etc. So, why printmaking? There is something amazing/unexpected/mysterious that happens when you make a print. Until you actually press the paper to the matrix…you don’t actually KNOW how the print will look. Obviously, skilled printmakers probably have a highly refined sense, and know exactly what they will get. But even then, I still think that there is something (and I hate to use this word) “magical” about peeling back the paper for the first time to look at a print. You control so much of the process, but there is a final toss of the dice that adds a fascinating twist. This twist can be VERY frustrating. NUMEROUS times I have imagined how I believe the print will turn out, only to be surprised by the actual result. Again, with years of experience this surprise lessens/disappears, but undoubtedly the excitement of pulling the print remains.
Here are pictures of the snow, the toys we played with endlessly today, and the print from last night…each a moment in my past 24 hours…stay warm!
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
slightly wonky 
