Block Heads

I'm starting a new group of prints on the theme of war and peace. Tonight I made my first few drawings on the blocks. I'm trying for a looser process, so I'm going to work with squares -- square blocks and square paper -- that can be interchanged, overprinted, or turned around and still register easily with each other. I'm also thinking of using a limited color palette so that I'm not fussing over colors so much. I want to do less planning and leave more room for spontaneity.

Final Chlorine Print

The rules for the Periodic Table Print Project require that the periodic number and symbol be obvious, so the last few impressions include these elements. First I added the "Cl" for chlorine, which I envision as being underwater:



Then I added some linework to further define the toes. I found after the first impression that the lines were much heavier than I wanted them to be, so I trimmed them down:




Then I added the periodic number as well as the name of the element to finish the print.

To watch all 118 elements be added as the table progresses, visit this page hosted by contributor Goodfeets.

Tiles

I wanted a kind of semi-realism for the tiles at the edge of the pool, so to create a highlight on each tile I used a Q-Tip to remove some of the pigment before I printed the block. I like the effect:



Still three or four more impressions to do, I think.

Two on a Block

Since I'm working on a 9" x 12" block to make a 6" x 6" print, I was able to do two "blocks" on one board. The only consideration in doing this is that you need enough space for two sets of kento registration marks.

Here's the first impression, the flip-flops:



And then some feet to go in them:



More to come...

Into The Pool

Today I got a couple of impressions down for my Chlorine print. First I did 2 to 3 layers of soft blue:



Then I added this block, trying to approximate how tiles look wiggly when you look straight down at them through the water.




This print is 6" x 6" and I'm enjoying the ease of working so small.

Be It Resolved

I've been too busy with illustration work to do moku hanga and I'm really missing it. When I first started printmaking I knew it would be hard to find the time, so I literally scheduled it. I gave myself a minimum of 10 hours a week just for moku hanga. Looks like I need to go back to that approach, so I hereby resolve to give myself 10 hours a week to carve, print or plan prints.

Here's a digital illustration I did a couple of weeks ago, my favorite from this last spate of work. It was for an article about 19th century British novels.

Carving for Chlorine

Chlorine has an ignominious past as a chemical weapon, most notably during World War I. I could easily justify turning this into yet another print on the topic of war, but I'd rather take the opportunity to take a break from doom and gloom and do something lighter. I've always wanted to try doing a moku hanga piece that depicts water, so I'm opting to go the swimming pool route with chlorine. Let's see if I can make something as lovely as one of David Hockney's swimming pool paintings!

Here are some tiles to begin:

Chlorine

I've signed up to do a print of the element chlorine for Jenn's Periodic table Print Project and tonight I started working on it. I worked out my design several days ago, actually, but tonight I scanned the sketch and printed 6 copies to paste onto blocks for a 6-color print. The prints are due May 31, so I'll work on this as time allows.

I Like This Better

Thanks for your comments on my last post, and for following along. This making-mistakes-in-public thing is humbling. Heck, moku hanga is humbling -- there are an infinite number of ways to go wrong. I think that's why I like it.

Here's a whole new version of the Iceberg print. I call it "Known and Unknown." I find the symbol of the iceberg itself very potent: the melting of the polar ice cap, a representation of how little of the total climate change picture we can really see and the potential size of the problem, as well as the associations we all have with icebergs and the Titanic. Because the symbol and shape itself is so powerful, there's no need to overstate what's going on by using odd colors. I decided to keep it simple and let the shape itself have center stage.