tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-141846002024-03-16T03:22:06.036-04:00woodblock dreamsStudio blog of <a href="http://www.anniebissett.com">Annie Bissett</a>, an artist working with traditional Japanese woodblock printing (moku hanga)Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.comBlogger937125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-52206148837152105112024-02-28T13:38:00.000-05:002024-02-28T13:38:33.265-05:00Time to Start a New Blog<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGN-PEhgZadHnAPOgwlL7_YaNhJwKp6-Nlec_6GxE_sAJTWjqbFJhM7RGUhjF6iVi765TmicAE1u1fY2VIj6kgrG9s9zJ5sxKDFCrihkS-xZLs86Ll7KaOxR34qyYosBMBWDZ5aIywXvEgbgMxa6x-2kZz4u_cpo59XXxh9pANXGfnSmArRp1-tg/s1304/Screenshot%202024-02-28%20at%201.27.58%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1282" data-original-width="1304" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGN-PEhgZadHnAPOgwlL7_YaNhJwKp6-Nlec_6GxE_sAJTWjqbFJhM7RGUhjF6iVi765TmicAE1u1fY2VIj6kgrG9s9zJ5sxKDFCrihkS-xZLs86Ll7KaOxR34qyYosBMBWDZ5aIywXvEgbgMxa6x-2kZz4u_cpo59XXxh9pANXGfnSmArRp1-tg/w400-h394/Screenshot%202024-02-28%20at%201.27.58%20PM.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />Dear readers.<p></p><p>I'm moving my blog!</p><p>It's been 19 years since I started Woodblock Dreams blog, and there are over 900 posts here. It's a valuable collection of ideas, trials and errors, tips, tricks, and comments from others that developed as I learned how to make mokuhanga prints. I still come back to it as a studio diary, to help me remember when I did certain work and what I was thinking at the time.</p><p>And now it's time for me to make a fresh start. I'll leave this blog up because I've loved it and I think there are some folks who have also loved it. No reason to take it down.</p><p>But if you'd like to follow me on my new blog, the address is:</p><p><a href="https://anniebissettblog.wordpress.com">https://anniebissettblog.wordpress.com</a></p><p>I'd love to see you there! Thank you for being here.<br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-19448017873407716042024-01-26T11:17:00.002-05:002024-01-26T11:17:54.352-05:00More About the Guardians<p>Rebecca Solnit recently <a href="https://www.facebook.com/rebecca.solnit/posts/pfbid05Kphw2TjPheVXXt7V49GHAgF6qBYkhePX9WeTbofqupoDnCwU6paxoPS5ry99KFhl" target="_blank">posted on Facebook</a> excerpts from an essay about stuffed animals that meshes beautifully with this Guardians project I'm working on. Here's a portion: </p><blockquote><p><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">The English psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott was the first person to write seriously and with sensitivity about the business of teddy bears. In a paper from the early 1960s, Winnicott described a boy of six – whose parents had been deeply abusive to him – becoming very connected to a small animal his grandmother had given him. Every night, he would have a dialogue with the animal, would hug him close to his chest and shed a few tears into his stained and greying soft fur. It was his most precious possession, for which he would have given up everything else. As the boy summarised the situation to Winnicott: ‘No one else can understand me like bunny can.’</span><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;" /><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;" /><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">What fascinated Winnicott here was that it was of course the boy who had invented the rabbit, given him his identity, his voice and his way of addressing him. The boy was speaking to himself – via the bunny – in a voice filled with an otherwise all too-rarely present compassion and sympathy.</span></p></blockquote><p>This is most likely why the response I received on social media when I posted my woodblock portrait of my old teddy bear was so instantaneous and enthusiastic. We remember.</p><p>Here are the steps in making my bear portrait.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Ag0zot1c2RIdNzlQLE_J1MsMbXmXzbY4Ws0AyVM6exNzoNmTba_uGgLZdpQkgUJDbh_tgX3lLeo3_1CugNTPiWjaq26dAxWmx7HsYXm3zRNX_RTIxSZSQjZKwsttCIHjWFFB7I-6NhHkvOvPcBeUixm8X1vxpBtfizZBe3MPfQgIQP7fr6dTUg/s600/GuardianTedward_Imp1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Ag0zot1c2RIdNzlQLE_J1MsMbXmXzbY4Ws0AyVM6exNzoNmTba_uGgLZdpQkgUJDbh_tgX3lLeo3_1CugNTPiWjaq26dAxWmx7HsYXm3zRNX_RTIxSZSQjZKwsttCIHjWFFB7I-6NhHkvOvPcBeUixm8X1vxpBtfizZBe3MPfQgIQP7fr6dTUg/s16000/GuardianTedward_Imp1.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First a pale brown, and beginning to add texture to the "bare" spot on Tedward's head.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL1_qF0OQDWErWwTQ0Q8Vt242pfX4fiXV-rBoPCYYNdNngBNzjffHK7zkT9kzdOgMJv1gIXfJCj0jmXq9-HapywML0LHejH3AtEH6c9okxmloU0LjePG9veHS8lqU9W6X-LTrkagzU2FyEV1O0hyphenhyphenD4yTOnXJZa0vMi6GrDhKEWT8JFLnlX3wCozQ/s600/GuardianTedward_Imp2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL1_qF0OQDWErWwTQ0Q8Vt242pfX4fiXV-rBoPCYYNdNngBNzjffHK7zkT9kzdOgMJv1gIXfJCj0jmXq9-HapywML0LHejH3AtEH6c9okxmloU0LjePG9veHS8lqU9W6X-LTrkagzU2FyEV1O0hyphenhyphenD4yTOnXJZa0vMi6GrDhKEWT8JFLnlX3wCozQ/s16000/GuardianTedward_Imp2.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A darker brown with a little more detail carved out.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSEmO-47nezjx2fLt8dp2mYe6lA0UASvQZ59AHCqGgK9pbWpVheE6pRDOZNT_Ai1Ivhg5V7qUrBDLO45jZiUXYM5I0Osoj_-afyxBsluUCmwGh9fqLTMfclaqKWxfmUaVDjrOwrXkjKLCh3UzltOJC76S-Qta9050JpYzBHnyozRReD9p2-qoL3A/s600/GuardianTedward_Imp3.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSEmO-47nezjx2fLt8dp2mYe6lA0UASvQZ59AHCqGgK9pbWpVheE6pRDOZNT_Ai1Ivhg5V7qUrBDLO45jZiUXYM5I0Osoj_-afyxBsluUCmwGh9fqLTMfclaqKWxfmUaVDjrOwrXkjKLCh3UzltOJC76S-Qta9050JpYzBHnyozRReD9p2-qoL3A/s16000/GuardianTedward_Imp3.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A new shade of brown with more detail carved away.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUE-vaAx-rLlRH2DVcxb2r7M9GCHeQUWpyRiW-I1VJ96qFdL5HxJjalVZmrAL6ZNrxMOx2fsge4v5vEBp7OdFooRfTqnZL_0ihY39xtmNh5XozVBtcHBiKirmsKkH1RLj5rCv11jFabFBwhXTv3qmctFDC5gG_fMdJThwQH28rocYR_C_6TNPYMg/s600/GuardianTedward_Imp4.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUE-vaAx-rLlRH2DVcxb2r7M9GCHeQUWpyRiW-I1VJ96qFdL5HxJjalVZmrAL6ZNrxMOx2fsge4v5vEBp7OdFooRfTqnZL_0ihY39xtmNh5XozVBtcHBiKirmsKkH1RLj5rCv11jFabFBwhXTv3qmctFDC5gG_fMdJThwQH28rocYR_C_6TNPYMg/s16000/GuardianTedward_Imp4.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The texture for the bare spots was made with a bit of window screen pressed into the paper.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmZwivEqqauSu5XCG-9_AHDM4EjsttdUwFt_7Xt3QKrV-MKdJ7ZfX6lCS2yKeqAL8jJ3RXS6OBqwrYxh5tFEsJBMjOw0gDOCyv7kqwGAWCPTkPhdcGuYhGdVqg4SZTse3hKKYD9xN0MFk-gAtjtfPbpbi7wGFQLY242R4zQHllwFZX6uh8wo7v4w/s600/GuardianTedward_Imp5.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmZwivEqqauSu5XCG-9_AHDM4EjsttdUwFt_7Xt3QKrV-MKdJ7ZfX6lCS2yKeqAL8jJ3RXS6OBqwrYxh5tFEsJBMjOw0gDOCyv7kqwGAWCPTkPhdcGuYhGdVqg4SZTse3hKKYD9xN0MFk-gAtjtfPbpbi7wGFQLY242R4zQHllwFZX6uh8wo7v4w/s16000/GuardianTedward_Imp5.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some shading added.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFmAzjemoLcgfZH_L2A3gZPLR08pbx55cjS5eVQkv-pjP58DSDX3K_0F7V25r4ia0W5h51wKbku6M8GOurq_cWT88n56os2prWEzzm2TKDHdEBewWoxC-Ta3o-NkT_IL_mLU2rh_DB5WR7wrG88iT7lyBFpovd0i_8es9yhlNRce4VMk9sxtVcsw/s600/GuardianTedward_600px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFmAzjemoLcgfZH_L2A3gZPLR08pbx55cjS5eVQkv-pjP58DSDX3K_0F7V25r4ia0W5h51wKbku6M8GOurq_cWT88n56os2prWEzzm2TKDHdEBewWoxC-Ta3o-NkT_IL_mLU2rh_DB5WR7wrG88iT7lyBFpovd0i_8es9yhlNRce4VMk9sxtVcsw/s16000/GuardianTedward_600px.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nose and eyes to finish.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJRVDX7xpK4opYOEV2IyBUJBqyXYz0xu6R3HR8YofotWUfOEufO1xb-b57CCpTwsBStWQwV4ST50C7eiO0rQaAjMvA2hFtTWBFruIpSaudbkckZ52xh1Cf6h-Zyp3nRXRTUTD6yiiHIGQwWFYDnspblQaKEBddkykyrOMsiNlTnOW6gnVwHVZkMQ/s600/GuardianTedward_Block.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJRVDX7xpK4opYOEV2IyBUJBqyXYz0xu6R3HR8YofotWUfOEufO1xb-b57CCpTwsBStWQwV4ST50C7eiO0rQaAjMvA2hFtTWBFruIpSaudbkckZ52xh1Cf6h-Zyp3nRXRTUTD6yiiHIGQwWFYDnspblQaKEBddkykyrOMsiNlTnOW6gnVwHVZkMQ/s16000/GuardianTedward_Block.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tedward was made from a progressively carved single block (reduction print) and here's what the block looked like at the end.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-3330925574061275312024-01-17T17:47:00.000-05:002024-01-17T17:47:10.892-05:00Guardians<p>Last spring I was offered an opportunity to show at a gallery here in Providence RI and I decided to make a series of <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/524337-Landscapes.html" target="_blank">landscape prints</a>. One of the prints in that landscape series was this image of Sandy Hook Elementary School where 20 children and 6 adults were gunned down in 2012.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFb77UJ_jeyBmogNTfwhlBY0noAeuNZzQBAspfEixJN2y2Fx6f86l9-4ye4oSWcdRhLzHOwgFP00Bl7I3NuBRQQeS8ZAqFijD0VukHu_xWj33vMSUqHKQP637BLKq7lxhFdmZPyj9rPGwUsYBWRfPMscur5lLoMNVE4u3uSibm8kSIiBTqMAaE5g/s780/NewtownCt_600px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="780" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFb77UJ_jeyBmogNTfwhlBY0noAeuNZzQBAspfEixJN2y2Fx6f86l9-4ye4oSWcdRhLzHOwgFP00Bl7I3NuBRQQeS8ZAqFijD0VukHu_xWj33vMSUqHKQP637BLKq7lxhFdmZPyj9rPGwUsYBWRfPMscur5lLoMNVE4u3uSibm8kSIiBTqMAaE5g/s16000/NewtownCt_600px.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p>While I was making this print I read an article in the NY Times about the investigators who worked the Sandy Hook crime scene and their experiences while handling the children's belongings. I glanced at the old teddy bear from my childhood who now lives in my studio and suddenly felt the import of this stuffed animal — the fact that it is over a half century old and that I have had the great good fortune of growing to adulthood. I suddenly felt that this stuffed bear, Tedward, could be seen as a "guardian" and I made a woodblock portrait of him in one weekend.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9aFGE3JKS_dv_vQ99oLJLpxH4H-loHpG7MsTfDVGhnBnieGYoe2-xzLxuJKMUbK0M17C-Nudl30RmntIyLL4piIy6XrN4wp8PkUH8Js6Dh3weD97Y2z7GWjXRJKFXfp2laSIRGglsPPrZzkzt2QLIHpsx2s2H1ir7-GvQ9BnTsFt4GV79vu1aMA/s600/GuardianTedward_600px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9aFGE3JKS_dv_vQ99oLJLpxH4H-loHpG7MsTfDVGhnBnieGYoe2-xzLxuJKMUbK0M17C-Nudl30RmntIyLL4piIy6XrN4wp8PkUH8Js6Dh3weD97Y2z7GWjXRJKFXfp2laSIRGglsPPrZzkzt2QLIHpsx2s2H1ir7-GvQ9BnTsFt4GV79vu1aMA/s16000/GuardianTedward_600px.jpg" /></a></div><p>When I posted Tedward on Instagram the response was instantaneous and positive, and I realized that I had struck a nerve. I put out a call to my Instagram followers for photos of Childhood Guardians and I received nearly 50 submissions. I don't think I'll be able to produce portraits of them all, but I'll definitely do 20 of them in honor of the 20 children who were murdered at Sandy Hook. 💔<br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-9756365070827801412023-09-23T18:18:00.000-04:002023-09-23T18:18:38.726-04:00Irene - a paper quilt<p>Since I told you about <a href="https://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com/2022/02/momigami-tests.html">making momigami with washi and konnyaku</a> a few posts ago, I thought I'd follow up and show you what I ended up doing with it. I wanted to try making a paper quilt with the idea that if it was successful I would make a whole series of them for my series "<a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/355234-I%20Was%20a%2020th%20Century%20Lesbian.html">I Was a 20th Century Lesbian</a>."</p><p>I began by printing colors on some washi and treating them with konyaku to make momigami.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqH8Sz1AV18o4uQbIlPhYcnE5MIMiCukFeIV-iO-fr7Op4MWMdieELvKfPW70TySfobqBxEYVz_yooAfoW6CYYu1gs_YmL4EZoY40GL7HZvzk4jdM2Bm0Ya-TaSQj8yDaSfJOhfzDfXTYMqvxMzGmdmoO74uc7ggnC9MEfY_QfAaG_W1CxKCbFwg/s600/IMG_5325.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqH8Sz1AV18o4uQbIlPhYcnE5MIMiCukFeIV-iO-fr7Op4MWMdieELvKfPW70TySfobqBxEYVz_yooAfoW6CYYu1gs_YmL4EZoY40GL7HZvzk4jdM2Bm0Ya-TaSQj8yDaSfJOhfzDfXTYMqvxMzGmdmoO74uc7ggnC9MEfY_QfAaG_W1CxKCbFwg/s16000/IMG_5325.jpeg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MtBXZqBoSy90wusYS-FgVZOgXaFQqyOFZO37PSwnvmDbowtyHd-0gGy3mgxgUqEc6wnT_vtuinM8XdEvs3nlAnWCUoPaFmtxWXEHgXxaD9PVNbM9sHB-gikHHJUu4ae6nEtC2flvvxYNuoQmBWeejMKHLPQwjJRV3GJbTSyFn_y7xEoFZrM9mA/s600/IMG_5327.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="494" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-MtBXZqBoSy90wusYS-FgVZOgXaFQqyOFZO37PSwnvmDbowtyHd-0gGy3mgxgUqEc6wnT_vtuinM8XdEvs3nlAnWCUoPaFmtxWXEHgXxaD9PVNbM9sHB-gikHHJUu4ae6nEtC2flvvxYNuoQmBWeejMKHLPQwjJRV3GJbTSyFn_y7xEoFZrM9mA/s16000/IMG_5327.jpeg" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I created a full-size pattern and began to construct the quilt front, a disco ball emitting colored rays. These were pieced using a sewing machine just as if I were working with fabric.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPyXuoylblGauH4TtEEWmoOrIyy9Cv_uQ0nFE1zkC7sVT6u0xET7PFPEPVkoLeDSRK2tr0x-UTYPyLle0WPz5dzHuazEEgQ0Oj91gJVzxMeaNZIvJRl2QwXDanNR3LZQhR8xxSCqTj6rnsjsbhCBnU1_Nvaclv-Dv35i1Hnt8vQ_IaXMpAzKKMg/s635/IMG_5426.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="635" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPyXuoylblGauH4TtEEWmoOrIyy9Cv_uQ0nFE1zkC7sVT6u0xET7PFPEPVkoLeDSRK2tr0x-UTYPyLle0WPz5dzHuazEEgQ0Oj91gJVzxMeaNZIvJRl2QwXDanNR3LZQhR8xxSCqTj6rnsjsbhCBnU1_Nvaclv-Dv35i1Hnt8vQ_IaXMpAzKKMg/s16000/IMG_5426.jpeg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv3xUrlCtBHUSTzAmaS_VxRDDcz3-dZibOYh-UgxUlcvTnst9E7DwEXCH0oAM9f5hzFcdzgfgeTOScIoFZGl2eLON5JrkD77nsPcMI2j2pUdTtTqFHBowMfbKtn2a7xTbyRGVIgTEpPfuox_sUbvzmalw1QluPMH0DO90TqDLtSecxkWMCditySw/s600/IMG_5345.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv3xUrlCtBHUSTzAmaS_VxRDDcz3-dZibOYh-UgxUlcvTnst9E7DwEXCH0oAM9f5hzFcdzgfgeTOScIoFZGl2eLON5JrkD77nsPcMI2j2pUdTtTqFHBowMfbKtn2a7xTbyRGVIgTEpPfuox_sUbvzmalw1QluPMH0DO90TqDLtSecxkWMCditySw/s16000/IMG_5345.jpeg" /></a></div><br /> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I added some sparkly acrylic paint to make the disco ball shiny.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzQLHmvIU6dhOFfy-B0XjFKV-Y7RnSUZRbLktd7kS3SHxAotkeEQOvfol5K5Uqv_sxEIVJIiXzmwIm7gHpCDGuFoOkScJ9nfWRV1yeviaFraz8pZvizMAuu9cJle9yxvK_A6f0fJCv205KQg5vP4aaY3aCfa6fdHTJt3lHDOmpLGB8lb79f5v1Q/s638/IMG_5453.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="638" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwzQLHmvIU6dhOFfy-B0XjFKV-Y7RnSUZRbLktd7kS3SHxAotkeEQOvfol5K5Uqv_sxEIVJIiXzmwIm7gHpCDGuFoOkScJ9nfWRV1yeviaFraz8pZvizMAuu9cJle9yxvK_A6f0fJCv205KQg5vP4aaY3aCfa6fdHTJt3lHDOmpLGB8lb79f5v1Q/s16000/IMG_5453.jpeg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then I worked on the background for the ball, the colored starburst rays.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCYX22mDV9UvFwtfuaP04R4TynXD1zUDy7hRUuzfaYFWaYrHOByMqCEndCyIIY67A-T1WkvgjQFMeyqrpGctBR8YA-Yn-Xp2AH0uo6_jiJGA62Tp87dRZ11CJ46f0xXQ3oMDtx6SDJZIpufCEQV6ZCIupN7yiG3Ntw-U2DHD_MAA_gKbwVTAq0oQ/s800/IMG_5989.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCYX22mDV9UvFwtfuaP04R4TynXD1zUDy7hRUuzfaYFWaYrHOByMqCEndCyIIY67A-T1WkvgjQFMeyqrpGctBR8YA-Yn-Xp2AH0uo6_jiJGA62Tp87dRZ11CJ46f0xXQ3oMDtx6SDJZIpufCEQV6ZCIupN7yiG3Ntw-U2DHD_MAA_gKbwVTAq0oQ/s16000/IMG_5989.jpeg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I printed squares and whiskey bottles and glasses on a single sheet of washi for the backing, also treated with konnyaku and made into momigami.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgE7sxPSYHBw6BPD9g_ejODaZzVncRHFckxCcOyt2DarP9jJQ8GuPty4Ezi62CMAjXvCLMn0-eC8gEOqedxYDzpSo1pefKGDv0SRxWzqGLz2y3imE688C-FfXcuIBAra9kkmAu4DDzxeQnnJ2l6Nf2AxlxHN6Ug5wxh-hmeeFyabJtqOaEP3I8UQ/s765/IMG_6154.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="765" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgE7sxPSYHBw6BPD9g_ejODaZzVncRHFckxCcOyt2DarP9jJQ8GuPty4Ezi62CMAjXvCLMn0-eC8gEOqedxYDzpSo1pefKGDv0SRxWzqGLz2y3imE688C-FfXcuIBAra9kkmAu4DDzxeQnnJ2l6Nf2AxlxHN6Ug5wxh-hmeeFyabJtqOaEP3I8UQ/s16000/IMG_6154.jpeg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Bi7N9XOFlmfA-3pTtKNP8D8QKDpqeE4tNsdQf-vh1wIOiWdr8BAm4O9FbPFsFl_quhRfFS7_NkL4OqlCJELOpD3EvZ7mUu9jJNlzC6apcdalyjzN19w4SA47FblppT3n5fp0dm777AsfAnbMxjwTH6S4FqpoD4Y58GH6XUiinBs654Vn39I-GA/s600/IMG_6158.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Bi7N9XOFlmfA-3pTtKNP8D8QKDpqeE4tNsdQf-vh1wIOiWdr8BAm4O9FbPFsFl_quhRfFS7_NkL4OqlCJELOpD3EvZ7mUu9jJNlzC6apcdalyjzN19w4SA47FblppT3n5fp0dm777AsfAnbMxjwTH6S4FqpoD4Y58GH6XUiinBs654Vn39I-GA/s16000/IMG_6158.jpeg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7G3ZxRkHit_YHjiomg9jNhrfC4xt4XmsgkcwXHrSV5oFn-LL5IGgMwgk28JHK2XXMhPzXuXoUrlMUIeOTfl8EQw9WAPq32NeRXErjSwbd91-fk9ziMAsSOP0Tz-lEN5tMlVtItI8ey7rVWg_Qxnj7gfl8kMSNiM7HgC3olWXXr6EcVDkJTbtHVQ/s600/IMG_6216.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7G3ZxRkHit_YHjiomg9jNhrfC4xt4XmsgkcwXHrSV5oFn-LL5IGgMwgk28JHK2XXMhPzXuXoUrlMUIeOTfl8EQw9WAPq32NeRXErjSwbd91-fk9ziMAsSOP0Tz-lEN5tMlVtItI8ey7rVWg_Qxnj7gfl8kMSNiM7HgC3olWXXr6EcVDkJTbtHVQ/s16000/IMG_6216.jpeg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I then used cotton batting between the two sides, hand quilted them, and put a binding around the perimeter. Here is the front and back of the finished quilt.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvyOsH-2lGrD4TeUAloYC9-zrCzyNpHzBeO6peXgBziOnhxCI6wUiDFBfpjI1EIhxhyZVHbulnBHSrQRqRRqkBuW4vgC1ugxb8BETA2pSAjcLukoVfej08lgibOW4bG6IXFK6HDYA7eRbBfnmYryCgB6AzePn1OdCdSkpWnCcLsGhqjCASVMeI5Q/s600/Screenshot%202023-09-23%20at%206.12.18%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="386" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvyOsH-2lGrD4TeUAloYC9-zrCzyNpHzBeO6peXgBziOnhxCI6wUiDFBfpjI1EIhxhyZVHbulnBHSrQRqRRqkBuW4vgC1ugxb8BETA2pSAjcLukoVfej08lgibOW4bG6IXFK6HDYA7eRbBfnmYryCgB6AzePn1OdCdSkpWnCcLsGhqjCASVMeI5Q/s16000/Screenshot%202023-09-23%20at%206.12.18%20PM.png" /></a></div><br /> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The quilt's namesake, Irene, brought me to my first gay dance club in 1976, a venue in Troy NY called Zelda. Irene also introduced me to Jack Daniels whiskey, a relationship that lasted longer than my relationship with Irene and that ultimately became toxic.</div><p></p>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-66539935974730524762023-09-21T13:46:00.003-04:002023-09-21T13:46:39.454-04:00<p>👋 Hello, my old blog. And hello to you, if you're reading. I don't know if people still read blogs, but I miss my blog if for no other reason than because it helps me immensely to write about my work. So I'm coming back to blog. I'm going to spend the next few posts just catching up on a few things, and then going forward I'll do my best to use this space as an ongoing studio journal again.</p><p>Please say hi if you stop by!</p><p>More soon…<br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-71126619361628467712022-03-09T14:10:00.001-05:002022-03-09T14:11:11.267-05:00First Print of 2022<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjMarwISIyLI8QSMOFF0_8U4A-RHA_dbNUbgu2Xxf12otEwnupe8442L2Gwkcy6mHm-UHZIspUePopb0K7IWyTF5QRXQpINbjqcRx5jfvogOnz2j4IolwJYs4oI1WA9vgQ-yih-70kS0nd3D_lJuB8uD7aEdtjtfGSZiBw-kGmnodD6g31xYoQ=s834" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="834" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjMarwISIyLI8QSMOFF0_8U4A-RHA_dbNUbgu2Xxf12otEwnupe8442L2Gwkcy6mHm-UHZIspUePopb0K7IWyTF5QRXQpINbjqcRx5jfvogOnz2j4IolwJYs4oI1WA9vgQ-yih-70kS0nd3D_lJuB8uD7aEdtjtfGSZiBw-kGmnodD6g31xYoQ=s16000" /></a></div> <p></p><p>ANNUNCIATION<br />
Watercolor woodblock print (moku hanga)<br />
20 x 14 inches (43 x 28 cm) image<br />
Made from 3 blocks, approximately 30 hand-rubbed applications of color<br />
Edition of 4 on 26 x 19 Kitaro Kozoshi paper<br />
___________________</p><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d9wwppkn hrzyx87i jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id hzawbc8m" dir="auto">I'm returning to my series of prints called <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/355234-I-Was-a-20th-Century-Lesbian.html"><i>I Was a 20th Century Lesbian</i></a>, this time with a group of prints I'm calling "The Mysteries." This
new group of prints appropriates religious language to sacralize
lesbian/female eroticism/sexuality. </span><p><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d9wwppkn hrzyx87i jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id hzawbc8m" dir="auto">As a 20th century lesbian I lived
through many decades of having my sexuality demonized, in both political
and personal spheres, and I’m seeking in this work to invoke the
opposite, to claim my right as a human being to relate to the divine in
my own way, and to proclaim the sacredness of the body. All bodies.</span></p><p><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d9wwppkn hrzyx87i jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id hzawbc8m" dir="auto">I carved the highlights in the "flower" shape because I wanted the two sides to be symmetrical and I didn't trust that I could do that with freehand brush-created bokashi (color blends), but it was very tricky to go from carved blends to brush blends. These curves were very difficult to create in the hard-edged medium of relief printing. You can see below my first attempt, which failed in a big way.</span></p><p><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d9wwppkn hrzyx87i jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id hzawbc8m" dir="auto"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvg2BhUtUZlslbTMjULd2-bcdd6xN1uD99HHf3mk5pkNh_qa_U675Lmv0rez-D3guJ_eoQsOopjWRPJy5VTkfjLEarpsevxU3u0D-pIojtHt2rZDgGkCnD3cUdld8qZbU70FtBc6G1OgYksy2LWh7tyo3ZQtCk1GLC8TYvo8Ecja_l4OeUeUM=s838" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="838" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvg2BhUtUZlslbTMjULd2-bcdd6xN1uD99HHf3mk5pkNh_qa_U675Lmv0rez-D3guJ_eoQsOopjWRPJy5VTkfjLEarpsevxU3u0D-pIojtHt2rZDgGkCnD3cUdld8qZbU70FtBc6G1OgYksy2LWh7tyo3ZQtCk1GLC8TYvo8Ecja_l4OeUeUM=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here you can see the carved highlights, printed reduction style, and the sheen of the gold ink I used.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d9wwppkn hrzyx87i jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id hzawbc8m" dir="auto"> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEge0ewKlwZyzCFmhdH5ifzFuecYM0_BZ-fHfSUrZ0M0R5ThFDiaIQ2JPO9l7FvzZOF8G1mPetnWJN5OXdpyvhFve_rPMbQIVdTheM7-JA5BUnPfmvmbgZQTJDWNDXrpfGcPbOyfbBL-o8evfXjrWB0FCY2gZnbHoalPOVUvwkZamSSFlrXJRiA=s769" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="769" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEge0ewKlwZyzCFmhdH5ifzFuecYM0_BZ-fHfSUrZ0M0R5ThFDiaIQ2JPO9l7FvzZOF8G1mPetnWJN5OXdpyvhFve_rPMbQIVdTheM7-JA5BUnPfmvmbgZQTJDWNDXrpfGcPbOyfbBL-o8evfXjrWB0FCY2gZnbHoalPOVUvwkZamSSFlrXJRiA=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still doesn't look too bad, but it turns out I had already gone astray by keeping the back portion of the "flower" too solid. I should have started the shading much earlier in the process.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></span><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGLX0UXSm2h5R6C38boJiVwCBbK_v17Ng5EQKyygGmeXqzPnRO2j1wolcdxCcULpqFrFm_GSrkkcF8IcLAOygPbiBxNdc53YQhsutmOWYCMTbZseckRJXsBw4PaKOEyZcom46Y3TnpUUaA9eMaL07Lsl1L8j_Stw1pD17W5AmxeYGqW3IbwPA=s800" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjGLX0UXSm2h5R6C38boJiVwCBbK_v17Ng5EQKyygGmeXqzPnRO2j1wolcdxCcULpqFrFm_GSrkkcF8IcLAOygPbiBxNdc53YQhsutmOWYCMTbZseckRJXsBw4PaKOEyZcom46Y3TnpUUaA9eMaL07Lsl1L8j_Stw1pD17W5AmxeYGqW3IbwPA=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I panicked as I kept going and saw that it wasn't working out, which caused me to overcompensate and add too much pigment too fast. I finally abandoned the image and started over.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />
<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgepcbcD4Ziw7WcESLhe-_dUA4qWPZRxWmKCZjxkYF1itL7hEriV22Dn-c2EWms9byLwc6fP3APrVQNe17wQ78_GrZvefF6XN6-ktgUyNN7md5KZdmvkPWUCG8ACJymxEs8OGIC-SZ2-P_gkS3YhERHD4ppDqJRaFIyTxJATtYLCwJ-osnZzhY=s640" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgepcbcD4Ziw7WcESLhe-_dUA4qWPZRxWmKCZjxkYF1itL7hEriV22Dn-c2EWms9byLwc6fP3APrVQNe17wQ78_GrZvefF6XN6-ktgUyNN7md5KZdmvkPWUCG8ACJymxEs8OGIC-SZ2-P_gkS3YhERHD4ppDqJRaFIyTxJATtYLCwJ-osnZzhY=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The second try was much closer to what I had imagined.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-16068197102984097352022-02-08T10:11:00.000-05:002022-02-08T10:11:05.409-05:00All About Konnyaku<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6nv_Ib_t4oe3i6h5wuIOmDux1_RT519GYX0jiZfrlVT1XdDX0T1ST9HIFh2-qByvIo7JEJNMrEVnEdgyfnLIh4cFbp1KVQunaNL722LALVKfrCrf-Jk3pA5UNz8u4HyruCMPNTnu21sut61Fuy1AuKi1zzFA7gzgpWYoteqmxWGrVnhop3w/s580/Konnyaku.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="417" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ6nv_Ib_t4oe3i6h5wuIOmDux1_RT519GYX0jiZfrlVT1XdDX0T1ST9HIFh2-qByvIo7JEJNMrEVnEdgyfnLIh4cFbp1KVQunaNL722LALVKfrCrf-Jk3pA5UNz8u4HyruCMPNTnu21sut61Fuy1AuKi1zzFA7gzgpWYoteqmxWGrVnhop3w/s16000/Konnyaku.jpg" /></a></div><br />Many many thanks to "Carpet Bomberz Inc." who left a comment on my last post with a link to an incredible video about konnyaku from NHK World. Check it (available until Jan 2, 2023).<br /><p></p><p><a href="https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/ondemand/video/6119001/">https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/ondemand/video/6119001/</a><br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-551625186459070172022-02-02T18:31:00.001-05:002022-02-02T22:15:35.671-05:00Momigami Tests<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhXpetRgJeQk0b44QjsKdGfHbT9XYuZkT6jYIdBxFVNDEyToax8AORcWEjexmorvh-OM5ReG-BuqxnMz0sy4lzo693dYNWQb7uMLcvkg9FoBLx9DSTO4gZt77uljfEMMLLB_DTk3SGm41UBW58cCAsEe62ZaRi9h5lVYrQkJinEZnAWnI97vSU=s580" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhXpetRgJeQk0b44QjsKdGfHbT9XYuZkT6jYIdBxFVNDEyToax8AORcWEjexmorvh-OM5ReG-BuqxnMz0sy4lzo693dYNWQb7uMLcvkg9FoBLx9DSTO4gZt77uljfEMMLLB_DTk3SGm41UBW58cCAsEe62ZaRi9h5lVYrQkJinEZnAWnI97vSU=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unprinted washi after treatment<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgQWbaJ3f8Aw4mht_quKUVIs2Q4h90J45_fpp46-SBGLaRLHGLTbYLSIbIk_5Su6lXPneL5dZVk9NDtB9OcoZ1r1IXTSMdYAy5g0_OaYJqUGnyBD7JfYb4Pm1CgPp4_82rebLU6Kbq-jwxNDwMz282C-XDWrFXuZNgfANaG10qpwMxJfW1pPJY=s580" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgQWbaJ3f8Aw4mht_quKUVIs2Q4h90J45_fpp46-SBGLaRLHGLTbYLSIbIk_5Su6lXPneL5dZVk9NDtB9OcoZ1r1IXTSMdYAy5g0_OaYJqUGnyBD7JfYb4Pm1CgPp4_82rebLU6Kbq-jwxNDwMz282C-XDWrFXuZNgfANaG10qpwMxJfW1pPJY=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Printed washi after treatment<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Momigami (揉紙) literally means "rubbed paper" and is a process by which a thick high-quality kozo paper is repeatedly crumpled until it softens and takes on a textile-like quality. Often the paper is treated with some kind of additive, usually konnyaku starch. Paper treated this way was historically used in Japan to make clothing, called <i>kamiko</i>. The konnyaku adds strength to the paper, especially wet strength.</p><p>I'm entertaining an idea for using self-printed momigami, so I've been researching it a bit. I seem to have exhausted most of my research resources, so yesterday I decided that the best way for me to figure out how to do it was to take the small amount of info I dug up and just do it. So I just did it. I tried to do it in a quasi-scientific way in order to "measure" my results.</p><p>I got some <a href="https://www.washiarts.com/tools/konnyaku-powder-for-transforming-and-treating-japanese-washi-pape">konnyaku powder</a> and tried one of the several recipes I found online. I chose the recipe that called for 1 teaspoon of powder in 1 cup of water, and I'm here to tell you it was too thick. I'll use half that amount of powder next time. I used a 2-inch wide brush to apply the starch to both sides of the paper. </p><p>In my research I found two different ways of doing the konnyaku and crumpling: one was to apply the konnyaku, crush the paper into a loose ball and then crumple it more before letting it dry. The other method was to coat the paper with the konnyaku, let it dry, and then crumple it. I tried both methods to see if there would be a difference.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjCKdeTitOegXQ0ae6l1C9yFT-w4_1jcm_LALu-1GLU9nKkrNzYMhfWiqEN1ZCPSatyzfmrvCMhcC3eUZUr24bIqbKcIbomU7I9mh1ZMYaSLAEu7XeGb-xQ-xfNK5wUrquPt0hIwzTK5nD-PGpKgkQm3IZKig8owSjvVKSUw3txVmlU7RlapT0=s580" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjCKdeTitOegXQ0ae6l1C9yFT-w4_1jcm_LALu-1GLU9nKkrNzYMhfWiqEN1ZCPSatyzfmrvCMhcC3eUZUr24bIqbKcIbomU7I9mh1ZMYaSLAEu7XeGb-xQ-xfNK5wUrquPt0hIwzTK5nD-PGpKgkQm3IZKig8owSjvVKSUw3txVmlU7RlapT0=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Treated paper hung to dry. In the shower, of course.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>The other thing I was anxious to see was whether the watercolor of mokuhanga-style printing would bleed when soaked with konnyaku and crumpled. I did one sheet of unprinted paper but the rest were rejected mokuhanga prints on several different types of washi.</p><p>Here's a report on my results.</p><p>• Western cotton rag paper comes out incredibly soft, but it tears easily.<br />• The thinner the paper the less starch it needs<br />• Some pigments bleed and offset when wet, especially if crumpled while wet. It seems to be the mineral pigments that bleed. The problem is lessened by doing the crumpling after the konnyaku has dried<br />• I was surprised to discover that the papers I dried and then crumpled came out softer than the identical papers that I crumpled while wet. My guess is that crumpling while wet drives the starch deeper into the fibers, making them stronger but also "crisper." It turns out that I like my momigami soft.<br /></p><p>I still need to do further tests before I settle on what type of paper I'll use for my project.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrmekyBFoN6zjpKnl7Qyl21xnyv7_-x3OC7dMXTM4FD9uvYzlK874hDYqwwmSqIu3WXG0q0EVt0HSn8FYXibGrMPqlUNsm_V7oRL7s2loTvzlOBrgsTbb3PK4nfYA5vtaPEvDsgHMeg7LzO21F5zV6WkbPLu3iQhy4PsG3HpY28aDwcC0R0Lk=s580" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjrmekyBFoN6zjpKnl7Qyl21xnyv7_-x3OC7dMXTM4FD9uvYzlK874hDYqwwmSqIu3WXG0q0EVt0HSn8FYXibGrMPqlUNsm_V7oRL7s2loTvzlOBrgsTbb3PK4nfYA5vtaPEvDsgHMeg7LzO21F5zV6WkbPLu3iQhy4PsG3HpY28aDwcC0R0Lk=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yukimi. Top was crumpled while wet and you can see that some pigment bled into the white border. I think it was burnt sienna. The red/yellow interface stayed surprisingly crisp, though.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjgE31aKoBpePi-z7MK6U4PgZnm4BMYXEIWVG9W67qkyXMFUhSHoH_hhjYAW9VQrFDaFXQIFUlGRyw5bZzhD2oKNPzWD9UJBg7HgD5B87P_9b0LwCY3KNGWNNXPGDP1lJ6Ga9eyxCaVDEKMduw7DnRZfJOHEmOGbPe9DxSjkEFobg42FDra0Mo=s665" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="665" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjgE31aKoBpePi-z7MK6U4PgZnm4BMYXEIWVG9W67qkyXMFUhSHoH_hhjYAW9VQrFDaFXQIFUlGRyw5bZzhD2oKNPzWD9UJBg7HgD5B87P_9b0LwCY3KNGWNNXPGDP1lJ6Ga9eyxCaVDEKMduw7DnRZfJOHEmOGbPe9DxSjkEFobg42FDra0Mo=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shioji. Again, the top was crumpled while wet and the ultramarine blue bled.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzMfvxuS6YjfwcSaB47XAYN1s6urWCjbX8hQ2mwb0mD6EfsYY4ciHEZWiAQouIpueqabg6W5Yk2f3hh3WAKM4x80oi7gJaPxB60Z-rCLbovKB6asjzoS7Mr3LNFaVuyzQO-BaXzDoIwX3GHUGn3wiQBjzKtHSAmH2jzQCaVvaePkFL7NDNGpA=s911" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="911" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzMfvxuS6YjfwcSaB47XAYN1s6urWCjbX8hQ2mwb0mD6EfsYY4ciHEZWiAQouIpueqabg6W5Yk2f3hh3WAKM4x80oi7gJaPxB60Z-rCLbovKB6asjzoS7Mr3LNFaVuyzQO-BaXzDoIwX3GHUGn3wiQBjzKtHSAmH2jzQCaVvaePkFL7NDNGpA=s16000" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Echizen Kozo. The red bled when I did the wet crumpling but held up under dry crumpling. This paper, soft by nature, makes a very soft momigami.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-56046386818863717882022-01-31T13:59:00.002-05:002022-01-31T14:43:00.900-05:00The (Confusing) World of Japanese Washi Paper<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEij0ue9CUUmxz-cZTgup9-Wf2Zoc4-dlootGbfv6_C4Rm2wefgY_4QEI-Eb1oYRkHHfgXqj5khHkMK22k5nqAbQssWBpU0ng_Y964GWcbWqRWjRVoWEU66agAyXE2fkTta-QbVuClcJimbf8VLPgBg8hbyURSouBxlXVU-2owS98QSed8Qa_7Q=s580" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEij0ue9CUUmxz-cZTgup9-Wf2Zoc4-dlootGbfv6_C4Rm2wefgY_4QEI-Eb1oYRkHHfgXqj5khHkMK22k5nqAbQssWBpU0ng_Y964GWcbWqRWjRVoWEU66agAyXE2fkTta-QbVuClcJimbf8VLPgBg8hbyURSouBxlXVU-2owS98QSed8Qa_7Q=s16000" /></a></div><p>Happy new year, dear readers. I haven't been posting much these days, as blogging seems a bit old fashioned in 2022. Yet, I still think blogging is valuable. It's slower than Instagram and other scrolling-based social media, it's more personal, and it makes me pause long enough to clearly articulate my thoughts and feelings.</p><p>As you may know, I've spent the past two years creating and distributing a tarot deck, called Woodblock Dreams Tarot. It's a standard deck, composed of 78 cards — 21 (the major arcana) were done as full woodblock prints and 57 (the 4 suits) were printed in parts and collaged/composed digitally. It has its own web site if you want to check it out: <a href="http://WoodblockDreamsTarot.com" target="_blank">WoodblockDreamsTarot.com</a>. Anyway, it's taken me longer than I imagined to bounce back from that project into making some new work. I have some ideas brewing and not many supplies left in my studio, including paper, so I've lately been researching Japanese paper trying to figure out what kind of paper I need for my new (still imaginary) work and… just wow. There's so much to figure out!</p><p>In the past I've kept my paper supplies pretty limited, purchasing familiar papers from familiar suppliers so that I could focus on the other myriad variables in the mokuhanga process rather than also constantly adjusting to new kinds of paper, but I've managed to work with quite a few papers nevertheless, and now that I'm looking for some new paper I want to do a quick run-down of what I've used. </p><p>From <a href="https://www.imcclains.com/catalog/paper/groupa.html" target="_blank">McClain's Printmaking</a> (Group A): <br />• Echizen Kozo — one of my all-time favorites. Thick and kind of fluffy, this paper holds up very well to multiple overlays of color, keeps its shape, and colors stay bright when dry. <br />• Nishinouchi — I chose this for its darker tone when I was doing a series based on colonial American history. The surface is fairly hard, a little bit difficult to work with, but definitely the right look for that <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/188239-We-Are-Pilgrims.html">historical series</a> — a bit somber and earnest, and colors not as vibrant when dry. </p><p>From <a href="https://wx30.wadax.ne.jp/~woodlike-co-jp/zen4/" target="_blank">Woodlike Matsumura</a> in Japan<br />• <a href="https://wx30.wadax.ne.jp/~woodlike-co-jp/zen4/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_116&products_id=274">Shioji</a> — used for the halftone dot prints I made in the <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/433402-Relics.html">Relics</a> series. Shioji has the feel of a cotton rag paper, and some of the tendency to stretch that a rag will give you. It worked OK for that series,which only required two impressions of color, but I'm not sure how well it would perform with multiple overprints.<br />• <a href="https://wx30.wadax.ne.jp/~woodlike-co-jp/zen4/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_116&products_id=273">Yukimi</a> — I took a big chance on this paper, choosing it for my <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/459225-Playing-With-Fire.html">Fire Series</a> mostly because of its name, which means "snow viewing." I just thought it would be helpful to print Fire images on Snow paper. It's a nice paper, whiter than many handmade Japanese papers, and it behaved very well under repeated strong applications of color and big baren pressure.<br />• <a href="https://wx30.wadax.ne.jp/~woodlike-co-jp/zen4/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_116&products_id=279">Gekko</a> — This is a very thick 100% kozo paper that I chose for making <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/417848-Almanack-In-Progress.html">prints with full size sheets</a>. It's a workout with the baren because it's so thick, but it prints beautifully and I really enjoy how the prints hang.<br />• <a href="https://wx30.wadax.ne.jp/~woodlike-co-jp/zen4/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_116&products_id=271">Mawata</a> — I used this paper for <a href="https://anniebissett.com/artwork/3664069-IDENTIFY-Black-Lesbian-Caucus.html">white line prints</a>, which means that I printed dry with it, but it was fabulous for that and held up really well to strong rubbing with a spoon. I haven't used it for straight up mokuhanga, but I have no reason to think it wouldn't do very well dampened and under a baren. It's a soft-ish paper with a pleasing creamy tone, embosses well, and holds color beautifully.</p><p>My next project, should I choose to accept it :), will have different requirements so that's why I'm doing paper research. Here are a couple of things that have helped me with my research:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgp0PLChlGojHjUkAe7f8eV7wf7AmfAcKm66d1bcV9KN4simef4eNETZgjQbnKTrDzU_Rvv62zbhJI1Tjus19tY_E-k9WL9ue27vSBKD2X0Xb5EiDg29vvixlqtMPOfvt-kbYPiXl1cHWY_kepi1vVshnqtW4gqN5p96SD5kTTrZnZw0B7QO1Q=s1024" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="934" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgp0PLChlGojHjUkAe7f8eV7wf7AmfAcKm66d1bcV9KN4simef4eNETZgjQbnKTrDzU_Rvv62zbhJI1Tjus19tY_E-k9WL9ue27vSBKD2X0Xb5EiDg29vvixlqtMPOfvt-kbYPiXl1cHWY_kepi1vVshnqtW4gqN5p96SD5kTTrZnZw0B7QO1Q=w183-h200" width="183" /></a></div>1. <a href="https://theunfinishedprint.libsyn.com/nancy-jacobi-the-japanese-paper-place-toronto-the-conversation-between-the-paper-and-the-artist" target="_blank">This awesome interview</a> with Nancy Jacobi, founder of Japanese Paper Place, on the Unfinished Print podcast. Nancy reveals many of the secrets of washi from her 40+ years of working with Japanese papers. And if you haven't discovered <a href="https://theunfinishedprint.libsyn.com/">The Unfinished Print</a>, run on over! It's a podcast devoted to all things mokuhanga and host Andre Zadorozny has interviewed some mokuhanga luminaries.<p></p><p>2. This out-of-print book about washi, that I scored at my local used book store, seems to have everything you could ever want to know about washi.</p><br /><p><br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-78709270358605582452021-09-28T10:09:00.001-04:002021-09-28T10:09:42.281-04:002021 Mokuhanga Conference<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP5-2wXtmdowNTXnuoOyoRZH7MFCsI-igP2fmCK3mLQzQoh4Qwf26DMR3yHpCSg2VIXJinsLXfvXilOEEQnyG1t-ehzLyIJMk5fsmXmL55kBH5xn1f_oOXmJNQFeRTY4Aslv3Vyw/s600/SumiFusion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="431" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP5-2wXtmdowNTXnuoOyoRZH7MFCsI-igP2fmCK3mLQzQoh4Qwf26DMR3yHpCSg2VIXJinsLXfvXilOEEQnyG1t-ehzLyIJMk5fsmXmL55kBH5xn1f_oOXmJNQFeRTY4Aslv3Vyw/s16000/SumiFusion.jpg" /></a></div><br />The
<a href="http://2021.mokuhanga.org/" target="_blank"><i>Sumi-Fusion: Mokuhanga & Nara </i></a>conference will take place in Nara Japan
from December 1 to 3, and, because of travel restrictions, the conference will also be presented virtually. That means <b>we all can go</b>!<p></p><p></p><p><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql b0tq1wua a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d9wwppkn fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb hrzyx87i jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id hzawbc8m" dir="auto">Themed
around Japanese sumi ink, the color black, and woodblock printing, the
conference will feature over 30 paper presentations, <a href="http://2021.mokuhanga.org/demonstrations/" target="_blank">demonstrations</a>,
open portfolios and accompanying print and book exhibitions, as well as
virtual tours of the ancient capital of Nara and sumi production. <a href="http://2021.mokuhanga.org/registration/" target="_blank">Early bird registration</a> ends on October 9.<br /></span></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-45704736420849942572021-09-14T13:06:00.002-04:002021-09-14T13:06:59.605-04:00Woodblock Dreams Tarot!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYH58WufSiQFJadIGk1i3s1fWXXO6fLf4ElONzJaQFKqi5LwOmuJhW9N868LOiSVGQwf7du5oGHNab2BD02O31d8e3AJz7hN0vAvzJh3BKf1YueJ0EFLFYemDeiks61-v1jnuY9g/s600/WBDCards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="327" data-original-width="600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYH58WufSiQFJadIGk1i3s1fWXXO6fLf4ElONzJaQFKqi5LwOmuJhW9N868LOiSVGQwf7du5oGHNab2BD02O31d8e3AJz7hN0vAvzJh3BKf1YueJ0EFLFYemDeiks61-v1jnuY9g/s16000/WBDCards.jpg" /></a></div> If you don't <a href="https://www.instagram.com/anniebissettartist/" target="_blank">follow me on Instagram</a> you may not know that I've spent the past year and a half creating woodblock art for a self-published tarot deck. I'm not gonna lie, it was a slog sometimes, as a full tarot deck consists of 78 images. But I finished the art, scanned it, prepped the digital files, wrote a guidebook, designed a box, made a web site, and now it's all at the printer! I expect to receive the first edition of decks in early October.<br /><p></p><p>On the new <a href="https://woodblockdreamstarot.com/home.html" target="_blank">Woodblock Dreams Tarot</a> web site you can find images of all 78 cards, a downloadable PDF version of the guidebook, some background on the project, and a link to order a deck.</p><p>Currently I'm offering a <a href="https://woodblockdreamstarot.com/links.html" target="_blank">limited-time pre-order special</a>, with free shipping in the USA and reduced shipping overseas, available from now through September 26, 2021. Here are the details:</p><p>• SHIPPING BEGINS IN OCTOBER 2021<br />• Standard size tarot cards (2.75 x 4.75 in) on 350 gsm card stock<br />• Limited first edition of 500 decks<br />• All decks signed and numbered<br />• Sturdy 2-piece box<br />• 52-page guidebook included<br />• FREE SHIPPING in USA; reduced shipping overseas<br />• $75/deck plus sales tax as applicable </p><p><br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-40871232444821046422021-07-17T15:19:00.002-04:002021-07-17T15:31:38.090-04:00Sumi Fusion Show in Japan<p></p>From November 30 – December 4, 2021, the <a href="http://2021.mokuhanga.org/">Fourth International Mokuhanga Conference</a>, called "Sumi Fusion," is scheduled to take place in Nara Japan. It's uncertain at this time whether the conference will be mostly online or a hybrid in-person/online event, but either way there will be a show called "Sumi Fusion" that will take place both online and in person in Nara. Nara is renowned as a center for the production of sumi ink, and the conference and the show will celebrate the versatility of sumi in woodblock printing and explore the presence of black and how it relates
to color.<p></p><p>I wanted to submit something sumi-related for the show but I didn't have time to work up a print from scratch, so I went back to a block from one of my halftone prints in the <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/433402-Relics.html">Relics</a> series and decided to experiment with putting down some colors as a base layer it and then printing the halftone block on top of the colors with sumi ink. I chose this block to work with:<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhp1pZIi1Das4wthBUKDPldB-IXck52-WomEXbYfHuTS_hOBKB7rRsrNHZiqZ0AjmGsb9xWxM0ep8cyLQ3kjlIc60N-GlvcRntkv3-o6i2p0N-ntYAjFnJh1Ifddmi_4qEtMQQg/s580/MaryBlock.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhp1pZIi1Das4wthBUKDPldB-IXck52-WomEXbYfHuTS_hOBKB7rRsrNHZiqZ0AjmGsb9xWxM0ep8cyLQ3kjlIc60N-GlvcRntkv3-o6i2p0N-ntYAjFnJh1Ifddmi_4qEtMQQg/s16000/MaryBlock.jpg" /></a></div><p>This is the print from the Relics series that I made from this block, which I called "Our Lady":</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsbQKeX3hCuqHn4c6ilwOsDWBo_3DjR16yud35Ze_2jERnSe06QbZvyuSokf8Bu5lj8vF7ImwAjH8YR6Rs0hRHv4NTS-lysnPqSP10OwyTXaM1SxjooFerF3xpz7dZNC1JYbR0w/s580/OurLady.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNsbQKeX3hCuqHn4c6ilwOsDWBo_3DjR16yud35Ze_2jERnSe06QbZvyuSokf8Bu5lj8vF7ImwAjH8YR6Rs0hRHv4NTS-lysnPqSP10OwyTXaM1SxjooFerF3xpz7dZNC1JYbR0w/s16000/OurLady.jpg" /></a> <br /></div><p>For my Sumi Fusion print, I decided that it would be fun to also do an East/West fusion by using the uniquely American method of woodblock printing known as "Provincetown" or "white line" printing for the colors and then printing the halftone block Japanese style with sumi ink.<br /><br />I began by laying some tracing paper over one of the Our Lady prints and making a sketch of where I wanted to place the colors. Then I reversed the tracing paper and used carbon paper to transfer the drawing to a piece of wood for the white line print. In white line, a v-gouge is used to make thin lines in the wood that will guide the placement of the inks (I used <a href="https://www.guerrapaint.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=145_101">Guerra pigment dispersions</a> but you can use watercolors or gouache). </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7h1QlFtEDcVk_WwfVxIQe8pg7hXsnpNBT8COCMHgLzJIz2WZieZjQ7wc962oa_FE4iUWCFEwFK9lzU3JjgfDI_qviGGjXW3psX7pll5TVBF-ArordyLqDnJVYguQajc2TuHkeBA/s580/Matrix_WhiteLine.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7h1QlFtEDcVk_WwfVxIQe8pg7hXsnpNBT8COCMHgLzJIz2WZieZjQ7wc962oa_FE4iUWCFEwFK9lzU3JjgfDI_qviGGjXW3psX7pll5TVBF-ArordyLqDnJVYguQajc2TuHkeBA/s16000/Matrix_WhiteLine.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The block is pink because I had used it previously for the background colors in the Relics series.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table> <p></p><p>Here's what the print looked like before I put down the sumi layer:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK3_wdKCSing5WPxqr7KvHtKhGkA7BysSIfbC-nkqGWeeWyXyt-PO-ZCcvJ6tBGOzccDFyFirsXg_vungLxnn7zI5NwUUOpiB9dWfb5PgBNRapscYsDib5kH9E-Al_7Qm9XhQNjA/s580/Matrix_ColorLayer.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK3_wdKCSing5WPxqr7KvHtKhGkA7BysSIfbC-nkqGWeeWyXyt-PO-ZCcvJ6tBGOzccDFyFirsXg_vungLxnn7zI5NwUUOpiB9dWfb5PgBNRapscYsDib5kH9E-Al_7Qm9XhQNjA/s16000/Matrix_ColorLayer.jpg" /></a></div><br /> <br /> And here's what happened when the sumi was added:<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwfrnhSwM1u8dkbIKTG-P4Sy3dTXIVYxa_jhyphenhyphen99RNeu6lTUO9kj47wgOCqVzB2S1bolh-vasMQdMC3TxJ3wfU1XMFt3Adq3v0Mr9gApwmX9EOH2-8BDqX9y8FNxWOvvmuOZ4Sxkw/s644/Matrix_SumiAdded.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwfrnhSwM1u8dkbIKTG-P4Sy3dTXIVYxa_jhyphenhyphen99RNeu6lTUO9kj47wgOCqVzB2S1bolh-vasMQdMC3TxJ3wfU1XMFt3Adq3v0Mr9gApwmX9EOH2-8BDqX9y8FNxWOvvmuOZ4Sxkw/s16000/Matrix_SumiAdded.jpg" /></a></div><br /> I'm titling this print "Matrix," both because of the word's meaning as "mother" and also because it's the second time I'm using this particular carved matrix, and using it in a different way.<br /> <br />Since this was just an experiment, I made a small edition of four. I always love seeing these prints at varying distances—the way the image comes together and comes apart depending on how close you are to it.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi50wnJiD5MrpqinpgK4A_9hmFlnL6OP18Om525oYQvRaPTLIIk2uqRPjDHJ2l9ZYT-VowFF-5Jt6BCs_acIJ_geCCg1ACi9CTlNrzvJErZZhBVaQnrb_sUp0Rqy8UwUkXf9QKsQg/s644/Matrix_Edition.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi50wnJiD5MrpqinpgK4A_9hmFlnL6OP18Om525oYQvRaPTLIIk2uqRPjDHJ2l9ZYT-VowFF-5Jt6BCs_acIJ_geCCg1ACi9CTlNrzvJErZZhBVaQnrb_sUp0Rqy8UwUkXf9QKsQg/s16000/Matrix_Edition.jpg" /></a></div><p>The deadline to submit work for the Sumi Fusion Show has been extended until July 31, so if you want to submit the link is here. At US$50 the entry fee is admittedly high. I feel OK about that because I see it as a way to support the International Mokuhanga Association. The international panel of judges is impressive, which is sometimes a good reason to spring for a fee as well. Judges include Leonie Bradley (artist and editor of Printmaking Today), Hiroko Furuya (professor at Tama Art University), <a href="http://www.takujihamanaka.com/">Takuji Hamanaka</a> (awesomely creative mokuhanga artist living in the US), and Yasu Shibata (master printer at Pace Editions).<br /></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-42352721399315087282021-07-07T15:17:00.002-04:002021-07-07T15:21:51.754-04:00For My White Line Students - V. 2<p>Here are a few examples of white line prints to help students prepare images for the White Line Woodblock workshops that I teach. Hopefully this will give you a sense of what is possible with this method and help you as you prepare your drawings.<br />
<br />
The white line woodblock method was founded in the early 1900s in
Provincetown, Massachusetts, by a group of artists who were interested
in Japanese printmaking but grew tired of the tedium of cutting a block
of wood for every color as that method demanded. These Provincetown
artists, including Blanche Lazzell and Edna Boies Hopkins, developed a
way to make a polychrome print from a single block of wood.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxw0VfpyI0T2M87jee7aSbMIkDBONs5BOvueIOvZD-uE28OIDIrhKLDRwvRxIHIcF6iUt0gE5GUy23hMI8vobGyiZiLvLZhkgtfHHU_bA4jq2dYoUFFURyQxFt0IjYSGDHyrBgnw/s600/Lazzell1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="587" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxw0VfpyI0T2M87jee7aSbMIkDBONs5BOvueIOvZD-uE28OIDIrhKLDRwvRxIHIcF6iUt0gE5GUy23hMI8vobGyiZiLvLZhkgtfHHU_bA4jq2dYoUFFURyQxFt0IjYSGDHyrBgnw/s16000/Lazzell1.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Monongahila</i> by Blanche Lazzell<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAGbstar8crAenY8hc0THO6J-wx2DDYBEvBfQ-aihhGzmuFmZ1z2wyMd2TdWobLwngXy7fUr7OkpX7FXldHRNjzO6fNMdOVvjBtYdl8CVfAoiSOWLvVvAqmmMGB7hfz-CQLlrPGQ/s597/Edna+Boies+Hopkins.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="597" data-original-width="530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAGbstar8crAenY8hc0THO6J-wx2DDYBEvBfQ-aihhGzmuFmZ1z2wyMd2TdWobLwngXy7fUr7OkpX7FXldHRNjzO6fNMdOVvjBtYdl8CVfAoiSOWLvVvAqmmMGB7hfz-CQLlrPGQ/s16000/Edna+Boies+Hopkins.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Canoes (Swift Water)</i> by Edna Boies Hopkins<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>In the white line method, a simple line drawing is incised on the block
with a knife or gouge creating v-shaped cuts, which become white lines
when printed.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC6cvGP9vHoBB94rufBAIQAKA5lnMGp4C8hNdKhcnB7Q2Fg4r8LYlfINVbdYkjfbCT7qruhyphenhyphenHXf7-5C5T8pTutljALGD072GSBcRBja3pDKUShSEsj1yUEZF5SU1MkzJzr_QIG8g/s733/CarvingTea.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC6cvGP9vHoBB94rufBAIQAKA5lnMGp4C8hNdKhcnB7Q2Fg4r8LYlfINVbdYkjfbCT7qruhyphenhyphenHXf7-5C5T8pTutljALGD072GSBcRBja3pDKUShSEsj1yUEZF5SU1MkzJzr_QIG8g/s16000/CarvingTea.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A white line carving in process</td></tr></tbody></table>Colors, usually watercolor pigments, are then applied to the carved areas with small brushes, one area at a time, and a hinged piece of paper is flipped over onto the damp paint to receive the impression, whihc is taken with a spoon or other burnisher.<br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRMZum19AJFFibaw4bDadDWYL_IjdQTZYUlqk7VMzIgAPsfHePCwT2NIPRFqOdi2oKhnT3rWHThMdUWvCFFwnA9fC4REZUz9IqfPzmbZ3AJea-yNekuAmsrAkTrnDMUSOUt6Odvg/s580/PrintingTea1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRMZum19AJFFibaw4bDadDWYL_IjdQTZYUlqk7VMzIgAPsfHePCwT2NIPRFqOdi2oKhnT3rWHThMdUWvCFFwnA9fC4REZUz9IqfPzmbZ3AJea-yNekuAmsrAkTrnDMUSOUt6Odvg/s16000/PrintingTea1.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Printing in process</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Below is a gallery of white line prints showing a range of
the kinds of prints that can be made with this method. Note that
although white line woodcuts have historically been figurative, since
they are drawing-based there is no reason why they cannot be as abstract
or expressive as any other form of drawing. Your sketch just needs to
be simple enough to transfer to a block by tracing with carbon paper.
(Or you can draw directly onto the block.)</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq2vHZwOtIiTp9p1orRjbOgd9Fk2qnuTkTk8FkUBWP5rrymCy7h6qcTGQM6mxLZZb5Tt0duZsk6vuHOuli5AkO8nFUMp7RWuATeycP1n9zW-6aeMx0nIy0Mm9ixeIP24msQOg2Lw/s600/Nordfeldt2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq2vHZwOtIiTp9p1orRjbOgd9Fk2qnuTkTk8FkUBWP5rrymCy7h6qcTGQM6mxLZZb5Tt0duZsk6vuHOuli5AkO8nFUMp7RWuATeycP1n9zW-6aeMx0nIy0Mm9ixeIP24msQOg2Lw/s16000/Nordfeldt2.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">B.J.O. Norfeldt, who is said to have invented the method in 1915<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4xrmE4gXeMusCoXjtbMgfPXzcx-x0Di5I_lgcpV41OSKlgj9JV0WGi0oxUAKrKcwcRaJa4kptqhlKuxUEgtz9UCF926XhVEGy4TY3I2uECN0L3AiPBiPmXzS0VoS5kG_4lt8CyQ/s1500/Wilkinson1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1302" data-original-width="1500" height="555" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4xrmE4gXeMusCoXjtbMgfPXzcx-x0Di5I_lgcpV41OSKlgj9JV0WGi0oxUAKrKcwcRaJa4kptqhlKuxUEgtz9UCF926XhVEGy4TY3I2uECN0L3AiPBiPmXzS0VoS5kG_4lt8CyQ/w640-h555/Wilkinson1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Edith Lake Wilkinson, who may have actually invented the method in 1914 (see the documentary <i>Packed in a Trunk</i>)<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1UzyEdzU8tEdR4NoGEqC-Qw4taWAd87Mde7hgxHCJvQsA8R2LfW6OSF3WxzeyWLWrM8weR-T0YldnBm_lh49k0UhaMlJFLgUwNS4UN0iIlLXkIWLWUae_ukcrFTcwJM9cEzKg5Q/s1012/hewit1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="873" data-original-width="1012" height="552" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1UzyEdzU8tEdR4NoGEqC-Qw4taWAd87Mde7hgxHCJvQsA8R2LfW6OSF3WxzeyWLWrM8weR-T0YldnBm_lh49k0UhaMlJFLgUwNS4UN0iIlLXkIWLWUae_ukcrFTcwJM9cEzKg5Q/w640-h552/hewit1.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mabel Hewit<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcGP95lywSPzqmCozwCvuFrB073ex_MlQJYy_wuKfKjULCLsKoP9gqU35_G_Kj0tqhklK3cviUurVJTc9fMthKLbzFoeZLsh8CZJ9dujawV9iNIJ1DcmNrfoq5UnJzkGgopKeE5A/s800/AdaGilmore1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="800" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcGP95lywSPzqmCozwCvuFrB073ex_MlQJYy_wuKfKjULCLsKoP9gqU35_G_Kj0tqhklK3cviUurVJTc9fMthKLbzFoeZLsh8CZJ9dujawV9iNIJ1DcmNrfoq5UnJzkGgopKeE5A/w640-h410/AdaGilmore1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ada Gilmore (Chaffee) - a particularly painterly application of color<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4FjMzN4COeaFIiV5rehWbGFFK_aSPyX-IIOEY3SJUfmaiEEgG1YJF30COIPHkqznvUYbkKjlKwDr3RGTbUXnrWTCP_COYjBbS72m5p7iAH9c31hu045n73vhiT-DhgmZfHWVssQ/s525/FlorenceCannon1940s.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="436" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4FjMzN4COeaFIiV5rehWbGFFK_aSPyX-IIOEY3SJUfmaiEEgG1YJF30COIPHkqznvUYbkKjlKwDr3RGTbUXnrWTCP_COYjBbS72m5p7iAH9c31hu045n73vhiT-DhgmZfHWVssQ/s16000/FlorenceCannon1940s.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Florence Cannon, active in the 1940s<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy7Sd_RBFOgv2zC5vT0UtrjjvoEwCEPqxQXkgMS1np8tP0NIMLh_OXPslf23bETQ8isTOX4SxUCcPR2EEcUahAcHOa_g445muZT40fj6NLRUBqorrA0YLn-yVxJCQzDyZzENqaDg/s400/KarlKnaths1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy7Sd_RBFOgv2zC5vT0UtrjjvoEwCEPqxQXkgMS1np8tP0NIMLh_OXPslf23bETQ8isTOX4SxUCcPR2EEcUahAcHOa_g445muZT40fj6NLRUBqorrA0YLn-yVxJCQzDyZzENqaDg/s16000/KarlKnaths1.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Karl Knaths, a Provincetown artist<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjisZLt5aeSB5zxe_kIgekE-LCOzkGAjxW4ASnceyr7zD7nKJcicm_emjb4O-QCRwgX5uqbl1SnoQ5ZEMn8p6lqY2qvbElr0eDH5nB68IAGDST94jUCwPAjeffvTA-fh0Pq1tpM8g/s574/Smith1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="574" data-original-width="535" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjisZLt5aeSB5zxe_kIgekE-LCOzkGAjxW4ASnceyr7zD7nKJcicm_emjb4O-QCRwgX5uqbl1SnoQ5ZEMn8p6lqY2qvbElr0eDH5nB68IAGDST94jUCwPAjeffvTA-fh0Pq1tpM8g/s16000/Smith1.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kathryn Smith, a contemporary artist with family ties to the original Provincetown Printers<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFrwhhvGgLIRSToFAnm4DDB-qCp7d6qB1eg9xFXFCFwgWhPGzOvaZuL1crSwe5k2IRmNVzOmvQtPjwkzUayb1TQwP-BxVTYhTJkw_uQT0oDEB8wzt3ZNfOm52pHhCOVY2Ri6oSPg/s2048/EvaulBig.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFrwhhvGgLIRSToFAnm4DDB-qCp7d6qB1eg9xFXFCFwgWhPGzOvaZuL1crSwe5k2IRmNVzOmvQtPjwkzUayb1TQwP-BxVTYhTJkw_uQT0oDEB8wzt3ZNfOm52pHhCOVY2Ri6oSPg/w480-h640/EvaulBig.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">William Evaul, a contemporary Cape Cod artist who has taken white line VERY large<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTA-SgWHrc6vl4PNVMdwF1EkNWdpP-v7S74F5OxsevL-L2la5-66dvEEMahLTwl0zfTzJZF5iOEwOSQMQ2yEg9c7rO7Qbt3hZG2wUf6BFPPs8O39NiKZiXFiV-g2gQiYuUIjJXpA/s800/heus_barnstableharborflats_whiteline_4.5x6_13x15framed-800x556.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="800" height="445" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTA-SgWHrc6vl4PNVMdwF1EkNWdpP-v7S74F5OxsevL-L2la5-66dvEEMahLTwl0zfTzJZF5iOEwOSQMQ2yEg9c7rO7Qbt3hZG2wUf6BFPPs8O39NiKZiXFiV-g2gQiYuUIjJXpA/w640-h445/heus_barnstableharborflats_whiteline_4.5x6_13x15framed-800x556.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ray Heus, another contemporary artist with ties to Cape Cod. Ray also does mokuhanga printmaking<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSFOH5S91WM3zFkGTSyuFMJThdatCuOgM-cCUyLrFmTAja7FwATSKMyroWHLQ3YaUdSbP0avqd8X9bjL_nHNqz3BH1aaJUrFaQiXFe6jhMpfTEOUUv10dRUQF5E-Wmr6jFsEn3gg/s2048/Vorgity1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1448" data-original-width="2048" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSFOH5S91WM3zFkGTSyuFMJThdatCuOgM-cCUyLrFmTAja7FwATSKMyroWHLQ3YaUdSbP0avqd8X9bjL_nHNqz3BH1aaJUrFaQiXFe6jhMpfTEOUUv10dRUQF5E-Wmr6jFsEn3gg/w640-h452/Vorgity1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joseph Vorgity<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmkhlE_xIHkRie-72kMaG5RullaKXqHjts2kMztihqE2sm3Zo7Gr4phO3dpRfE1LFdx7YnhtwIpbbs044RHSTcHSFM7S65gfaVYKL3EMfYTKZOceOngDOS6Id7FbHty-1zB0pyQA/s640/KittyLovell.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="511" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmkhlE_xIHkRie-72kMaG5RullaKXqHjts2kMztihqE2sm3Zo7Gr4phO3dpRfE1LFdx7YnhtwIpbbs044RHSTcHSFM7S65gfaVYKL3EMfYTKZOceOngDOS6Id7FbHty-1zB0pyQA/s16000/KittyLovell.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katherine Lovell, a Rhode Island painter and printmaker<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSCMYmQ2B3pb-7ByYgKHuAUd2HN-vOqj7x8DRCxVBseTSVvTowhP3ip-lmfe37ooTlUPLT1NlSiZZgrk-qNxwjm4e2jyduWcKf2MYdiREB_K60c281thtzOQVbIV-8lIuT79VNSA/s1556/20cOneMatrix.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1556" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSCMYmQ2B3pb-7ByYgKHuAUd2HN-vOqj7x8DRCxVBseTSVvTowhP3ip-lmfe37ooTlUPLT1NlSiZZgrk-qNxwjm4e2jyduWcKf2MYdiREB_K60c281thtzOQVbIV-8lIuT79VNSA/w640-h444/20cOneMatrix.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Four works by Annie Bissett that all use the same block matrix, just with different colors (plus some toner transfer)<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-60111652742777675052019-04-05T20:09:00.002-04:002019-04-05T20:09:30.397-04:00Court Cards Part Two<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAJWEgudqX0SghIgwoitkQf6ezlwlsFDCYLBhi4tWCEhR3R95Zeit7CeQqmtrD-OK3hKBALW6R6mPNAamv0Xpv7MfLAuz4A91S6iYMqUETkEV7SmyxTonkaa2nEDT16NY9Uq-iRA/s1600/PeopleCardStamping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAJWEgudqX0SghIgwoitkQf6ezlwlsFDCYLBhi4tWCEhR3R95Zeit7CeQqmtrD-OK3hKBALW6R6mPNAamv0Xpv7MfLAuz4A91S6iYMqUETkEV7SmyxTonkaa2nEDT16NY9Uq-iRA/s1600/PeopleCardStamping.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
I’ve settled on names for the four character cards in each of the suits:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The Page becomes The Novice<br />
The Knight becomes The Evangel<br />
The Queen becomes The Mentor <br />
The King becomes The Paragon</blockquote>
Although gender in the tarot is symbolic rather than literal, I’ve always wanted words for the People Cards that don’t immediately conjure a gender. I feel like the words I've selected are pretty neutral and they’re mostly words that don’t carry a lot of other baggage (for instance, I considered calling the Knight the Zealot, but the word zealot felt too loaded). Here is a brief description of each of the People Cards.<br />
<br />
<b>The Novices</b> in each suit are young or inexperienced. They’re usually enthusiastic, childlike, excited about learning. They see the world with fresh eyes.<br />
<br />
<b>The Evangels</b> are full of energy and are hands-on and headstrong. They have some experience under their belt, which they will promote and defend, but they can be wild and impetuous and prone to extremism. <br />
<br />
<b>Mentors</b> are people who have developed a mature understanding of themselves, of others, and of the energies of their suits. They express these energies from the inside out, influencing others without imposing on them.<br />
<br />
<b>The Paragons</b> are experts and leaders, having mastered their suits after years of study, dedication and practice. Paragons want to control the energies of their suits and make a mark in the world.<br />
<br />
Now I have to figure out how to design these cards. Do I show people? Silhouettes? Not sure. I'd like to depict these people without depicting race, gender, or even personality, but take those things away and the depiction rapidly becomes cartoon-y. I have work to do!<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-9852751804642534732019-03-30T18:17:00.000-04:002019-03-30T18:17:23.181-04:00The Court Cards<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWr9M18GBwVah8Az5bMZeBHeuc6ukQ431ZfMm4IPNplBc6Svd-e36Cp3tAUhmhVbor7ChTDmnMrUNpvkoZcehNEGj2UhCPoIqeNK_b8pqfwAUlZCdejG5pF3lKDsu61T0i87375g/s1600/RiderCourt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="254" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWr9M18GBwVah8Az5bMZeBHeuc6ukQ431ZfMm4IPNplBc6Svd-e36Cp3tAUhmhVbor7ChTDmnMrUNpvkoZcehNEGj2UhCPoIqeNK_b8pqfwAUlZCdejG5pF3lKDsu61T0i87375g/s1600/RiderCourt.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The traditional Rider-Waite Deck court cards</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Traditional tarot decks, like the playing cards to which they are related, have four court cards: Page, Knight, Queen and King. The court cards usually stand for people in readings, whether the person asking the question or people in the querent’s life. These court designations feel archaic and hierarchical to me, though, and the way they’re gendered leaves only one female, the Queen. I don’t want to follow suit (a little joke there) but what to do instead? I just purchased the small deck pictured below, called the Mesquite Tarot, that shows an alternate approach to the court cards. The Mesquite Tarot calls the court cards “character cards” and the designations they’ve chosen are Novice, Student, Knower, and Leader. Those don’t quite work for me (I especially don’t think that “student” captures the force and action of the knight card), but I like the idea of a progression, from less to more experience and accomplishment.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOMMEE7pwF32991bbyvip13NivfiYBlwWq3IZ9THVzLWdlS8lebr1UqN_dq9Sm17t6W2l4_g1HYQoVpEKIw1hLZOwD5t5HS9YKdGKjq2furrw-ak3ckezOdgZGSYzuoRBMUcAzsg/s1600/MesquiteCourt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="918" data-original-width="580" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOMMEE7pwF32991bbyvip13NivfiYBlwWq3IZ9THVzLWdlS8lebr1UqN_dq9Sm17t6W2l4_g1HYQoVpEKIw1hLZOwD5t5HS9YKdGKjq2furrw-ak3ckezOdgZGSYzuoRBMUcAzsg/s640/MesquiteCourt.jpg" width="404" /></a></div>
<br />
I’ve been working closely with a thesaurus and consulting with a friend who knows the cards quite well and he’s helped me get clear about what I’m looking for in naming these four characters. I want words that are evocative and poetic, that work with the traditional meanings of the cards, that hang together as four related words, that aren’t gendered, and that don’t carry a lot of baggage. Tall order, but we’re getting there.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-74879625571937107872019-02-21T11:51:00.000-05:002019-02-21T12:03:35.914-05:00Starting With Air<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirFyybwoHT020xPxAfBlefGEE7lVssPEP5yRghgTpEhCxbBKGgDtJqCXHuMiGoTV3Owt3QwVsV-JdPRI3-QlKIFDsn1w-c6wBccbxUdsB1L0ObGio7RrdtAQQ_lXler2XcciWgNw/s1600/Studying.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirFyybwoHT020xPxAfBlefGEE7lVssPEP5yRghgTpEhCxbBKGgDtJqCXHuMiGoTV3Owt3QwVsV-JdPRI3-QlKIFDsn1w-c6wBccbxUdsB1L0ObGio7RrdtAQQ_lXler2XcciWgNw/s1600/Studying.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Rider Waite suit of swords and some study materials</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The tarot is divided into two sections, the 22 cards of the Major Arcana (macrocosmic archetypal images) and the Minor Arcana (four “suits” that describe more everyday situations and energies). I asked my Rider Waite cards which of the four suits I should tackle first for my tarot deck and the cards told me “swords.” Rather than using the traditional suit names—swords, cups, wands and pentacles—I plan to use the four elements for my deck’s suit names. Swords are associated with the element Air, so I’ll be starting with 14 cards in the suit of Air. The Air cards represent the mind, including thoughts, beliefs, ideas, and communication. That seems like a fitting place to begin.<br />
<br />
This will likely be the slowest suit to produce simply because I’m doing it first. Most of the design decisions for the entire deck will be made as I work on this suit. <br />
<br />
Something that has bothered me about my Rider Waite deck is that there can be a lack of coherence as one goes through the suits. The Major Arcana tells a story as you go from one card to the next, and there’s no reason why the smaller suits couldn’t do that as well. So my first design decision is to make borderless cards with a background for each suit that travels lengthwise through all 14 cards to help unify them. I only know of one deck that does this— the <a href="http://psychic-sister.com/new-products/kvtzxsz0ir9frsiuftog45i5o5os67" target="_blank">Prisma Visions tarot</a>. Pictured below is a woodblock print of a wind map that I’ll be using to pull together the Suit of Air. I’m planning to create all of the artwork for this deck by hand and then scan the pieces and assemble each card digitally for production purposes.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic8LmPskTFQ9OFNfT1deXW-Ch5no8drAcxHifm3n1ALRLV6ABjFWT52WJAgskL-XxN6abCaNEDqyqDWmNU4t62PPTcf40PNifG5KQ_T7-_A_IM1UuL15B5AiTxt-5JUX57czOxsg/s1600/WindMapPrint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic8LmPskTFQ9OFNfT1deXW-Ch5no8drAcxHifm3n1ALRLV6ABjFWT52WJAgskL-XxN6abCaNEDqyqDWmNU4t62PPTcf40PNifG5KQ_T7-_A_IM1UuL15B5AiTxt-5JUX57czOxsg/s1600/WindMapPrint.jpg" /></a></div>
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-23863923617866677702019-02-14T11:37:00.000-05:002019-02-14T11:45:18.157-05:00Tarot Mea Culpa<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOOxjRK-OhINRrb_IUQ6iYt8D0C_Gl7wPiqR8KJdi5L6Rnn8Tmv2Hw3gREzQLDADYKS8bihKat6rGNLNLVpvhWKlwbUz-SCGyjTyyAbJ9i8n65fn0bFK_Y225XgzSdUqW-ihmIsw/s1600/SomeAces.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="912" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOOxjRK-OhINRrb_IUQ6iYt8D0C_Gl7wPiqR8KJdi5L6Rnn8Tmv2Hw3gREzQLDADYKS8bihKat6rGNLNLVpvhWKlwbUz-SCGyjTyyAbJ9i8n65fn0bFK_Y225XgzSdUqW-ihmIsw/s1600/SomeAces.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few randomly chosen depictions of one tarot card, the Ace of Swords</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Tarot is an odd mishmash of symbols, numbers, traditions and ideas. As I previously mentioned, the Rider Waite deck (upper left) is the classic standard, but every deck-maker puts their own spin on it, as you can see in the random samples above. <br />
<br />
There are a lot of tarot aficionados who know way more than I do about it, so this is my mea culpa post — I’m not a tarot expert, just a tarot admirer and on-and-off user since the 1980s. I don’t do readings for other people and I don’t use the cards to tell fortunes or predict the future. Mainly I use the cards as prompts to help me focus on questions and worries I have about my own life and to help me externalize my own answers. The cards work remarkably well for that purpose.<br />
<br />
Why make my own deck? Mostly because I’m an artist and image making is what artists do. I also like the huge challenge of making 78 cards and deepening my understanding of the cards through this project. And of course, I’ll be adjusting some of the traditional imagery, adding my own spin to suit my understandings of the various systems embedded in the tarot. For instance, I’d like my deck to be more gender neutral and universal, with less Camelot-Victorian imagery, approachable and intuitive, and beautiful. Most importantly, though, a deck needs to feel “alive,” and that’s something that can’t be planned, only intended. I want my deck to feel alive. Of course, what feels alive to one tarot reader may not feel alive to another. One of the wonderful things about the explosion of available tarot decks is that almost every reader can find cards that speak to them. I hope that my deck will have a unique voice that will speak to others.<br />
<br />
As of now I’m hoping to produce a small run of 500 decks if my design project is successful. I’ll keep you posted on that—it’s early still and my risk of failure is high!<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-30452203794227673272019-02-12T10:58:00.000-05:002019-02-12T10:59:53.592-05:00Conjuring Up a Tarot Deck<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju4DfeChHx7C9BTYyOmipsVJnL2DFBI9htLQaB9e9aTA9A-DxN17c_-QpBGZymLqaER9EX94pxbuYJVOl9RLLjpQdXX2JmlZoVpwWPC1ZL1qo29_l1HQ19oJa7JwGVB2fOH2XkVQ/s1600/book_of_symbols_va_gb_3d_ohne_leseband_06703_1504141538_id_914358.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1303" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju4DfeChHx7C9BTYyOmipsVJnL2DFBI9htLQaB9e9aTA9A-DxN17c_-QpBGZymLqaER9EX94pxbuYJVOl9RLLjpQdXX2JmlZoVpwWPC1ZL1qo29_l1HQ19oJa7JwGVB2fOH2XkVQ/s320/book_of_symbols_va_gb_3d_ohne_leseband_06703_1504141538_id_914358.png" width="235" /></a></div>
It's been five months since I moved to Providence, Rhode Island, after 23 years in Northampton, Massachusetts. I have to admit that I've been a little adrift here in the Ocean State. This is especially true as far as my work as an artist is concerned. I've been having a tough time, both before and after the move, finding a project that I can really connect with and sink into the way I like. It's hard for me to be patient, hard for me to keep coming to the studio without any notion of what I'll do there, hard for me to wait for myself to feel comfortable in my new surroundings. <br />
<br />
My work in the past has generally been topic-driven — about money or politics or history, rather than being about place or landscape — so I've been surprised to see how this change in my surroundings is challenging me. Even though it's less than 100 miles away, my new home in tiny little Rhode Island is most definitely not the same as my town in the Connecticut River Valley of western Massachusetts. The weather is different, the air is different, the light is different, the people are different, and the whole feeling is different. It's like how Vermont and New Hampshire feel totally different even though they're right next to each other, separated only by the Connecticut River. <br />
<br />
One of the first things I bought for myself when I first moved to Providence was a book from Tashen Publishing called <i><a href="https://www.taschen.com/pages/en/catalogue/art/all/06703/facts.the_book_of_symbols_reflections_on_archetypal_images.htm?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7bmth8a24AIV1eDICh1ogAdrEAYYAiABEgLKUvD_BwE" target="_blank">The Book of Symbols</a></i>. I saw it in the window of <a href="https://shop-palomino.com/" target="_blank">a neighborhood store</a> while I was walking my dog Zuzu, and I kept walking but the book haunted me. For three or four weeks I couldn't stop thinking about it, so I finally just walked up the street and bought it. I wasn’t quite sure what it meant to me, but the book has been moving around the house with me, on my desk or next to my bed or in the living room by the fireplace. And now I think I finally know where it’s leading me. There seems to be a tarot deck inside me, waiting to be born.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-13110670886230923382019-01-20T16:56:00.001-05:002019-01-20T16:56:44.590-05:00Meat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTvaGCu5MyrRYoxppkzFN-ZaAmbBtgUBPwYLPXnV_5iM8JjUCYQaexbmPYEtOlIN1U6oX9fH4KP1A9aLvDRW9aZGhw5YLnnQzDKywhKQ5ZwgGsQZXmEL665dCPNt01tv0ONfHqjQ/s1600/Meat_580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="830" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTvaGCu5MyrRYoxppkzFN-ZaAmbBtgUBPwYLPXnV_5iM8JjUCYQaexbmPYEtOlIN1U6oX9fH4KP1A9aLvDRW9aZGhw5YLnnQzDKywhKQ5ZwgGsQZXmEL665dCPNt01tv0ONfHqjQ/s1600/Meat_580.jpg" /></a></div>
MEAT<br />
Watercolor woodblock print (moku hanga)<br />
17 x 11 inches (43 x 28 cm)<br />
Made from 1 block, 5 hand-rubbed applications of color<br />
Edition of 8 on Yukimi paper<br />
___________________<br />
<br />
<br />
A <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/31/avoiding-meat-and-dairy-is-single-biggest-way-to-reduce-your-impact-on-earth" target="_blank">recent study</a> of 40,000 farms in over 100 countries concludes that of all the individual acts a person can do to try to reduce their impact on the environment, giving up meat in one's diet is the biggest way to help the planet. In addition to deforestation, extinction of wild animal species, and greenhouse gas emissions, meat farming, especially farming of beef and pork, is lousy for water. Animal wastes pollute streams, rivers, and ultimately oceans, and large amounts of water are required to make a pound of beef, although there seems to be wide disagreement over exactly how much water — claims range from 450 gallons to 250 gallons of water per pound of beef depending on the farming methods used.<br />
<br />
“A vegan diet is probably the single biggest way to reduce your impact
on planet Earth, not just greenhouse gases, but global acidification,
eutrophication, land use and water use,” said Joseph Poore, at the
University of Oxford, UK, who led the research. “It is far bigger than
cutting down on your flights or buying an electric car,” he said, as
these only cut greenhouse gas emissions.<br />
<br />
To be clear, I myself am not a vegan eater. I rarely eat red meat, but I do eat fish and sometimes poultry. I also eat dairy, cheese, and eggs. I could picture myself giving up meat altogether, but I'm very attached to cheese and eggs. I'm not sure what, if anything, would convince me to stop eating those things.<br />
<br />
This print is a reduction print <span>(carve, print a color, carve some more, print another color…)</span>. I'm trying to loosen up my process a bit by <span>utilizing only one block, a limited palette, working in small editions, and not doing so much pre-planning. It's fun.</span><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-49400898400177684372018-12-30T18:04:00.000-05:002018-12-30T18:04:09.015-05:00Living Coral<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqWvJVkHM9scfC_QXyMsHyonDIkyt5ov81zwV7vmQjcZ29q4MnIhDU1e7XodWupnA-mIZPxekdZfW32ZF6rDgS7XhuqrgSBhiFTlhhyTaq1ZnJG49XFZkFj2VT1RRrMiu1VcwUTA/s1600/LivingCoral_580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="824" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqWvJVkHM9scfC_QXyMsHyonDIkyt5ov81zwV7vmQjcZ29q4MnIhDU1e7XodWupnA-mIZPxekdZfW32ZF6rDgS7XhuqrgSBhiFTlhhyTaq1ZnJG49XFZkFj2VT1RRrMiu1VcwUTA/s1600/LivingCoral_580.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
LIVING CORAL<br />
Watercolor woodblock print (moku hanga)<br />
17 x 11 inches (43 x 28 cm)<br />
Made from 1 block, 4 hand-rubbed applications of color<br />
Edition of 8 on Yukimi paper<br />
___________________<br />
<br />
I could barely believe my good fortune when, just as I began researching images of coral for my next print, Pantone Inc. announced their new color for 2019: "<a href="https://www.pantone.com/color-intelligence/color-of-the-year/color-of-the-year-2019" target="_blank">Living Coral</a>." The Pantone web site describes Living Coral as "sociable and spirited," encouraging "lighthearted activity, symbolizing our
innate need for optimism and joyful pursuits" and a "source of emotional nourishment." Oy. Maybe it's just me, but the name Living Coral instantly conjures up the opposite in my mind—dead and bleached coral. In the Great Barrier Reef alone, one 2016 bleaching event killed <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/may/29/coral-bleaching-on-great-barrier-reef-worse-than-expected-surveys-show">almost 30 percent</a> of shallow-water corals such as the brush coral I've depicted here. How could Pantone think that invoking the living variety of a thing that
could be entirely dead within this century due to our own
greed and stubbornness would be a good thing? Well, anyway, I obviously had to add a little Pantone chip to my picture of a sample of (dead) brush coral.<br />
<br />
This all is sad, and it makes me sad at a personal level, too, because most of my adult money-earning career has been in graphic design, so I've been in a relationship with Pantone Inc. for many years. My career has also ridden the waves of several boom and bust cycles. In the late 90s and early 00s I was drawing diagrams for tech startups, then just as the tech bubble burst I started making infographics for the financial industry and when the bottom fell out of that one in 2008 I began making maps for high-end tour companies, which visit many fragile and threatened places across this beautiful planet. So as much as I want to make fun of Pantone for being out of touch, I know that I can't stand outside of their milieu. None of us can, really. We're all complicit in the lifestyle that now threatens our very existence.<br />
<br />
May this new year, 2019, bring out the best in us. May our relationships to each other, to all the beings we share this world with, and to the planet itself come into some kind of balance and alignment. Happy new year. <br />
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-18651934836828792922018-12-08T11:59:00.000-05:002018-12-08T12:15:12.507-05:00Flush It<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZ_biJESXgP2BqM2YbPIrv0RmQ32THM0dQUruTQ3CnK1vkZEXx0K2O-AltSNgDQqedB2-XjTUSbeAXTUZNXQ8ZMKv682gjIuY0YBL8te8ouKOMbV0x77r1UZ92luXLW-N0JYb8w/s1600/TPCover_580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="835" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZ_biJESXgP2BqM2YbPIrv0RmQ32THM0dQUruTQ3CnK1vkZEXx0K2O-AltSNgDQqedB2-XjTUSbeAXTUZNXQ8ZMKv682gjIuY0YBL8te8ouKOMbV0x77r1UZ92luXLW-N0JYb8w/s1600/TPCover_580.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
FLUSH IT<br />
Watercolor woodblock print (moku hanga)<br />
11 x 17 inches (28 x 43 cm)<br />
Made from 2 blocks, 3 hand-rubbed applications of color<br />
Edition of 8 on Yukimi paper<br />
___________________<br />
<br />
Not that they actually hide anything (we all know what's under there) but toilet paper covers are a kitschy quirky way to cover up a spare
toilet roll and also a fun project for people who crochet. They can be made to resemble animals or can have doll parts attached or… well, whatever you can imagine. I'm not sure the real purpose of toilet paper covers — maybe to keep dust from getting on the extra roll of paper?<br />
<br />
<div class="css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0">
I made a woodblock print of a beige crocheted toilet paper cover to conjure up all of the myriad issues around human waste, toilets, and water use. A <a href="http://www.allianceforwaterefficiency.org/residential-end-uses-of-water-study-1999.aspx" target="_blank">study</a> conducted in 2016 found that household water use via toilets has fallen from 18.5 gallons per person per day in 1999 to 14.2 gallons in 2016 but, that improvement notwithstanding, treatment of waste water remains challenging. Although I've known that flushing wipes or tampons will clog sewer systems, I learned while working on this print that even flushing kleenex challenges water treatment systems because kleenex is treated with a chemical binder to prevent it from breaking down easily (article <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/25/science/do-not-flush-down-toilet.html" target="_blank">here</a>). I was also taken aback to learn that low levels of organic wastewater compounds, including
prescription and nonprescription drugs and hormones, have been found in streams
across the US and that some pharmaceuticals persist in drinking-water despite water
treatment processes. Yikes, does this mean that I'm drinking your antidepressants? Also, apparently human beings now <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/your-poop-is-probably-full-of-plastic/" target="_blank">poop plastic</a>.</div>
<br />
At any rate, my mokuhanga toilet paper cover is not very kitschy. I wanted to challenge myself to represent realistic stitching, so this print relies on what I call "virtuoso carving" in order to achieve that goal. I have a love/hate relationship with virtuoso carving. I like it when it's finished, but the doing of it is pretty strenuous and it hurts my back and neck. It's worth the pain, though. Pictures below show the two blocks that define the two color levels needed to define the stitches as well as the intermediate stage of printing.<br />
<br />
With two prints now completed (this one and "<a href="https://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com/2018/11/fiji-water.html" target="_blank">Fiji Water 1.5</a>") I now have a direction for these water prints: realistic objects that succinctly represent the environmental issues humans face regarding water.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGIULS4uMpWRBkPdEhbGZq5oRN1NBfv0DdS-ut_X8mBx7TmRBADeRmUZicEJ5Jjo0nxTN83aWFzx7U9YyzLdh44gv4mF9Arf7ZMMxF2txOVRvZP7iODeWNTJP1zIbOiwn24GTRQ/s1600/Block2Carved.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="685" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGIULS4uMpWRBkPdEhbGZq5oRN1NBfv0DdS-ut_X8mBx7TmRBADeRmUZicEJ5Jjo0nxTN83aWFzx7U9YyzLdh44gv4mF9Arf7ZMMxF2txOVRvZP7iODeWNTJP1zIbOiwn24GTRQ/s1600/Block2Carved.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1xfYglQSCcsmSmhlNgYahz4sWXOeUtfjMENtoxidV8r6y_OvuJ8MhxYUjPzXAYCviGuvLZv5WpilGaOBa1GGDtN2ThzitDojfDOBFU2v16hpvtTu61j0czZYKXHshNPFyJNoMhg/s1600/Block3Carved.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="707" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1xfYglQSCcsmSmhlNgYahz4sWXOeUtfjMENtoxidV8r6y_OvuJ8MhxYUjPzXAYCviGuvLZv5WpilGaOBa1GGDtN2ThzitDojfDOBFU2v16hpvtTu61j0czZYKXHshNPFyJNoMhg/s1600/Block3Carved.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCFuUViIwkOHfJgzV0kXZZgea7bURrr9Upq0ObCHTvyMFCdpzkVl1vFPfDolFUrYhZmy8-peKyyNfPjsw_CnaI8lgEzwQ2DnIK-drDN4C62Rn5S9sS_yRzigh9BqfVc4-tyjkMnQ/s1600/SecondColor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="725" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCFuUViIwkOHfJgzV0kXZZgea7bURrr9Upq0ObCHTvyMFCdpzkVl1vFPfDolFUrYhZmy8-peKyyNfPjsw_CnaI8lgEzwQ2DnIK-drDN4C62Rn5S9sS_yRzigh9BqfVc4-tyjkMnQ/s1600/SecondColor.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-1509727690958055552018-11-26T13:06:00.000-05:002018-11-26T13:21:55.441-05:00Start Where You AreI'm still poking around this topic of water, trying to find my way. I have friends who have been on top of the climate crisis for decades now, sounding the alarm to a mostly-indifferent world, and I don't know how I'll ever catch up with them. But I can start now and I can start where I am, knowing that I won't catch up but trusting that I'll find my way.<br />
<br />
What I mostly do in my art practice when I begin a new topic is read. Often I simply read the news and begin from there. This month I started to notice articles about sewage and flooding and water treatment plants. From <a href="https://www.statesman.com/news/20181123/amid-historic-flooding-austin-water-systems-sank" target="_blank">Austin, Texas</a>, to <a href="https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article221666410.html" target="_blank">Raleigh, North Carolina</a>, to the <a href="http://www.wbur.org/radioboston/2018/11/20/merrimack-river-pollution" target="_blank">Merrimac River</a> valley in Massachusetts, cities and towns all over America are having to cope with new threats to clean water that are being caused by a combination of aging infrastructure and more frequent flooding. Obviously, coastal water treatment plants are at risk from sea level rise, but hundreds of inland water treatment plants are located in flood plains and are also at risk.<br />
<br />
In this early portion of my series I'm looking for images that can stand in for a whole constellation of issues/problems and that also might be beautiful as prints. For the issue of water/sewer treatment, I'm going with an image that will call up the ubiquitous and rarely-discussed action that most westerners perform an average of five times per day: the toilet flush. Toilet flushing is the single highest use of water in the average home. Clean water, that is — water that must then be processed before it can go back out into the environment. People who know more than I do might have some ideas for better ways of treating human waste. I hope so.<br />
<br />
This print will be a simple three-color print. Unlike the <a href="https://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com/2018/11/fiji-water.html" target="_blank">Fiji Water print</a> I just completed, which required a lot of printing tricks (blends,
wiping, etc.) this one will rely on very detailed carving. Here's the
first impression, which is just a background color for the whole shape: <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVQqho4V_ydeprsvfI34ghqtD2PVmbwng6HwpyYlet3-2ugl9baya0hTa8PbIVyK_AR9G-2kEzyd9HSyGVgDtHrOC0E89-Ci7Wo3-631w5UCf5d4FyxIDWv9IlRAUyGpvxVirejA/s1600/Color1_580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="827" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVQqho4V_ydeprsvfI34ghqtD2PVmbwng6HwpyYlet3-2ugl9baya0hTa8PbIVyK_AR9G-2kEzyd9HSyGVgDtHrOC0E89-Ci7Wo3-631w5UCf5d4FyxIDWv9IlRAUyGpvxVirejA/s1600/Color1_580.jpg" /></a> </div>
<br />
Then I traced outlines for the second color using carbon paper, and now I'll start carving:<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhErrkmo5BzqmjlYArP23XSLjpJAWWnk5cwbaD5Z3zo3aTKNjzK8Oec4h5veVxxHXPquma923K5G930GMplkoVHdpEGktcry_OucYn5djILZhU7fbgVpn1to33xN4c02vO-MCwbhA/s1600/Reduction1_580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="773" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhErrkmo5BzqmjlYArP23XSLjpJAWWnk5cwbaD5Z3zo3aTKNjzK8Oec4h5veVxxHXPquma923K5G930GMplkoVHdpEGktcry_OucYn5djILZhU7fbgVpn1to33xN4c02vO-MCwbhA/s1600/Reduction1_580.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-77217292783982839182018-11-17T14:40:00.000-05:002018-11-26T11:55:03.166-05:00Water: A Tough Topic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkJNsMXKAO8abByxDcW8f_BCTGF_4EhXRAoHPp_UwTVMMCROkQkZAJl6ckTRhlBXDN7_hU-ZBjAORBNno1nJBRmmME4_GwzVxHKPa3-g4-n_Zf9tB9qecw4DxXZ4ELuj9mXFJDWg/s1600/Easel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkJNsMXKAO8abByxDcW8f_BCTGF_4EhXRAoHPp_UwTVMMCROkQkZAJl6ckTRhlBXDN7_hU-ZBjAORBNno1nJBRmmME4_GwzVxHKPa3-g4-n_Zf9tB9qecw4DxXZ4ELuj9mXFJDWg/s1600/Easel.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
So I'm on the theme of water and I thought at first that I would, you know, make pictures of water. But then I started thinking of artists I know who make gorgeous pictures of water (examples: <a href="http://francesbashforth.com/all/" target="_blank">Frances Ashforth</a> and <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=michael+mazur+rain&client=firefox-b-1&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjtyOe7itzeAhXtct8KHWJ1BZgQsAR6BAgAEAE&biw=1756&bih=1316" target="_blank">Michael Mazur</a>) and I choked. What do I have to add to the canon of gorgeous water pictures? And what do I want to say about water anyhow?<br />
<br />
I'm still sorting that out, but I can offer myself some partial answers. First is that I'm afraid of water. Every house I've lived in as an adult has leaked at one time or another. My house in Somerville MA leaked in a hurricane. Our roof in super-dry Taos New Mexico leaked in a rain storm. Each of the three houses we lived in in Northampton MA sprang a leak at one time or another, whether from ice dams or hurricanes or torrential rain. Water inside my house makes me exceedingly uncomfortable (said the woman who just moved to the Ocean State and found a leaky roof) and it seems to be my karma to get water inside my house. So there's that.<br />
<br />
I also love water. I love the ocean, I love to body surf, I love lakes and streams, I love a hot bath, I like to fish, I love boats, and I love to drink a tall glass of cold water on a hot day. Large natural bodies of water relax us and offer a kind of mental balm and solace that can't be found anywhere else. Water is life. We all know that, but do we really? How for granted do we in the so-called western world take it that when we turn the faucet, the water that comes out is clean and plentiful? So now I'm back to my fear. I'm afraid of water not being clean, not being plentiful, afraid of local and state governments privatizing water which should belong to us all, afraid of more Flint Michigan type disasters, afraid of super-storms, and afraid of the water shortages that are already happening all over the globe.<br />
<br />
It's hard to live in a place where the tap water is good and where the beaches are beautiful and to fully comprehend the tragedies that loom in our future: too much water, not enough water, and the extinctions and migrations (both human and animal) that will follow as our climate mutates. It's hard to even begin to understand how much our way of life impacts the water cycle. So maybe that's the essence of what I want to explore in this next series of prints — the notion that much of our relationship with water as human beings lies beneath our awareness.<br />
<br />
So I'm starting another image and we'll see if it goes anywhere. I really don't have this planned out the way I planned the <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/459225-Playing-With-Fire.html" target="_blank">fire prints</a>. <br />
<br />
The photo at the beginning of this post shows a block ready to be cut for the first stage of the image. I jerry-rigged a funky cheap table-top easel that I got from Dick Blick (I don't think they sell this anymore) and a bench hook from McClain's to keep the block upright while I do the detail carving. Then I lay the block flat on the table for clearing.<br />
<br />
More soon…<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-86173561388638125222018-11-13T19:49:00.000-05:002018-11-13T21:43:20.498-05:00Fiji Water (1.5)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUGXdKl0mBnRLgZROJa7dgAFte7ycrY6wr5iI8UAzv3P_cortCa5SJSLAFgySML3m0cQbgFqkwOhCVIULBJGKCmm8eezuWftQZjcBE8oT5wO5mgP8KZ4r4jg00MFD6uBmzvnODug/s1600/FijiFinal_580.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="843" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUGXdKl0mBnRLgZROJa7dgAFte7ycrY6wr5iI8UAzv3P_cortCa5SJSLAFgySML3m0cQbgFqkwOhCVIULBJGKCmm8eezuWftQZjcBE8oT5wO5mgP8KZ4r4jg00MFD6uBmzvnODug/s1600/FijiFinal_580.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
FIJI WATER (1.5)<br />
Watercolor woodblock print (moku hanga)<br />
11 x 17 inches (28 x 43 cm)<br />
Made from 1 block, 15 hand-rubbed applications of color<br />
Edition of 8 on Yukimi paper<br />
___________________<br />
<br />
After completing my "Fire" series I found myself wanting to go on and do some water prints. At the time (last winter) I thought of calling a series about water "Blue Wave," but I was afraid that the title would be too situational with regard to the 2016 US midterm election. And then it was spring and my partner and I started talking about moving, so I dropped everything.<br />
<br />
But the topic stayed with me. Water. I read a book called <a href="https://milkweed.org/book/rising" target="_blank"><i>Rising</i></a> by a Rhode Island writer named Elizabeth Rush (recommended) and I'm now reading Cynthia Barnett's book <a href="https://www.cynthiabarnett.net/books.html" target="_blank"><i>Rain</i></a>. The devastating report on climate change that was just released in October by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, plus the fact that the roof in my new house is leaking, have kept me on the topic of water, so I'm taking a poke at it here.<br />
<br />
The first time I ever saw Fiji Water was in the 1990s. I remember my first thought was "it can't really be from Fiji." But it really was from Fiji, and I always saw it as a kind of awful commentary on the whole bottled water business—1990s yuppies "hydrating" themselves with (magical?) water from an exotic tropical island, transported thousands of miles in an ocean-contaminating plastic-is-forever bottle. Ugh.<br />
<br />
Turns out that Fiji is one of the Pacific Island nations that won't survive warming greater than 1.5°C, which is the warming target that the cheery new report from the IPCC says would require humanity to abandon coal and other fossil fuels in the
next decade or two in an economic transition so abrupt that it “has no documented historic precedents.<i>”</i><br />
<br />
Island nations across the world, in the Caribbean and in the Pacific, have adopted a slogan, "1.5 to stay alive," to reflect the grim reality they face. I included that slogan on the label.<br />
<br />
<i></i>
As usual, here are some process shots. I started simply with the yellows. Printing with a lot of white space is difficult, because of the care you need to take to keep the paper clean:<br />
<br />
<i></i>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv0FhkkLmhnSvKL83aJXWgejotpfuzELcULG3XikNaN1qPbsKMZ4bCi6lRB4Nit3WHoXag5FREym_Cv3c2maXyO5o-3j-NhqzdNdy7cjZ5fh7YIYRfR77aO8qkkUOex2q-BsaiRg/s1600/SimpleStart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="773" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv0FhkkLmhnSvKL83aJXWgejotpfuzELcULG3XikNaN1qPbsKMZ4bCi6lRB4Nit3WHoXag5FREym_Cv3c2maXyO5o-3j-NhqzdNdy7cjZ5fh7YIYRfR77aO8qkkUOex2q-BsaiRg/s1600/SimpleStart.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<i></i>
Next I worked on the plastic bottle. I did it reduction-style, where you print a color, then carve a bit and print again, then carve more, etc. :<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuz1Yw9IpUY_8l_E4l3d_zkfuDarC0F-wLJgrpuMHuHQfj6b_TXz9ZyjJRB-r8ywR5EUaD28-gx3vZ-7pX4zPHh22o4eOmIfsa0avgMiT71VP5NWN1Wepi7eXeuBjhyphenhyphenw7l2QQM-A/s1600/FlowerDevelop1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="626" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuz1Yw9IpUY_8l_E4l3d_zkfuDarC0F-wLJgrpuMHuHQfj6b_TXz9ZyjJRB-r8ywR5EUaD28-gx3vZ-7pX4zPHh22o4eOmIfsa0avgMiT71VP5NWN1Wepi7eXeuBjhyphenhyphenw7l2QQM-A/s1600/FlowerDevelop1.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
I developed the flower the same way, by printing a layer of light pink, carving a bit and printing a darker pink, carving again and overprinting a darker magenta:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5OiiQP7-rHs4vKTbUIi1Xk4kIp0MXV4uW_aKhDCah45Nof1DB3fXOnt1TFNEhckN_ni8pPz-W-mBRYz1RdE75DQe-NGtZGhGYS6QobOl8Wfp-sFZyPRmqLAsJK2CH05wDUHPnQ/s1600/FlowerDevelop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL5OiiQP7-rHs4vKTbUIi1Xk4kIp0MXV4uW_aKhDCah45Nof1DB3fXOnt1TFNEhckN_ni8pPz-W-mBRYz1RdE75DQe-NGtZGhGYS6QobOl8Wfp-sFZyPRmqLAsJK2CH05wDUHPnQ/s1600/FlowerDevelop.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Next I added a simple bottle cap:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRKVIhQRnG_AXQyfqTyvSiumtD3WIxmyvbSwpu8oylx67z5JuNZh2dHU1_gUHWKLSbGcC2FrofTIm-bWwao_pfYxnOJE1PkF-EfZQm_JHsbHVkvfyxkiocnA2fscXUJ2fwQr58cg/s1600/CapAdded.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRKVIhQRnG_AXQyfqTyvSiumtD3WIxmyvbSwpu8oylx67z5JuNZh2dHU1_gUHWKLSbGcC2FrofTIm-bWwao_pfYxnOJE1PkF-EfZQm_JHsbHVkvfyxkiocnA2fscXUJ2fwQr58cg/s1600/CapAdded.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
And then I had to face the scary part: a large <i>bokashi</i> (color blend) with white text carved out. Making a bokashi can be kind of messy because it involves water and paste and wide sweeps of the brush. I often do bokashi in several steps, but with white text I didn't want to be double-registering if I could help it. I resolved to do this bokashi in one pass. Because I needed to use a large brush for the blend, I decided to make a mask to protect the white paper around the bottle. I used a heavy drawing paper taped to the top of the block:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCH96vGQRfhUIynw4MaXUC6zpw__Ke0TP6PTU5bAE8x5sykESKrhMIntsybJsH3JQWEw7mC5rBG0bOv9pXbH8E4Vlf1Jmw-FJzCJCc1aDnmwetA4kSYM4h11Dr6AMPJU1cbgsOEQ/s1600/BokashiMask.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCH96vGQRfhUIynw4MaXUC6zpw__Ke0TP6PTU5bAE8x5sykESKrhMIntsybJsH3JQWEw7mC5rBG0bOv9pXbH8E4Vlf1Jmw-FJzCJCc1aDnmwetA4kSYM4h11Dr6AMPJU1cbgsOEQ/s1600/BokashiMask.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Here's a shot of the brush I used (purchased from Kremer Pigment). The tape at one end reminds me that that's the side where the lighter color is. You can see how far from the raised area the ink travels and why the mask is helpful:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyFbpAgMWURPfZWiLm1Se_D0RqLj0md5whfVeYx0jk9A7APo2UqiiP8fdRDjqlTYLYitqJWpB2DLQvyRZaGXGTEzeyz5jUNEOsLKoZp8T_ddGcuHe-1ffLZM-o06-R8nqx7neDw/s1600/Bokashi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="773" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyFbpAgMWURPfZWiLm1Se_D0RqLj0md5whfVeYx0jk9A7APo2UqiiP8fdRDjqlTYLYitqJWpB2DLQvyRZaGXGTEzeyz5jUNEOsLKoZp8T_ddGcuHe-1ffLZM-o06-R8nqx7neDw/s1600/Bokashi.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
All of this was done on one block, using a floating kento (registration board). Here's the block after I was finished with it:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIofd6-D_-sQWHaTzAOpKO8KPz5tPwpjb1h12tb1sM5UJpOEsPb7nwWa045HmoW7SFJidi2wuMQ-iJGlE-exIGUbULyi8DuoUJd257Oxlp6TOMycJ5-BMYx5D744vlEa5O3UDQvQ/s1600/TheBlock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="580" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIofd6-D_-sQWHaTzAOpKO8KPz5tPwpjb1h12tb1sM5UJpOEsPb7nwWa045HmoW7SFJidi2wuMQ-iJGlE-exIGUbULyi8DuoUJd257Oxlp6TOMycJ5-BMYx5D744vlEa5O3UDQvQ/s1600/TheBlock.jpg" /></a></div>
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14184600.post-34556614497473574112018-10-17T12:02:00.000-04:002018-10-17T12:11:11.013-04:00Making Art After a Long PauseIt's been nine months since I finished <a href="https://anniebissett.com/section/459225-Playing-With-Fire.html" target="_blank"><i>Playing With Fire</i></a>, and since then I haven't made much art to speak of. I've been mostly consumed with everything that was required for our move to Rhode Island, including making some extra money via my freelance illustration day job. So how to get started again after such a long down time?<br />
<br />
Fortunately, I have a 20-year freelance career to draw from. A few tricks and techniques I know about for revving up the creativity engines:<br />
<br />
<b>Dress for It</b><br />
Pajamas or sweat pants or sometimes even blue jeans can make me feel schlumpy and lazy. Getting dressed for work, putting on some clothes that make me feel attractive and sharp and powerful, can really help raise the energy.<br />
<br />
<b>Keep to a Schedule</b><br />
Having a dog who loves her schedule helps keep me on schedule too. We take a long walk in early morning, I do some errands if needed, and then I try to be in the studio by 9:30 or 10:00. Once I get started the flow is easier, but getting started can be hard for me so I focus on the morning.<br />
<br />
<b>Make a List</b><br />
Juggling house tasks, dog needs, and freelance jobs can feel overwhelming. I make a proioritized list at the end of each day so that it's on my desk when I arrive in the morning. Turns out that making a list at the end of the day also helps me sleep better.<br />
<br />
<b>Studio Time Is Sacred</b><br />
Other tasks will almost always win out over studio time unless I make an effort to carve out specific art-making time, so that's part of my scheduling and, once scheduled, my studio time is sacred.<br />
<br />
<b>Don't Wait for the Muse</b><br />
Once in the studio it doesn't matter if I "feel like it" or not. Working only when inspiration hits is a recipe for not working. Inspiration and light-bulb moments more often than not come from trying and failing and trying again.<br />
<br />
A couple of weeks ago I ordered paper and wood. The wood came yesterday and the paper is en route. Today I got out my calendar and blocked out my studio time for the rest of the week. Engines ready!<br />
<br />
Do you have any tips to share?<div class="blogger-post-footer">Copyright <a href="http://woodblockdreams.blogspot.com">Woodblock Dreams blog</a></div>Annie Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00178236295806176573noreply@blogger.com6