26 February 2015

A Real Fake: Final Image


Art has deep and difficult eyes and for many the gaze is too insistent.
—Jeanette Winterson

Final step: A removable veil to cover the image.

A REAL FAKE: THIS IS NOT MUHAMMED
Watercolor woodblock print with gold mica, rubber stamp, and removable printed veil
11.5" x 7.5" (29.2 x 19 cm) image on 18" x 12 (45.7 x 30.5 cm) shin hosho paper
edition: 22

The last two steps in this print were to add a removable 'veil' (above) and some rubber stamp text (below). A couple of articles I read recently noted that even in countries where images of Muhammad are frowned upon in mosques and other public places, they are often allowed for personal private use. I realized that this image is basically a private image, since it will be part of a boxed portfolio of prints, but I wondered if there might be a way to make it even more private, so I decided to add a veil. I used some lovely and extremely thin Japanese paper that I've had for a while and never found a use for, and it worked well for printing a single color. (I printed with the paper dry rather than damp.)

The final print, with rubber stamp letters added. The text says "this is not Muhammed."

I don't have much to say about the veil, another culturally fraught symbol in conflicts between the so-called west and the so-called Muslim world, but obviously I'm referencing that practice by creating a veil for this print. Also obviously, with my rubber-stamped text I'm referring to Magritte's painting The Treachery of Images, on which he wrote "Ceci n'est pas une pipe" (This is not a pipe), a work that addresses the distinction between the representational and the Real. A Real Fake.

6 comments:

Olga Norris said...

I have found this a fascinating journey. I've very much enjoyed and been enlightened by your explorations, and love the final result. The process, the investigations, the explanations, the details, the results, all brilliant. Thank you.

Annie B said...

Thank you, Olga.

Melody Knight Leary said...

Brilliant as always Annie. I always enjoy reading about your thought process. Wonderful results.

Celia Hart said...

This has been such an interesting process Annie. Particularly alongside the current debate in the UK press on this subject.

Annie B said...

Thanks for following along and commenting, Melody and Celia.

Leslie Moore said...

This has been a journey watching your mind work. I love the mysterious print. Lucky folks who will get it in their boxed sets!