I’m carving a block of grey vinyl this evening as I’ve decided to make a New Year’s greeting card, based on the Mari Lwyd, a pagan Welsh ritual based on a horse skull. It’s quite small so I should be able to get it cut and printed quickly. Working on this scale is nice, IContinue reading “Carving A Horse Skull”
Category Archives: Printmaking
Rolling….
Down at Swansea Print Workshop earlier, printing an edition of a two colour reduction block print, cut from soft vinyl and printed up onto Japanese Hosho paper using Cranfield Caligo Safe-Wash ink using a roller (brayer) from Intaglio Printmaker in London.
The Re-Cut
During the process of developing my recent commission for Sky Arts TV channel, as part of their Art50 programming, I did a number of test blocks to try out different combinations of wood, sealer, ink and paper to find the combo that worked best. It also gave me a chance to experiment with the carving,Continue reading “The Re-Cut”
And Breathe!
So, after two and a half months of research, preparation, creative blocks, blood, sweat and a lot of hard work, I finally finished carving my very large block of wood and did the first print. And breathe! The block has been sealed with three coats of shellac and methylated spirits (mixed 50:50) and I amContinue reading “And Breathe!”
Bokashi!
Husb and I spent a few days away in Northern Italy, exploring museums and galleries on a guided tour arranged by New Scientist magazine. We took in a fabulous exhibition, “Beyond The Wave”, of Japanese Ukiyo e printmakers, Hokusai and Hiroshige in Bologna. I was fascinated by their process. To my surprise, the artists themselvesContinue reading “Bokashi!”
Drawing Blood!
I draw lots of things. Today I drew blood! I’m back to reality after our short break to Italy and cracking on with carving my large woodcut (80 x 120 cms), a commission from Sky Arts TV channel. One of the occupational hazards of carving blocks for relief printing is the razor sharp tools thatContinue reading “Drawing Blood!”
It’s All A Bit Zen.
The carving begins! The final drawing has been transferred in reverse onto the MDF block in compressed charcoal. Then I redrew everything with a brush and walnut ink. And now I’m cutting. After all the rush and stress of the past few weeks, it feels a bit Zen to quietly carve into the wood,Continue reading “It’s All A Bit Zen.”
Getting On With It
I’m on the last leg now with “Here Be Dragons”, my commission for Sky Arts, getting my final design transferred into a large sheet of MDF. I’m back in my studio at home, with Helen Finney’s portrait of me looking down as I work. I transferred it using detail paper, that had a tracingContinue reading “Getting On With It”
Still Slogging Away….
Still slogging away. I have redrawn this yet again and now I think I’m finally happy with the way the textual imagery flows. This is the third version that I have worked up, and I did it lightly in graphite first. Then I covered it with detail paper (tracing) and copied itContinue reading “Still Slogging Away….”
Back To The Drawing Board
Literally, back to the drawing board. I worked up a full scale drawing yesterday, ready to transfer to a block for cutting. But I’m not happy with it. There’s so much text to fit into the space and I think it’s too busy and cramped so today, back to basics, redrawing each word so theContinue reading “Back To The Drawing Board”
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