Moving into the final stages of my commission from Sky Arts ART50 now, drawing up the design to full scale before transferring it onto a wood block for cutting …..
And Nearer ……
Getting Nearer
I’m getting along with my commission for the Sky Arts ART50 programme, “Here Be Dragons”. I have reworked every single piece of text that will be on the final woodcut, redrawing each word until it forms itself into a visual image that I like. The letters sometimes become so abstracted that it can be difficult to read the final word, but that’s okay, I’m making a piece of art, not an illustration or a piece of design, so I don’t have to worry if something is readable, only that it works as a visual motif. These words will change again when they’re painted onto the surface of the woodblock and yet again when I carve them and print them and use chine collé on them.
Next phase is to work up a full-size drawing onto paper, prior to transferring it onto the woodblock. So getting along nicely…..
Tiny Etchings
Coming up from November 10th, an exhibition of miniature prints at Swansea Print Workshop. The main exhibition showcases the Leftovers VIII international touring show but members of the print workshop will also be displaying tiny prints for sale ….. some lovely Xmas presents there! Here are some of the tiny drypoint etchings I’m submitting, they’ve been hand-coloured with watercolours. Come and have a look …..
An Urban Sketcher In The USA
I follow quite a lot of other bloggers on WordPress, mostly artists, and this is one I admire very much. Pete Scully’s urban sketches are fabulous – they’re unassuming snippets of the small American town he lives in (mostly) but they are also beautifully drawn, gently chronicling modern life.
TEN YEARS LATER: PETE SCULLY
On a corner of Old North Davis is a house I drew at the end of a crisp sunny October day in 2008. I remember I left work early that day, and cycled up beyond 5th Street, still then a fairly unknown country for a South Davis-dweller such as me, to the Old North neighbourhood, […]
Phew! Cracked It!
Finally, all the teccie, geeky stuff has been sorted. I did a third test block, carving a fraction of my final design onto a shard of MDF, coating it three times with a 50:50 mix of shellac and methylated spirits, inking it up with Cranfield Caligo Safewash Relief ink and printing it, using a Japanese baren, onto Hosho paper. PHEW!!!!!! Cracked it!
This is a first, trial, proof which shows me if the carving is satisfactory. I can see where I need to cut more away around the lettering and maybe increase the ‘scales’ around the dragons eye, but it’s not too bad at all for a first proof.
This is another stage in my commission for Sky Arts ART50, you can read more about it here…
Andis Applewhite: New Additions to the AP/RC
I really like these woodcut prints, very contemporary approach to an ancient technique
Andis Applewhite stopped by this summer to visit the AP/RC, talk, and drop off some artwork and related materials for her archive. In addition to six woodcuts and three trace monotypes, Applewhite left with the AP/RC some test sheets exploring colors, textures and shapes as well as several registration prints. She lives most of the year in Houston but also has a farm and studio in northern Texas where, among other things, she cultivates wine grapes.
Open Studio Days And Cake
You are welcome to pop in to one of my Open Studio days where I’ll be working on a commission from Sky Arts television channel, called “Here Be Dragons”, which means dangerous or unknown territory!
216 High Street
Swansea
SA1 1NW
Saturday November 3rd from 11 until 2 pm
Thursday November 8th from 3 until 6 pm
Sunday November 11th from 2 until 5 pm
It will be lovely to show you around and there will be tea and cake, home made of course.
Yesterday’s Package
Yesterday’s package was tins of new ink! Caligo / Cranfield Safe Wash litho / relief ink in black, for my test blocks. And here’s the second of my test blocks cut into MDF. The first, last week, gave unsatisfactory results but one of my WordPress chums, Siver Black, gave me a tip, to apply three coats of a 50:50 mix of shellac varnish and methylated spirits.
I’m delighted with the results. I used Hosho Japanese paper and took the print by hand, using a Japanese baren.
I did a second proof print with chine collé, using a hand-made banana paper in dark red. This is part of the commission I’m working on for Sky Arts Art50.
Oooh! A Package!
Ooohh!!! A Package! What am I going to do with that?
Seagulls At Sunset
Seagulls at sunset hanging out of the spiky bits on top of the towers on top of the mosque that used to be a church. There was a seagull on each one.
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