28 January 2011

100 Artists of New England

100ArtistsNew England

Lots of news this month! Last year I was selected, along with 99 other area artists, for inclusion in a new book from Schiffer Publishing Ltd. called 100 Artists of New England and I just got word from author E. Ashley Rooney that the book will be available next month. This coffee table-style book includes artists working in a wide range of media and it's part of a series from Schiffer that looks at working artists from various parts of the United States. Each artist is profiled in a full-color spread that includes a photo of the artist, a number of examples of their work, and their artist's statement.

The book can be pre-ordered online at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I can't wait to see it myself!

25 January 2011

Dorothy Bradford Goes to Japan

I was happy to learn a couple of days ago that one of my prints, Dorothy Bradford Comes to America, will be included in the exhibition "Mokuhanga: Dialogue and Dialect" which will be part of the 1st International Moku Hanga Conference in Kyoto in June. I'll be attending the conference along with Dorothy, and I can hardly wait to be in Japan again. I'm also very excited to meet many moku hanga artists who I've only known virtually for so many years.

The show will be up June 8 -12, 2011 at Kyoto International Community House, 2F.

Listings of other woodblock shows in Kyoto during the conference are available here on the conference web site.

10 January 2011

Blessings Kite - Finished

KiteFinal

BLESSINGS KITE

Japanese woodblock (moku hanga)
Image size: 16.5" x 11.5" (42 x 29 cm)
1 shina plywood block
6 hand-rubbed impressions
Paper: Japanese washi provided by Drachen Foundation
Edition: 8

This print is my entry into the Drachen Foundation's Moku Hanga Kite Contest. The print will be sparred (dowels and string added) by the folks at Drachen.

After this weekend's tragic shootings in Tucson, Arizona, this image of peace and blessings feels even more resonant to me than it did when I started working on it.

The kites from this contest will be shown at the 6th Annual Kyoto International (KIWA) Exhibition in Kyoto in late March, at the 1st International Moku Hanga Conference in Kyoto in June, and later at Cullom Gallery and Mighty Tieton Arts, both in Washington state.

Blessings to all...

09 January 2011

Kite Almost Done

Just a quick post to show the progress I made over the weekend on the Blessings Kite.

SleeveReduction
The next step was to carve away the areas of the sleeve that would stay lighter in tone.

SleeveColor
I then printed a darker orange color to give the sleeve some more definition.

BackgrndReduction
I carved away all the hand areas next so I could start printing the background. Notice that I did leave some of the linework at the center of the hand. That part will remain un-inked when I print but will support the paper to keep it from sagging into the carved out area.

BackgrndShadow
I printed a gray halo around the hand to darken the next layer of color.

FirstBackgroundColor
Then I printed a blue-to-yellow circular bokashi over the entire background.

CarvingClouds
This afternoon I've been carving the cloud patterns. This is the last of the carving. One more layer of color will finish the print.

06 January 2011

Kite Progress

Here's the progress I've made so far on the Blessings Kite.

KiteStencil
Since I'm going to make the print with just one block, I began by making an acetate stencil to isolate the hand from the background.

PaintedShadows
Then I painted some gray onto the board.

Shadows
I put the stencil down and took the impression. This gray color may end up being too subtle. I'm just getting used to the paper that Drachen supplied, which is very thin and may or may not be sized. No time to experiment beforehand, as this print is due in Seattle next week!

KiteReduction1
Next I carved away some of the hand, leaving the linework.

GoldPrinted
I inked the hand in an orange/gold color and used the stencil again to take the next impression.

I'll be adding a little bit of detail to the sleeve next, and then on to the background.

05 January 2011

First Project of 2011: A Kite!

Happy new year everyone! I hope your holiday was wonderful and that you've entered this first week of the new year well rested and with renewed energy. I've been back in the studio since Monday and have put the Israel/Palestine print on hold so that I can work on an entry for the Drachen Foundation's moku hanga kite project.

Based in Seattle, Drachen Foundation is a non-profit organization devoted to disseminating information about any and all sorts of kites from around the world. The Kite Project invites international artists to produce Japanese woodblock prints on thin washi no larger than 18 x 13 inches. The prints will then be expertly sparred into functioning kites by the folks at Drachen. The kites will be shown at the 6th Annual Kyoto International (KIWA) Exhibition in Kyoto in late March, at the 1st International Moku Hanga Conference in Kyoto in June, and later at Cullom Gallery and Mighty Tieton Arts, both in Washington state.

Since I've been contemplating peace recently, I wanted to design a kite around that theme. I wanted it to be bold and graphic so that it would be easy to see even when the kite is in the air. In a previous print, I had included a Buddha with his hand raised in the abhaya mudra (see image at left) which signifies protection, peace, and the dispelling of fear. I thought that it would be really lovely to fly a kite that offered protection, peace and freedom from fear to everyone below, so I decided to show the hand of Buddha in my kite. I've been calling it "Blessing Kite."

Since the kite is due in Seattle in 10 days, I also decided that I would attempt to make the print using just one block. Here's the design I developed, drawn onto the block:

DesignOnWood