March 08, 2010
Sometimes I’m working on a plate and reach a point where I just get stuck. It’s usually not that I don’t have ideas of what to do, but rather that I can’t decide which of my many ideas I want to follow.
Take, for example, The Little Match Girl. I’ve drawn the block, done a lot of the carving, and have run a test print. Upon seeing it on paper, I realized that there was a large empty-ish area in the center. Is there room for another head? Do I want to add one? Who would it be? There are already three men to two women in the circle, so I thought another woman would be appropriate, and I imagined a young starlet clinging to the man with the cigar. But I don’t really mind the hole in the center, and wasn’t totally certain about what to do. Ta-da! Photoshop to the rescue!
Here is the test print.
And here is my Photoshopped mockup. I cut, pasted, and flipped the head of the woman with the diamond ring, to get the right size head. Then I further cut, pasted, erased and painted to get a different face. Granted, the line weight and feel are different; I didn’t take the time to get it to an exact match with the cut lines, since all I wanted was an idea.
So, now on to finish! I know which way I’m going with this. Stay tuned to find out how this story ends!
Printmaking | No Comments »
March 05, 2010
“I do not care for your clothes, your pearls and jewels, nor for your golden crown, but if you will love me and let me be your companion and play-fellow, and sit by you at your little table, and eat off your little golden plate, and drink out of your little cup, and sleep in your little bed - if you will promise me this I will go down below, and bring you your golden ball up again.” Thus spoke the frog in The Frog Prince, as he negotiated with the princess as to his reward for retrieving her golden ball, which had fallen into the well.
“Oh yes,” said the princess, “I promise you all you wish, if you will but bring me my ball back again.” But she thought, “How the silly frog does talk. All he does is to sit in the water with the other frogs, and croak. He can be no companion to any human being.”
To what lengths would you go to get, or keep, your heart’s desire?
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February 26, 2010
Here’s the latest in my series of Fairy Tale prints: Rapunzel.
Rapunzel’s long, long hair loops and wraps around the lonely tower of her confinement, like vines strangling a tree. The thorns of the briars that surround the tower are tipped with the blood of the prince, who leapt (or was pushed) from the tower when discovered by the witch. A figure is silhouetted in the tower’s single window; is it the witch, or is it Rapunzel?
Rapunzel
Linoleum block print with hand coloring, 2010
Edition of 22
Printmaking | 1 Comment »
February 15, 2010
I’ve been making prints –linoleum block prints, to be precise– for three years now. I absolutely am in love with the whole process of printmaking: the planning; the puzzling-it-out process of converting images to black and white, or of making a reduction print; the craftsmanship of laying ink on block and pulling an impression. And given that my last printmaking class was over thirty years ago, in college, I’m pretty much self-taught. I’ve learned a lot from online sources, especially the Baren printmaking site and email group, and have also been gratified to find that a lot of what I figured out on my own is standard practice.
But there is so much more to learn! So many printmaking processes! So many nuances of paper, and ink, and press! So this semester I’m taking an etching and intaglio class at Cabrillo College.
I felt like I was going to my first day at school all over again. I bought a notebook, sharpened my pencils, decided what outfit to wear, and studied the bus schedule. Kindergarten at fifty!
Now I’m working on my first homework assignment: six related drawings, any topic, any style or mix of styles, just some theme or idea tying them together. I had hoped to go out hiking and sketching this weekend, but have suffered (along with Sarah-Hope) a return of the flu bug, so have had to stay inside. Still, I chose “trees” as my topic, since I can see a fair number of them from my windows, and have a ton of drawings of them in my sketchbooks and reference photos on my camera’s memory card.
Here are the first two. The idea behind this one is the redwood next door silhouetted against a foggy night sky that’s lit from below by the city lights.
The second one is also of a redwood tree. I took a photo of this on one of my recent walks. I liked how the tree dwarfed its cousin the telephone pole. I’m also looking of late at how human activity bisects the landscape, for instance the grid of lines across the sky caused by telephone wires.
I’ve recognized a lot of my habits in creating these. First of all, I tend to sketch in waterproof magic marker or ink pen; I could not find my good drawing pencils. (I later did, but after doing the pencil drawing. A better, softer pencil would have helped!) Second, I tend not to draw for the sake of drawing, but to take notes for future prints or paintings. It’s fun to just sit down and draw for its own sake.
Now back to the drawing board, literally, to tackle the next four. I think palm trees are calling.
Drawing and Printmaking | 2 Comments »
February 14, 2010
A couple of weeks have passed since our big series of storms, but the local beach is still littered with driftwood and other flotsam. Now, however, it’s taking on a new dimension, as people have begun building a variety of structures out of the washed-up branches.
The Cabana. Where are the umbrella drinks?
The Tipi, one of three in a row:
These sculptors have gone all Lord of the Flies:
I am fascinated by our compulsion to build. A pile of wood, or rocks, is irresistible. We try to make order out of chaos, and along the way build a shelter or sculpture. These remind me of a day a few years ago, when Sarah-Hope and I drove up to her favorite beach at Waddell Creek. There, close to the highway, was a cone-shaped structure, made of pieces of driftwood. It was extraordinarily well-constructed: the branches fit together just so, and the shape was even and symmetrical. It was stunning! I loved the way it made us think about driftwood in a whole new way, transforming it from detritus to art.
(Picture a cone just like this, except made of random bleached wood, with the ocean behind it.)
My fantasy was that it was made by Andy Goldsworthy, who has several pieces in the area, at the DeYoung Museum, and in the Presidio, and at Stanford. I like to imagine him taking a break from his comissioned work, and driving down to the beaches in Santa Cruz. Once here, just like the builders above, how could he resist that pile of driftwood?
Art in General and Walks and hikes | No Comments »
February 02, 2010
I’ve made test prints of the two Fairy Tale blocks I’m working on, and am rawther happy with the results.
On the left is The Frog Prince. The princess lies asleep, clutching her golden ball, while the frog watches. My main issue now is the frog’s eyes. I’m finding it a bit difficult to get both direction of glance and emotional content into amphibian eyeballs. And in black and white, at that. Lots of test scribbles on the sides of my reference photos, but still not quite right. It will come to me one of these days.
In the meantime, I’ve done most of the corrections and adjustments that I noted on the test print for Rapunzel, and am pretty much ready for a final test before printing the edition. I’m looking forward to getting back to the press!
Now in the first round of drawing: Rumpelstiltskin and Snow White. Look for a sneak preview next week!
Uncategorized | No Comments »
January 31, 2010
Last Saturday was a bright and sunny day after a week of storms, so I took the opportunity to take a walk on the coastal bluffs to see what damage the weather had wrought.
I was perhaps a bit disappointed to see that there weren’t many changes, just a bit of erosion. I had been hoping that the sea cave near the beginning of the Old Cove Trail in Wilder Ranch State Park had turned into an arch, but I guess geological change doesn’t come quite that quickly. It seemed to me, though, that the opening at the back of the cave was a bit wider — but that could just be wishful thinking.
Anyway, of course I took photos. Here is the sea cave, with some nice big waves crashing in to it.
I love pelicans! They look like pterodactyls as they fly along the edge of the bluffs.
More birds, mostly cormorants, perched on a sea stack.
And the little dots on this rock are small shore birds. They would run to the edge of the rock between waves to pick at the seaweed, then run to the back of the rock when a wave crashed over it. The rope in the foreground is used by surfers to climb down to the beach below.
A beach-level view of the crashing waves.
I wasn’t the only one out looking at the waves. These people seem to share my fascination with the ocean.
More storms to come; I’m looking forward to some more shoreline drama.
Walks and hikes | No Comments »
January 18, 2010
At long last, post-holiday, post-show, post-flu, I’m sitting down at the drafting table once more to carve a new fairy tale block. This one: Rapunzel.
Having set up the convention of printing the blocks in black ink and then hand-coloring a bit of red in each print, I find myself re-reading fairy tales with an eye towards what would fit that color scheme, along with what presents an interesting visual scenario. In Rapunzel’s case, the sharp thorns at the base of the tower stood out as prime candidates, both for their bloodiness (red) and for their twisting, intertwined design. (The prince, having been discovered by the witch who has imprisoned Rapunzel in the tower, is thrown out the window and lands in the thorns, where his eyes are poked out. Nothing like a fairy tale for a little blood and gore!)
My other challenge is the format. For this series, I’m using blocks that are four inches wide, by either 5 or 6 inches tall. Even using the taller block, I had to work a bit to fit the tower. By twisting it and distorting the perspective this way and that, I think I’ve been able to give a sense of height. I’ve also decided to have the top of the roof protrude beyond the border of the print, in order to further give a sense of reaching into the sky.
Here is a picture of my sketchbook, where you can see me playing with different perspectives and nuances. I write lots of notes and reminders to myself, along with random unrelated things that pop into my mind while I’m working out the design.
In this series, for the most part, I’m living a bit dangerously and drawing directly on the block, as opposed to working out a tight drawing and then transferring it to the block. I think working this way adds a bit more spontaneity and looseness to the final print. It gives me permission, mentally, to change things as I go and play a bit more. You can see where I’ve erased the top of the tower and moved it a bit to the right, and where I’ve narrowed the base a bit on the left. Even with my goal of looseness, there’s a good bit of tight carving, especially on the roof tiles.
I worked on the block over the weekend, and am almost ready for my first test print. Here’s where I am so far:
The main things I need to see in the test are whether I need to broaden the thorn branches; how dense the hair looks before I start carving individual strands and braids; how much “glow” I need to add around the moon; and how I feel about the transition between the trees and night sky. So far, I’m pleased with how it’s turning out.
FYI: I just learned, in Googling “Rapunzel,” that Disney is in the midst of creating an animated version of the story, in 3D CGI. It will be interesting to compare and contrast my version against theirs.
Printmaking | 1 Comment »
January 04, 2010
What is so rare as a day in January? Then if ever come perfect days… at least if you live in California.
Some errands brought me to the north end of town, and it was such a warm sunny day I thought I’d take a break and visit Natural Bridges State Beach. At this time of year, the beach is best known for migrating monarch butterflies, so first I took a walk along the monarch trail, a set of boardwalks through the eucalyptus grove that is favored by the butterflies.
While historically the butterflies have remained as late in the year as March, the rangers told me that for the past few years they have been leaving earlier and earlier. I only saw one or two fluttering in the high canopy. A bit disappointed –I was hoping for trees festooned in orange masses– I headed for the beach.
It was a really, really beautiful day today. The bridge stood out against the sparkling waves.
There were two arches in the bridge until fairly recently. Here is a very old photo, from around 1927. I found it on Tahquechi Photography blog. It’s a slightly different angle, but you can see the toll the pounding surf has taken on the rock.
It was so beautiful, even the gulls stopped to admire the view.
At low tide, you can explore the tidal pools along these ledges on the northern end of the beach. Not a good idea today.
But, since it was high tide and a fair surf, I was treated to a close-up view of a trio of young surfers. The rock formations at this beach make for interesting wave patterns. Not only do the waves come straight in from the ocean, but there is a secondary set of waves that come in sideways after rebounding from the ledges. It was these sideways waves that attracted the surfers.
I have an old Canon A510 camera, much abused and overworked. It has accompanied me on many hiking trails, usually stuck in a pants-leg pocket. The lens grinds on its way out, I have to prod the shutter to get it to open all the way, and the batteries run out a lot faster than they used to. Nevertheless, I had a great time trying to take photos of the surfers, and am rather pleased with how they came out. Enjoy the show!
And one last look at the bridge.
The weather prediction is that it will be just as beautiful out tomorrow. How is a person supposed to work in this place?
Walks and hikes | 1 Comment »
January 02, 2010
A palindrome seems a good way to start my first blog entry of the new year, as I look both backwards at the year that has passed, and forward to whatever adventures 2010 may bring.
Somehow, in thinking about the new year, an old painting of mine jumped into my head.
I painted “Milky Way” in 2003 after spending a vacation down at Big Bear Lake with my sister Joanna and niece Katherine. One night we went out on the beach very late and watched for shooting stars. We saw a few, but it was more the calm night-time lake and star-studded sky that stuck with me, and the look of the white plastic beach chairs at the edge of the lake. The chairs seemed to extend an invitation to become part of the spectacle of the universe, offering us the ride of our lives.
I have that same expectant feeling now, guardedly optimistic as we enter a new year and a new decade.
Here’s wishing the best for all of us, with peace and prosperity and good will towards all living creatures.
Let’s go!
Painting | No Comments »
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