1000 Woodcuts Updates

OFF MY PLATE!!! New Year, New Resolution

2012-01-18T14:09:00.000-08:00

Last year I started out the year calling it a simpler year...or was that the year before that?! Hmmmm...see!? I'm already in trouble.
I am declaring this 2012 the OFF-MY-PLATE year. I'm deep into a bad case of project indigestion. I have one print to finish for an exchange and a commission for a block/print set.
And that's it, that IS IT!!!
Oh yeah, the puzzle project yet to be finished and printed...sigh... http://puzzleprints.blogspot.com

My to-do list is ridiculous with projects so old that I had to shut off the reminders in my Outlook so that I wouldn't see the annoying: "eight months overdue" notices.
My website in dire need of revising, my books in need of revising...hey, just those two things could take me the rest of the year.

Goldwell: Red Barn from the East

But no, no no nononono!!! I have little notebooks and pieces of paper hanging all over my very disorganized studio (in need of revision as well) that will keep me busy until I'm old and gray...make that older and grayer.
Blocks like the Goldwell series (above) yell at me every morning to get my act together or they're walking off. My piles of wood are dusty and sad.

So that's it, I'm done with the new and on with the old. Or something like that.
2012, Chinese Lunar New Year of the Black Dragon's Den, which is where I'm going to mercilessly toss anyone that tries to recruit me for any project that isn't my own. And that includes me.

2012, get off OFF MY PLATE!!! year.

You heard it here first.

Baby Grand is done!

2011-11-16T15:02:00.000-08:00

Wow I've never worked so hard on such a small print!
I experimented with waterbased inks, transparent bases, layering and just in general had a GRAND time making something so big, so small.

Here are all nine blocks of the Baby Grand printed, each adds a little something until the final result looks almost like a tiny painting:

1. Key block

2. Underpainting of blue

3. Forest green

4. Underpainting of tanish

5. Violet

6. Umber/sienna

7. Deep purple

8. Umber

9. Reduce and reprint key on foreground

Ta-daaaa!

Baby Grand, color woodcut

2.5 x 3.5 inches

October Update, where have I been?

2011-10-19T15:53:00.000-07:00

I've been in the studio, of course!
Working on the "Baby Grand", a tiny print with a larger than life subject for (what else!) the barenforum.org (http://barenforum.org) 50th Anniversary Exchange. I thought everyone in the world should have the Grand Canyon in their pocket.

I'm busy working on block number 4 of 9 blocks but they go quickly. The print is 2.5 by 3.5 inches (ACEO size) and it is delightful to work on. All the blocks are carved, now I'm just printing like a mad woman, an edition of 160.

The Grand Canyon is all about color so I'm going to make this tiny print huge in palette. Well, it's all about size too and thus my tiny representation. I was going to call it Pocket Canyon but I think Baby Grand is better. What do you think?

Here are the first three blocks:

Right to left: The key block, blue background, green foreground trees.

And here is the fruit of my labor so far...all those tiny prints! I built a registration board just for these little cherry blocks and also a small printing "baren" made of wood buttons and a doorknob. Works like a charm!

All these tiny prints will be trimmed even smaller when finished. I had to leave a margin to register properly.

All the blocks required for this print. The first three (the dirty ones!) have been printed. I built the registration board from foamboard to accommodate the cherry blocks. The tiny doorknob with glued on wood buttons makes quick work of printing by hand.

Discombobulated Bunnies

2011-10-03T16:35:00.000-07:00

It's been "that" kind of a year, this 2011. I find myself finishing projects late, chucking others off my to do list altogether and just generally feeling out of control.
Contrary to popular belief, I am not a control freak; that would imply I wish to control others around me. No no no...I just enjoy being under control, like...myself and my life. Unless I'm skiing downhill of course, but that's another matter.

So the Chinese Lunar New Year starts in February, yeah, like LAST February and every year I make a promise to some 50-70 printmakers all over the world that I will send them a Year of the- post card (http://barenforum.org). We all make that promise to each other. Quite fun to receive these all year long with postage from everywhere, some in envelopes, some in baggies, some just so.

My post-cards went out last week, naked as a jaybird this year but surely they will make it "there" safely, won't they? Surely. It's been that kind of a year...

In any case, here is my Chinese Lunar New Year representation of this crazy rabbit year. Officially crossed off my to do list.

Deconstructed Rabbit 2011

Go ahead, scan the QR!

Nature Printing and the yearly workshop

2011-08-23T08:50:00.000-07:00

The Nature Printing Society is a wonderful collection of slightly nutty but very well behaved individuals who get together year after year to print fish and plants and anything else that can sit still for just a few minutes.

Their website link is: http://www.natureprintingsociety.info/ and they now have a Facebook page so look them up there too. Exploring the work from past workshops will yield a variety of expertly pulled prints taken from natural things, including an amazing poodle print, (real poodle, like...the dog breed!).

I last went to their workshop in Santa Barbara, California and had a blast. This last workshop was in Fort Collins, Colorado and I learned even more stuff that would have never ocurred to me. Now every time I hike I take a brayer, not really but I feel like I could print "the trail" as I see it and walk by.

Certainly adds a whole new dimension to a printmaker's bag of tools!!!

Here's a sampling of everyone's work showing a wide variety of techniques taught at the workshop:

Long due for an update!

2011-07-11T11:26:00.000-07:00

What's been going on?! No posts since May, I can't believe it. Well, I can, really, that's just the way artists are. I've been remodeling and catching up on home projects again and I seem to be a one-project-at-a-time person.

The latest always available on my website, of course. But here is a print I just finished for a donation to the Japan Tsunami survivors. The prints will be available for sale and I will update when and where in the online world. All proceeds go to the survivors.
Here is my contribution:

Print Title: Inspired by Japan

Paper Dim: 10 x 15 inches

Image Dim: 8 x 12.5 inches

Block: Five cherry blocks

Pigment or ink: Oil based Daniel Smith inks and shimmer-pearl pigment

Paper: Rives Moulin du Gue

Edition: 64

Comments: The theme “Inspired by Japan” immediately brought images of cherry trees and cherry blooms, the ocean and the delicate legacy of Japanese prints.

All those images are far from my usual work, but I decided that I would honor the Japanese in this dedication and try to work my image accordingly. I went to the web and immediately fell in love with the shape of a map of Japan. After printing out a bunch of cherry trees, blooms and maps, the image came together of the islands that compose Japan bathed in cherry blooms and buds, signifying beauty and renewal.

The background was printed with shimmer-pearl and heavily embossed to simulate both ocean and the cherry wood I love to carve.

A couple of details:

That's about it. The cherrywood was hard and tough to carve and I tried to give the print that Japanese feeling. I enjoyed it even though I was too much of a coward to do it in the traditional Japanese waterbased pigment style. I thought it came out pretty neat even though you can't see the pearl shining in the ocean on the web pics.

Update, just keeping on...

2011-05-09T15:32:00.000-07:00

Block for City of the World project by Don Halpern

Let's see, since last post, I cut and mailed out the blocks for the City of the World project. In fact, some of the blocks are coming back to me already!
Here is the Puzzle Prints Blog:
http://puzzleprints.blogspot.com

Other than that, I finished a couple more prints. My latest work is always viewable from the 1000 Woodcuts Page in my website:
http://1000woodcuts.com/1000woodcuts/1000.html

Melchor, Gaspar y Baltasar
Reduction woodcut for SSNW Exchange

Aloja, five block color woodcut for Barenforum.org's 48th Exchange

For this last print, I tried printing a grissaille of sorts as a base before over-printing with transparent colors. I wanted the sky and water to have an uneven dark/light feel as if lit by moonlight. Many possibilities with this technique; I'm thinking a base of bright yellow to brighten a desert landscape, a base of red or blue to fire up or tone down a figure...

I have achieved a wonderful balance between taking care of the house and garden, making art and still keeping my collector's well fed with online sales.
I have another print on the bench ready to carve, a tribute to the Japanese for a benefit a bunch of printmakers are concocting in order to help out the victims of the earthquake and Tsunami.
And life just keeps going.

A project-obsessive personality

2011-03-22T20:10:00.000-07:00

I confess I'm "project-obsessive". Once I start something, especially a large project, I just put my head down and work until it is done. I think that's the only way I stay motivated enough to finish. Starting and stopping is just not the way I work.

Anyhow, here is my latest obsession:
http://puzzleprints.blogspot.com/
I'm planning on finishing the first stage this week. Should be a cool humongous print!

Where did the winter go?!

2011-03-17T15:01:00.000-07:00

Where did the winter go already?
Oh yeah, finished remodeling the kitchen and printed this print and another one for two exchanges (will someone remind me NOT to sign up for anything else?), and coordinated the latest Barenforum.org exchange.

I'm also working on a mega-project, another collab puzzle, can be followed here:
http://puzzleprints.blogspot.com/

But make art we must, lest we go insane.
Meet my latest creation, "Fool on the Hill".
Here are the specs:

Print Title: Fool on the Hill

Paper Dimension: 13" x 6"
Image Dimension: 12" x 5"
Block: 8 Cherry
Pigment or Ink: Akua-Kolor
Paper: Nishinouchi Natural
Edition: 100

I am challenged and humbled by the process once more. More blocks, more chances to goof. In the end I think I ended up with a fairly good success rate on the prints despite my annoying habit of experimenting.

I used Akua-Kolor without rice paste, with rice paste applied separately and with rice paste mixed in. It flows better with paste, although the "without" look is very deserty.

Image: I grew up listening and memorizing Beatles songs even though I never understood the words until I learned English later in life. "The Fool on the Hill" attracted me as a child, which may give some insight into what kind of child I was.

I always liked nature and climbing and being where others could only point to in amazement. Three years ago in the Grand Canyon (South Rim, Colorado USA) I again had a chance to climb and sit on my hill, and watch the sun going down.

Monumental Collaborative Puzzle Print #3 is in the works

2010-12-10T10:36:00.000-08:00

Announcing Monumental Puzzle Project Numero Tres!

EVERYONE INVITED! The City of the World shall be built in 2011!!!

Sign up is open now until end of January 2011. Deadline for returning a very small carved block is December 2011.

Information page: http://1000woodcuts.com/projects/cityoftheworld/index.html

As the page says, monumental puzzle projects are a collaborative effort among printmakers world-wide to compose an awesome print with little effort on the part of each printmaker.

Basically, each printmaker receives a smallish block of wood which fits neatly into the overall puzzle design. Each printmaker carves their block, returns to the coordinator and receives in turn a huge print containing the creations of printmakers from all over the world.

All the gory details on the page above. This time, in a fit of insanity, I am extending the invite to other groups so if you have your own group of printmakers, everyone is welcomed.

Once more, the information page outlines requirements, sign up form, and all the details.

http://1000woodcuts.com/projects/cityoftheworld/index.html

For those of you who have never done one of these before, here are the pages from the previous Monumental Puzzle Projects:

The Baren Puzzle #1 http://1000woodcuts.com/projects/puzzle/project.html

The Great Baren Cairn #2 http://1000woodcuts.com/projects/cairn/index.html

Pssssssssst...tell a friend!!!

Catching up on website work

2010-11-19T16:11:00.000-08:00

When I first started this web site "thing" I had no idea how much work it was going to be. I really just wanted a little website with some info on me, my art and the woodcut process.

Fast forward 100 years (it feels like that!) and now my website is begging to be upgraded to modern standards and split into at least two, if not three, separate sites. Sigh!

In the meantime and following the adage, "never mind that the horse is lame, load the wagon!", I continue to update my projects, works, process and whatever else I can think of. Now I also update this blog, my Facebook page, my mailing list and various online galleries. I need another Maria!

But to the current post, my very favorite updates are to upload those tiny thumbnails of each of my works on my "1000" pages.
The main page is here: http://1000woodcuts.com/1000woodcuts/1000.html
And from there you have a glimpse into my entire output since I started making woodcuts.

I love how the little tiles change with my current style...

Well, back for more updates! My database is calling.

'Tis the Season!!!

2010-11-09T17:31:00.000-08:00

'Tis the Season for Shopping and thinking about giving art to everyone you know. No matter who you buy from, think about giving art this season!

Since I took a break off the festival circuit I've been searching for a way to empty my flat files so that I can happily fill them again in the next years. So the cycle begins.
During my "festival period" I was either always getting ready for a festival, going to a festival, in a festival or coming and resting from a festival. The creative spark had to take a back seat.
Now I'm back creating but I missed making that special connection with my collectors. I'm really not a gallery seeker nor an art scene groupie, so aside from festivals, connecting with collectors happens daily through the magic of the internet.

Which brings me to selling online. Definitely not all it's cracked up to be...well, maybe if you sell shoes or ladies purses, but making "a living", even a scant one, selling art online is not at all as easy as cranking out a website and waiting for the shopping cart to fill up.

So far, my best online ventures have been the unlikely wacky world of ebay http://www.stores.ebay.com/1000woodcuts and the delightful Etsy http://1000woodcuts.etsy.com/.

Ebay has by far the best traffic but can be a dangerous place; Etsy has a nice charm and is more suitable for fine prints. The price point on both of those is pretty low so I place my smaller prints and I sell unmatted and unframed. I think collectors get a good deal and all I have to do is kiss my prints and place them gently in a mailer and off they go!

But what to do with framed works, larger works and blocks? I started various other online shops through the years and traffic is just deplorable about everywhere. Many online galleries want outrageous amounts of money and don't seem to get the sales to justify the charges.

This year, I found Ruby Lane! Very elegantly done, nice offerings, great people and an overall very classy look to the website. And, very important for printmakers, no reproductions allowed! The price point is higher and that attracts a knowledgeable clientele as well. I started a shop and we'll give it a year or three and see how it goes.
They also have an alternate site, Ruby Plaza, which acommodates the lower price offerings and still (yeah!) reproductions have to be labeled as such. It's really a fine printmaker's heaven.

Anyhow, check it out for yourself. It's definitely worth a look and if you have been searching for an online shop that is classy, you might want to give it a try, tell them I sent you. Here is my Ruby Lane Shop:

NEW! Fine Art Gallery:

Shop Ruby Lane for 1000 Woodcuts

Maintaining all these little jewels takes time, of course, and I try not to let things get too stale on any one website. Then there's promotion and such things but life is much easier when the booth doesn't have to go up at 3:30 AM...in the wind...and cold...

Is it January already?

2010-10-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

Well, no, it's not January yet...but I did finish my contribution for the Wood Engraver's Network 2011 Calendar. This is an exchange of sorts, where volunteers print up 100 copies of their assigned month and receive a bunch of hand-bound calendars in return. I can't wait!
I must be getting picky in my old age because I stopped "production" to clean the block four times before I was satisfied that it was as clean a print as it would be. By cleaning the block I mean stopping, removing all ink, and recarving spots that were picking up ink without my explicit consent, the rascals!
Didn't help that I just knew that wood engravers carry around a magnifying glass everywhere they go just so they can hone in on the details. I know I do.

In any case, here is the final image. Two blocks, a standard background woodcut block and the engraved foreground in all its gory detail on end-grain maple. I used Daniel Smith inks, Traditional Black oil-based and a black/white/transparent mix for the background.

See? It is snow, it HAD to be clean! The image is from my garden, a quirky Mojave yucca that has the funniest looking seed pods. There was snow two years ago right here in the city, so I'm not completely inventing the composition. I imagine those strange looking pods dumping their seeds in the snow so that they can regenerate during the perfect spring.

I will leave you with a couple of details:

Hmmm...still see a speck or two...drat!

Willow Bloom, the latest moku-hanga creation

2010-09-22T09:33:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, our desert garden decided to reward us with some color. This "desert garden" used to be referred to as "the back-40". When we first moved in we gracefully called it "raw desert" and it was near five years before we got around to planting some desert hardy plants, shrubs and trees.

Fast forward another five years of planting, moving, about a mile of drip irrigation trenching, pipe, hoses and drip heads...and VOILA! A beautiful desert garden with flowering trees, sage, and other assorted Mojave native and Mojave hardy plants.

The willows, my first tribute to the garden, bloom all summer and recently in early fall. Here is my tiny willow bloom:

Mojave Willow 2010 Copyright Maria Arango

And the blocks that went into making of the willow bloom, sans words:

That's about it! I'm on to my second garden creation, the beaver tail blooms! This time my key block will be cherry which will allow me to do a more detailed line guide. Of course this will also raise the "degree of difficulty" for registering the key blocks but I think I'm ready.

Last but not least, the hanshita paper transfer for woodblock printmaking

2010-09-09T11:44:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned earlier, hanshita paper is simply a tracing paper that has been glued temporarily to a heavier stock paper. This allows the paper "sandwich" to be printed on any ink-jet printer and the tracing paper to be glued to the block without wrinkling or buckling.

The hanshita printout is perfect with all the detail intact. The needed tools are some rice paste or wall paper paste (anything that is removable later with water), and a sponge brush or, my preferred method, a sponge roller.

These rollers make quick work of the task of spreading a perfectly even layer of rice paste over the block. They come in all sizes!

There it is, a nice even light layer. I found the compromise between too much paste, which makes the tracing paper tough to remove later, and too little paste, which causes the tracing paper to peel off during carving. Sometimes it peels off before I am done carving details and I'm left to guess where the stem of the flower should be.

I just hand press the paper onto the block after aligning it carefully. I smooth it down evenly but not too much so as not to disturb the tracing paper.

The heavy backing paper is easily removed either while the rice paste is still a little wet or later after it has dried some. I have found no difference regardless of when the backing is removed.

If the ink was not dry on the paper for very long, it will actually transfer nicely to the block. The tracing paper can be rubbed very gently and removed leaving the ink-jet transfer on the block. I'm almost always too scared to do this so I just let the tracing paper dry under some weight to prevent any buckling. The carving can then proceed right through the paper.

The hanshita method yields perfect design transfers every time, which is why I use it most often on smaller works.

Lastly, a side by side by side comparison of the three transfer methods, the Studio Paper on the left, the ink-jet t-shirt iron-on in the middle and the hanshita on the right. The untransferred design is shown below each block.

I tint and oil the block a bit before carving and they all took ink and oil similarly except the iron-on transfer did not let the oil seep into the block. The block still carved fine right through the rubbery layer but, despite a perfect transfer, I probably won't use it because of that. Either of the other two methods works well, with the Studio Paper giving a slightly "freer" feel to the block since there is no paper adhered and the hanshita winning the detail-transfer race since the tracing paper gives slightly better contrast.

Transfering design to block with Iron-on T-shirt transfer

2010-09-09T11:23:00.000-07:00

Here is the printed iron-on transfer stuff. The printout showed all of the fine detail with very good contrast so I was encouraged.

The detail of this transfer was probably the best of the three because of the high contrast.

Bring on the heat! I used an iron that's perhaps older than me...well, maybe not. This method needs a high heat setting and no-steam setting. I keep this old fashioned plain iron in the studio for just this type of project.
It takes some pressure and quite a high setting. My mini-iron (used for crafts) did not work; had to be a full-size iron.

The process of transfering with this method also "tanned" my block so no tinting would be necessary later.

The drawback is that the transfer is a rubbery ink designed for t-shirts, so there is quite a bit of relief that transfers to the block. It scrapes off easily enough, but it does transfer a film of rubber all over the block, even the white parts. I carved a little on it and the film comes off fairly easily by pulling it up without damage to the block.

Here is the enlargement of the transfer printed and on the block:

On to transfer number three, the hanshita.

Transfering design to block with Studio Paper

2010-09-09T11:08:00.000-07:00

It has been an experimenting year for me so I wanted to try out different methods of transfering image to block. I vary my own approach, depending on what my plan is with a certain image.
For multi-color woodblock prints, I almost always carve the key block and print on hanshita paper as many times as I will need color. For reduction blocks, it really doesn't matter so much; if my composition is complex and I need to work out things in Photoshop first, then I might use one of the methods below or simply transfer with tracing paper.

Most of my designs are drawn straight on the block with sumi ink. It really just depends on what print, how much detail, method, etc. But I wanted to add a few more methods to my arsenal, just in case. These three are very suitable for highly detailed work and for printouts from any printer.

Left to right, these are three printouts from my computer. First is Studio Paper, a transfer medium which I purchased online at http://www.imcclains.com/.

In the middle is iron-on t-shirt transfer for ink-jet prints, available at any office supply store.

Last is the hanshita paper, a tracing paper attached lightly to a tougher sheet. This paper goes through any printer and is availabe from the supplier above and also from the Baren Mall at http://www.barenforum.org/ click on Baren Mall from there.

I first cut the three printouts to size; I'm working on 4x6 shina blocks.

The Studio Paper, a waxy paper that leaves the ink from the ink-jet printer very "wet" and requires little pressure to transfer, gave me a very light printout, although the detail was fine enough.

I simply lined up the corner of the block and pressed down lightly with a "doorknob-baren". Any pressure implement will do. The paper is slick and the ink is still wet so care is needed to avoid blurring.

I checked as I went along to see how the transfer was coming along. The Studio Paper transfered quickly and cleanly with very little pressured.

Overall, I was impressed with the detail, although I would have liked the ink to be a tad darker on the block. I am transfering on bare blocks for this experiment and usually I would have tinted the blocks with walnut or gray ink to help later in carving.

Aside from the lightness of the transfer, the Studio Paper worked as advertised! I'm always a bit skeptical about these products but this one works.

Next I will try the iron-on stuff. Last picture is a close up of the detail from the studio paper transfer.

Methods of transfering design to block Part I

2010-08-26T09:58:00.000-07:00

My preferred method of committing design to block is to simply draw on the block. I do this either with sumi ink and a brush or with a "magic" permanent marker, depending on the design. Sumi-ink drawings are more fluid and resemble more Chinese or Japanese designs while permanent marker drawings can be more detailed and "Western" looking.

Working out compositional details with pencil first eliminates the fear of committing drawing to ink. Pencil or charcoal on block can be erased easily. Two cautions: heavy application of graphite can leave a greasy film that will not accept marker or ink later, and too much pressure applied with a sharp pencil on soft wood will leave an indentation that may show on light printing.

One drawback with the direct draw method is that the design will be reversed in printing, but with some years of practice it seems I have learned to "flip on my head" and end up drawing exactly a flipped version of what I really wanted.

Another simple method is to draw on tracing paper or any light weight paper. The drawing can thus be more elaborate and "worked" because the drawing and erasing is done off the block and can be tossed and redrawn infinite times before transferring to the woodblock.

Once the drawing is finished, it can be transferred to the block by flipping the paper over the block and using either carbon paper or charcoal rubbing.

In the case of tracing paper, the drawing can simply be pasted down on the block with rice paste and the carving proceeds right through the paper.

One of my favorite types of carbon paper is a red paper sold at http://www.imcclains.com/ that is soft and transfers even the slightest line. I am also the proud owner of a stack of about 400 sheets of old typing carbon paper picked up on eBay for about $2.98. Pressing down too hard when transferring with carbon paper can leave a dent in soft wood blocks.

For transfers which are drawn (or photographs) and printed from a computer, the method I have been using most is printing on a plastic substrate such as transparency film. This is the stuff that was used in overhead projector presentations before the advent of MS PowerPoint.

I use laser transparency film and print on an ink-jet printer. The ink-jet ink remains wet and much care is needed not to drop it on the way from the printer to the studio, since it will invariably fall on its "face" (like the proverbial buttered toast) and will make a mess out of both the transparency and the floor. Not that that's ever happened to me.
In any case, the procedure is simply to work out the drawing or photo on the computer, print on the transparency, place the transparency face down on the block carefully and apply hand pressure to transfer the ink. Excellent detail can be achieved with this method.

Moving right along, this year I'm in an experimenting mood and I acquired some "Studio Paper" a wax coated paper, also from McClain's and a few sheets of iron-on transfer for ink-jets from my nearest office supply store. The last method, and the one I use most often now, is the traditional hanshita from Japan; I purchase prepared paper from the Baren Mall http://www.barenforum.org/ but it is easy enough to make my own.

The illustrated story of those last three methods in the next post, the dreaded sequel: Methods of transfering design to block Part Deux.

One more trick on the eternal quest for perfect registration!

2010-08-16T16:03:00.000-07:00

For my last print (previous blog post) I wanted to print through the press and maybe do a reduction or two on some of the blocks. With so many decisions to make along the way, the most flexible approach to registration is to resort to the traditional Japanese kento-cut-on-block method.

My usual M.O. is to cut the key block, kento and all, and print several copies on prepared hanshita paper to simply paste on the color blocks. I have a left handed toh to avoid flipping the block while cutting the kento; I have pretty good transfer and glue skills and getting better all the time at actually cutting the darned things straight and square.

And yet I always have to strive for another tweak that will make my art life less stressful and more efficient. The solution is so simple I don't know why I didn't think of it before.

Roughly, the tools needed, left to right:
-Close-up glasses if you are over 50 (yeah, even barely over 50)
-The block, of course, with freshly pasted hanshita or drawn kento
-A smallish steel square
-Cutting tool of choice, shown a toh and a standard utility knife
-Clamps behind the block, the quick release type
-Cat licking itself (optional to make things interesting)

1. Here we go, step numero uno is to carefully place the square EXACTLY on the kento marks.

You can place the square inside the line or outside the line or right on the line as long as you do it the same way on every block.

The easiest thing is to place it exactly ON the line, then you don't have to remember anything.

2. Once the square is on the line, clamp it down to the block with the quick release clamps firmly on two or (better) three spots.

For this step, the block has to be placed slightly off the edge of the table or work bench.

There is an illustration of clamping down the square. Notice I made some "tick marks" on the hanshita to help me find the beginning and end of the kento.

3. After clamping, just cut along the square keeping the blade perfectly vertical to the square.

I like to make a very "soft" cut at first and dig in gently with subsequent passes. Digging too hard on the first few cuts can result in the knife slipping away from the square.

And yes, I can cut with my left hand, not just faking it for the picture. Teaching the left hand to cut if you are right handed does wonders to avoid fatigue of the joints.

As I mentioned before, I have both a left and right handed toh for cutting kentos. But a simple and much cheaper solution for the initial cuts is to use a standard utility knife. The blade is certainly strong enough for Shina ply and other soft woods and will also work on cherry with some repeated cuts.

I must say there is a world of difference between using the toh and the utility blade! Even my cheapest toh digs into the wood much easier than the soft utility blade. But the utility knife does an amazing good job in a pinch.

Check it out, perfectly squared and straight kentos! Every block, every time, perfect registration to the mil!

My studio smells like HONEY!?

2010-08-12T15:06:00.000-07:00

I began experimenting with Akua-Kolor inks with my last two moku-hanga prints of the Valley of Fire. They work exceptionally well for this traditional Japanese method, but I also wanted to try them in the Western roll'em'up'n'press'em method (that is a long technical term requiring more explanation than this blog can possibly get into).

The best part of Akua-Kolor is that my studio smells like honey when I hang up the prints to dry. It is the sweetest smell! Maybe I just like working consistently again.

Anyhow, nothing like a print exchange or seven to get the presses rolling, or the baren sweating, or whatever. So for my Baren Exchange #45 I decided to jump right into the thickener of things and roll out the Akua.
The colors are amazingly impressive, the purity of the transparency is just incredible; I can't think of another word for it. Here are some of the plates:

Oh, forgot, if you are in Barenforum.org Exchange #45 and like surprises, read the rest of the blog post with your eyes closed.

The theme was "maps" so I went "flying" over the earth until I found a neat spot (insert credit here to Google Earth).

Key block on the right printed in violet/purple/umber containing all of the relief and some ancient petroglyph symbols thrown in for good measure.

Blue block on the left with the lake, river and anywhere I wanted blue or green.
So far, so cool...

Hansa Yellow on the right printed all over the areas surrounding the lake to make my brown eyes blue...er, to make some of my blue areas green.

The transparent sienna/orange plate was really a second state. After printing the first three plates, I wanted to "kill" the contrast a little and produce two more colors: a light sienna/orange over the cream paper and a slightly more rusty purple/umber over the open areas of the key block.

Next picture is the first three plates combined to make a "State 1" which really makes the blue POP!

And finally, the four plates combined to make "State 2" with the transparent rusty stuff all over. The blue still pops fine and there is more of a SW earth to it. Or something.

I haven't made my mind up which state I like best or which orientation I like best either. Looks good vertically too. Maybe I will sign it in all four directions and let the viewer place as they like it. The original reference is flipped but I liked it this way better.

I have a title this time:

36° 08' 45" N

114° 23' 49" W

Geographical Divides project is done...and needs a title!

2010-07-19T19:39:00.000-07:00

Here it is drying away in my studio. My print for the Geographical Divides print exchange among Nevada printmakers is done!

And this is where YOU, the viewer comes in! I am totally blanked out on a title. Here is the background of the project in a nutshell (or go to http://geographicaldivides.blogspot.com/ ):

Nevada printmaker and prof Anne Hoff, along with the tireless Candace Nichol decided to organize a print exchange between Northern and Southern Nevada printmakers. Not content with a standard exchange of prints, ha, the project dictates that a N printmaker starts a block, sends to a S printmaker who works on it. Then the original N pmker modifies the image again, prints and sends to coordinator. Some artists worked together on their project, but some of us were, er...geographically divided.

So my partner Lynne and I worked without meeting and decided on the theme "rural meets urban", something we both live and watch. I sent Lynne four pieces of my block in the true spirit of a puzzle block; she carved them, I received them back and proceeded to make them fit into a pictorial "whole".

The result is below, I wanted to do something with topo map "feel" following the overall theme; thinking of an image is hard enough, but when faced with someone else's interpretation, the degree of difficulty is raised substantially. My M.O. is usually to make a unified "narrative" regardless of how many different pieces I'm faced with. Since Lynne pretty much took care of the "rural" bit, I proceeded to fit her critters with some urban grids and symbols, splashed some color here and there somewhere between topo and traffic light, and came up with a four state reduction.

Incidentally, for those of you who don't know, that is roughly (very roughly) the alignment of Las Vegas (South) and Reno (North) within the mountainous great state of Nevada.

Now that you know all about it, I need a danged title! "Untitled" just doesn't do anything for me...would you help?! Either comment or send me an email to 1000woodcuts AT gmail DOT com

Da print:

Last week at the Valley of Fire, it's getting HOT!

2010-06-24T12:32:00.000-07:00

I've been visiting the Valley of Fire weekly to keep up with my show. This year the lizards seem to be in great health and, early in the morning, come out in the open to sun themselves and enjoy the morning I suppose, just like the rest of us. When I first get there and snap some quick pictures, the thing that strikes me the most is the absolute silence. My feet crunch the sand and the only sound when I stop is the breeze russling through the pods in the various bushes, now beginning to dry and drop to the ground.

This guy was about 18" long and must be in the welcoming committe, right at the visitor's center parking:

This will be the last week my work will be at the Valley of Fire. Below some pictures of my little display area.

More Progress on the Geographical Divides

2010-06-22T19:40:00.000-07:00

Please see http://geographicaldivides.blogspot.com/ for all the other prints and artists.

My topo/puzzle idea came to life when I received Lynn's puzzle pieces. We had talked about keeping the individual images simple and I was pleased with her choice of imagery. Lynn will be pleased to know that the rat transplant went without a hitch (perhaps she can further explain that one!).

Just to refresh, we had gone with the theme urban/rural and how somehow we work things out with natural things when we live on the edge of a city (as Lynn does) or smack in the middle but with an acre of desert "elbow-room" as I do. On a bigger scale, of course, every city in Nevada deals with the issue of sprawling into the habitat of the few and hardy creatures with whom we share our beloved desert.

In any case, with Lynn's images in place, I started sketching in PhotoShop again. I wanted to keep the topo colors and somehow bring out the positive concept of sharing among urban/rural, rather than some of the more negative connotations that come to mind. I decided to add some urban elements since Lynn's critters pretty much took care of the rural part, and after some mulling and browsing, settled on semaphores (traffic lights for US folk :-). The "traffic lights" I picked had a hint of primitive symbols and, rendered in the topo colors, blend in quite nicely without losing meaning. Caution and courtesy, please, when urban and rural meet...

The computer is really a luxury when it comes to "sketching" and I don't use it often enough to develop my imagery. When I do, I find it most exciting to change imagery, save stages, tweak elements of design here and there, change color schemes...luxury!

I even changed the "paper" several times to see what the image would look like printed on various choices. Here is the almost-to-be-final image. I need to let it gel for a couple of days and then it should only be about another week or two for carving and printing. My Valley of Fire show concludes next week and I should be able to dedicate myself to this project fully and finish printing by the second week of July.

The sketch, reversed as it will be in print, a little messy in PhotoShop but will clean up and simplify nicely when printed because the woodcut process tends to do that. I think the colors will work well to represent both the topo features and the red/yellow/green of the traffic symbols. The "city grids" will probably also be finer and cleaner in line when cut on wood.
Comments welcomed!

Valley of Fire II - States of the Print

2010-05-30T18:29:00.000-07:00

Again I had some fun with this print. Also, an accomplishment: I made mold in Vegas! I didn't think it was possible, but there it was...tiny bits of round fungus right on some of my paper. For the record, the New Hosho paper did not mold at all, the proof paper got the most mold and the Stonehenge Cream somewhere in between. Oh, HOW I made the mold...too long inside the plastic, too hot in the studio, too lazy or dumb to put stack in fridge.

I can't really help mysef when printing I like to try different papers and see the paper "change" the final print. Stonehenge Cream is tough to print on (literally! hard stuff) but some very nice results and registers very well because it is thicker than the New Hosho.

Here are the blocks in sequence:

And the final image on New Hosho:

"Final" is debatable, still thinking on adding another color, perhaps a blotchy olive green in the closer desert to add texture. And maybe on the foreground mallow as well. We'll see...right now I have to get ready for my show, setup in two days, loading tomorrow. Oh, see previous post if you missed the announcement!

Upcoming SHOW! at my Favorite Local Spot

2010-05-28T17:00:00.000-07:00

Finally, I finished the second Valley of Fire print, right on time for my...drum roll...
Bi-Annual Valley of Fire Visitor's Center Exhibit
Er--where's the picture? Oh shoot, wouldn't you know it...I need to go format some digital images.

Well, in the meantime, here is the announcement, to be repeated soon:

I'm back at the Valley of Fire!Starting June 1st and through the entire month of June, I will be showing many of my nature woodcuts and some new color works in the Visitor's Center at the Valley of Fire. Better get there before the heat does!

Here is the link to directions to the Valley of Fire State Park: http://www.parks.nv.gov/vf.htm

And for those who miss the show, a shameless plug follows for my
Memorial Day Collector's Appreciation
http://1000woodcuts.com/