A few things...

I've been quite scarce in blogland lately and here are the reasons why:

1. The end of the school term. Last class was yesterday. I thought I'd share my last two prints with you. My professor loved them and thought they were my strongest prints yet. She was amazed by how much emotion I could evoke with these two portraits and how she was tempted to fill in their stories.

The Dream
12 x 16" intaglio print

It's worth clicking on the images to see them larger. The detail in the lace (especially in the print below) is quite stunning. It amazes me that this kind of intricate detail can be etched into copper! Both of them (and the others) are being submitted to a couple of international juried shows (in addition to the upcoming show in Egypt - those print have already arrived there!). Keep your fingers crossed!!

The Realization
12 x 16" intaglio print

2. Taxes. A necessary evil. I'm almost done with them and that's wonderful!! It has spurred me on to be a whole lot more organized this year. I used to be incredibly organized with paperwork and such - before I became an artist! And then - somehow - everything become more creative, even my filing systems...

3. An upcoming road trip. We are leaving Friday morning for a week away, which means getting us ready to travel and the house ready for our trusty pet sitter!!

4. My new obsession with knitting and felting little hearts and then embellishing them with some embroidery, ribbons and beads. So much fun!!

I hope you are all doing wonderfully and send my love your way! And, when I have a few moments free, I'll be visiting your blogs to get caught up!!

Happy Wednesday!

From Drawing to Print

I should have titled this: "From pretty drawing to a somewhat scary print." Or intense print...

Today was a busy, busy day for me with preparing this image for my last print for my current etching class. It helps me to first draw the portrait I want to use before I flip the image horizontally and then paint it onto the copper plate with this stuff called "white ground" or "soap ground." Basically, where the white ground is thick, the acid won't bite as much. So, depending on how you apply it, you can get a nice range of values.

After I had finished painting, I packed up everything I needed and went to the print studio, where I prepared a lovely acid bath for this pretty lady. And, voilà, after only seven minutes - all etched!

I love the colorful reflection in this photo!

I had to print a proof immediately and also transfer the image to a second copper plate so I can prepare a background as a next step.

The print is a little dark and I can see where I didn't wipe the ink quite enough. Also, when I print her in color rather than black, she'll lighten up quite a bit. The background? Something lacy I think... to go with my previous "doily print."

While the print isn't quite as sweet as the drawing, I love how she changed personality in the print. She looks so much more determined!

And because many of my blog friends participate in Sunday Sketches, I decided I would, too. I may  not have time to visit everyone there at the moment, but it looks like a great group of people, and I think my quick drawing qualifies as a sketch.

Wishing you all a beautiful Sunday evening, a good night and a fantastic start to the new week!

Synchronicity

I love when things happen that are not at all connected, but then again maybe they are. I'd like to think they maybe everything is much more connected than we think... 

When I first started this current etching class, on my way to and from school, I started listening to the audio book "The Serpent on the Crown," number 17 in my favorite ever audio book series by Elisabeth Peters. I listened to the first one (Crocodile on the Sandbank) 17 years ago and will probably listen to all of them again at some point in the future. They are set in Egypt around the turn of the 20th century and narrated by the amazing Barbara Rosenblat, who is a true artist when it comes of different voices and accents! 

Every time before I get to class, I am immersed in archaeological excavations with a good murder mystery added to the mix. So I thought I was still not yet quite present in class when my professor mentioned an international juried student print show that was happening in Egypt, at El Minia University in March.

Egypt. Really. Weird coincidence, right?!

She urged us all to enter. The show had stringent print size restrictions, so I printed both of these on eastern paper (the Japanese Kitakata paper), which is super thin but you can print right up to the edge of the paper. Beautiful, warm, luminous, and incredibly delicate.

Both of these prints were accepted - along with many other beautiful prints by other students from the print program - and are going to be traveling to Egypt! And if they don't sell, they will become part of their permanent collection.

My art.

Going to Egypt.

Some day Daniel and I will, too... 

Firmly in the grip of art

This morning, I started painting fairly early and I just now realized how much time had gone by. There's not much else I can get as lost in, where time seems to stand still and my focus becomes so clear and intense. 

Lara is taking on shape and I like where this is going. I am really starting to love doing an underpainting with just burnt sienna and titanium white. It really helps me see the lights and darks without different colors in the mix. Next step is color. Maybe this afternoon!

Simultaneously, I am also working on this little painting. Truly little, on a 5 x 5 inch deep canvas (a recycled flower painting). She's going to be beautiful, I think...

I also framed two of the prints (both are No. 5 out of 6 of the editions) for an upcoming show at school. I love how wonderful art can look when it's framed. And with these it's so easy because the paper border serves as the matte! 

Blue
9 x 12 inch intaglio print (on 12 x 16 inch German Etching paper)
Available in my Etsy Shop

And lastly, a simple print of little Rowan in blue ink. My professor had gotten new ink that can be cleaned up without a solvent (much better for the environment) and wanted me to try it out on this copper plate. There was something so sweet about this print, I decided to pull an edition of three.

I usually don't do two posts in one day, but I couldn't wait. Sharing here in the blog world adds an extra layer of deliciousness to living a creative life. Don't you agree?!

Rowan - a new print

This print has been a couple of weeks in the making. It has gone through several stages and finally this one is very close to the finished Artist Proof. I have spent many hours at the print shop last week and will again this afternoon and I am so thrilled with how this turned out! Somehow quite sweet and just a little creepy...

I've been thinking how much my life has changed in the last three years just by opening myself up to a more creative life. This morning I reread my very first blog post and remembered how I struggled to make just a little bit of time every week to make art or something creative.

Having the blog helped me - somehow I had to have things to show to all of you. Now, I have the opposite problem - I could make art from sunup to sundown and sometimes struggle to find time for all the other things I like to do. I'm taking classes, I'm making my own art and I find that this creativity has permeated every facet of my life.

Rowan
9 x 12 inch intaglio print (on 12 x 16 inch German Etching paper)

And all of that in three short years of finally paying attention to my inner voice. I witness that same phenomenon among many of us - when we start listening to those quiet (yet persistent) inner voices, there's no limit to what we can do - no matter what our age or where we are at in life!

Wishing you an amazing day!!

A New Print

Finally, this etching and print came together exactly how I had envisioned...

I was so tempted to post earlier pictures (I can never wait to share things with you!), but the colors weren't quite right - all but the blue are hand mixed - and there were things about the copper plates I needed to fix.

But Thursday and yesterday I printed an edition of six prints and every one of them is beautiful!

Truly, this time around, the whole process was a joy for me.

Every print took at least 30 minutes to prepare and print, which would have stressed me out last quarter, but not this time. I loved it!

I printed all of them on German Etching paper made by Hahnemühle - the most luscious paper, it's so thick and soft and the warm tone really makes the print beautiful.

I wanted to take pictures of the three copper plates (this print was done in layers) when they were inked and wiped, but I got so caught up in the process that I kept forgetting. So at the very end I remembered my camera and thought I'd get a few pictures of the ink and the plates.

The copper plate above is the portrait I started out with and the one below has the red background, for which I used a process called sugar lift. It basically works like a stencil to lift out the areas I want to have etched by the acid. Those etched areas are the ones that end up holing ink and printing. The patterns I got by using bubble wrap, shelf liner and scrunched up packing paper. The face you see on it is just a ghost image of ink that transfered onto the plate during the printing process.

For last plate with the flower garland I again used the sugar lift method, this time not stamped but painted onto the plate. For those of you more interested in all of this, click here for some great explanations and photos.

The photo below I took simply because I loved the colors. Those are the tarlatan cloths I used to wipe the excess ink of my plates. In the background are all the yummy etching inks...

Now, I'm already thinking of the next image as I want this to be a series of layered portraits.

Today, I'm hoping to do some drawing and painting for which I haven't had much time lately.

Life is good. I hope for you as well!!