Philagraphika on NPR

Spend five minutes listening to a great story about Philagraphika on NPR.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125233025

Demonstration with Monica Meler, Alternative Approach to Relief Printing

Going back to the SGC Conference, one demonstration I was excited about was with Monica Meler, that made really interesting prints from mat board.

She would carve intricate lacy designs out of mat board that she would print with.  This piece would be taped down to the press bed, as well as the print paper, any kind of japanese paper.

Monica would ink up a sheet of mat board and place it face up, over the cut design.  Acting as a cushion, the design would fuzzily print through the mat board over it.  Here is the impression from the first run.  The inks she uses are very transparent so layers of color could be built up.

The mat board gets embossed by the cut design. Eventually this mat board would be inked and printed on its own from the embossed relief surface

The resulting print on the right

Another print pulled from a different cut mat board piece

The inked mat board on the left, transfers ink to the paper

A detail of the print

I found this printing technique fascinating. I've discovered similar effects from my own printing practice, but not at this level.  I want to try doing of these techniques in my own work.

Continuity/Kontinuita Exhibiton at University of Nebraska-Lincoln

I am excited to be a part of the exhibition Continuity/Kontinuita at the Rotunda Gallery, Nebraska Union at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  It is an exhibition of printmaking by Czech/Slovak American and International Artists, co-curated by Karen Kunc and Simon Brejcha in conjunction with the 36th Interdisciplinary Great Plains Studies Symposium; "Czech and Slovak Americans: International Perspectives from the Great Plains" My father's family heritage is German, and my mother's family heritage is Czech/Slovak.  I never thought I would draw upon my family background as a part of my art career, but am glad to be able to for this exhibition.

                                             

                               

Hectograph Printing Demonstration

A hectograph is a prepared gelatin surface from which images can be pulled. Originally it was used in the early 1900's as a means of reproducing copies. Some people or their grandparents may remember them being used at schools. A special carbon paper or copy pencil was used on paper, and would be placed face down on the gelatin pad which would receive the pencil. When another sheet was placed down, the image/text would print and transfer from the gelatin. Today it can be used as surface to paint on with water based media, and pull monotypes without a press.

For the demonstration at Tyler School of Art, this large tray was filled with 20 gallons of gelatin.  The surface can be painted on with various media to create monotypes.  A sheet of Rives BFK was placed on the gelatin, and rubbed by hand to print

Scratching with a broom

The broom print

Workshop participants giving hectographs a try

An example of a hectograph print-rubber stamps were used on the gelatin surface for these prints

The demonstration presenter, Shelley Thortensten has more information on her website

http://www.printmakersopenforum.org/services

about hectograph, images, and recipes for making the gelatin pad.

I would love to play around with this medium, and offer a workshop in the near future.  Let me know if you'd like to give hectograph a try too!

Radio Interview on KUVO Today, and Opening Tonight

After sending out an email announcing my opening tonight at the Boulder Arts and Crafts Gallery, I received a phone call from Hilary de Polo who does a first Friday radio program at KUVO Jazz 89 fm  www.kuvo.org, asking me if I'd like to do an interview.  I said yes, I'd love to!  So listen for me talk about printmaking, and my work at 4:30 today. You can listen online as well. Leave a comment, and let me know how I did.

I also hope to see you tonight at the opening of my exhibition of woodcut prints.

Boulder Arts and Crafts Gallery

1421 Pearl St. Boulder

Reception; April 2nd 6-9 pm

Show runs until May 2nd

www.boulderartsandcrafts.com

Wrap Up of Day Two at SGC Conference

In the hallway to the print room at PAFA, there were some portfolios on display.  I took photos of some of the prints I thought were interesting

This is a detail of a multi block woodcut with the cuts going in two different directions

A very simple woodcut with prominent wood grain that evokes a landscape (sorry for the reflections)

A beautiful two color woodcut

Downstairs in the lobby was this very tall woodcut maybe about six feet high. Unfortunately, I couldn't read the name of the artist.  I love the detail in the lines, they are very small cuts!

This appears to be a monotype, a very simple intriguing image

A wood engraving, the lines are smaller and finer than a woodcut.  Wood engravings use the end grain of the wood instead of the plank, or length or the tree

Along the wall of the graduate studios was this very long panoramic woodcut of a street in Pennsylvania.

I snuck this picture in the gallery before the guard caught me.  A print on wood

I just had to show this crazy bike that rotated over the bar in a restaurant i had dinner in with friends

Want to Spoon?

After working on my large print for White Space that I had hand printed, I was excited to see the demonstration, Spooning Large Format Prints by Dan Miller, a printmaking faculty member at PAFA.  As I got of the elevator, I saw these incredible woodcuts by Dan in the lobby.

Detail, they were hard to photograph under glass!

Another detail.  The carved lines are incredible.

Then I went in to the demo to see more of his work

Placing paper over the inked block into the wooden registration guide.  Dan simply hand printed with a bamboo rice spoon from Chinatown, a few blocks away.

A woodblock is in the foreground, and the registration guide is in the middle of the table.

His tools

The first color printed

Woodblock for the second color

The finished print

Detail of woodblock- I like to write the titles on the side of my blocks too so I can find what I need amongst the stacks of blocks on the shelf

Woodblock

The print

Seeing these large prints that were printed by hand was very inspiring.  Dan said he likes to print by hand to get subtle nuances that you don't get with the press. I was going to print my big piece on a press, but will now spoon it by hand.