little black journal

My printmaking class ended a couple of weeks ago, but I made the most of my final days of studio access and cranked out some good stuff.

The two images below are collographs, made by carving into a shellacked piece of cardboard, rubbing ink into the carved areas, then running it through the press.

My next focus was on paper lithography, using some of my photos of Paris to make prints.  I spent a few hours wrestling with this process one night in the studio, and still don’t feel like I got it right, but are some nuggets of quality in here…

I also put together several graphic monoprints that I was pretty happy with – a couple of them are being given as gifts, so for the sake of not ruining any surprises, I’ll post pics of those once they’ve been unwrapped.

In short, this class was amazing – I now see printmaking potential in all kinds of random things, from tangled netting to old photos to sketches I did 4 years ago.  I’m in the midst of figuring out how I’ll get back into the studio sometime soon – can’t let all that potential go to waste!

I’ve been on a bit of a knitting hiatus lately, but a little bird told me that a little girl was hoping for a scarf from Aunt Kelly for Christmas, so I happily picked up a few skeins of soft, brightly colored yarn to whip up a couple of scarves for our nieces, Shanay and Hayden.  They are both rib-knit, one with alternating blocks of a chunky green and yellow yarn, one with a double-strand of two shades of purple.  Hayden wore her purple scarf around the house all afternoon after we exchanged gifts, which tells me it was a hit.  I like to think I’ll be doing my small part to keep these girls warm during the freezing cold winter to come…

I’ve had a hard time really getting into my sketchbook lately, and as a result, haven’t really loved anything I’ve put down on paper.  But an art teacher once told me that whether or not you’re happy with your pieces, it’s still vitally important to get in the habit of regularly making something, so I’m taking his advice and sticking with it.  Without further excuses, these are the latest…

october (2009.10.19):

spider plants (2009.10.31):

bluebird (2009.11.01):

awkward girl (2009.11.07):

After nearly a year of planning, budgeting, and coordinating with our neighbors, our big backyard renovation is nearly complete.  We still have some planting to do and some patio furniture to purchase, but we are thrilled to say that all of the major work is done (just in time for the rainy season – grrrr!).  We’re really happy with the results and can’t wait until next summer, when we can roll our grill out onto our new patio and enjoy a glass of wine in our new adirondack chairs.

These are the before photos – our largest issue with the original design of the yard was the steep slope that led from the driveway to the back door, leaving us without a nice space to put a planter bed or even set up a chair.  The grass was in horrible condition, due to poor soil and the tendency of water to run off the slope, rather than soak into the ground.  The pavers that served as the pathway up the slope were also a little treacherous in winter weather – I slipped on those things a couple of times when we got all of that snow last year.

We worked with our neighbors to come up with a solution that would include planter beds, a flat place to put seating , and stairs that would make up the rise from the back door to the driveway.  Getting all of this done within the budget we established was tricky, but ultimately do-able, after a couple of rounds of negotiations and substitutions with the contractor.  And so, Voila!

We’ve been planting things bit by bit, including a beautiful Japanese Maple tree, a bright green smoke bush, and several tulip bulbs.  I am so looking forward to watching things grow and blossom over the seasons and years to come.  Now all we need is a little sunshine (I won’t hold my breath…).

This book may be one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read.  The style of writing, the point of view, and the vivid details put me right in the room with the author as he was living out his childhood in his dilapidated little home in Limerick, Ireland.  Loved it.  His story is definitely a sad one – extreme poverty, an alcoholic and absent father, the death of three siblings – but he doesn’t seem to feel the least bit sorry for himself.  He accepts the life he’s been given and when he’s old enough to change it, he takes a tremendous step to do so.

Even more enjoyable than reading this book was getting together with my girlfriends to discuss it at our monthly book club meeting yesterday.  I love these ladies – though we only spend minutes actually discussing the book, we spend hours at our special table at the bakery, chatting and laughing and catching up with one another.  This little gathering has become something that I look forward to all month long, whether I like what we’re reading or not.  Next on the list?  Well…according to our rotation of easy page-turners, memoirs, and classics, we should be reading Uncle Tom’s Cabin this month.  But it seems most of us just weren’t up to the challenge right now, so it’s ‘choose your own adventure’ month.  And it turns out that I was the only one at the table yesterday who hasn’t read Twilight yet, so for the sake of inclusiveness, I’m putting aside my presuppositions and giving into the hype.  Bring on the vampires…

Good stuff happening in the print studio!  The last two weeks have been focused on relief printing and lithography.  So many possibilities!  Here’s what I came up with:

block print (a block of linoleum or rubber is carved, then used as a stamp):

paper lithographs (a fancy kind of xerox transfer process):

Still loving my printmaking class – these are the latest monotypes, made with bits of lace, hand-cut stencils, and baking powder.

buds:

ghost tree:

checkers:

hexagons:

lace:

Next up: relief prints.

Just a few randoms…

circles (2009.09.06):

cubes (2009.09.13):

lacy lady (2009.09.27):

orsay (2009.10.06):

I didn’t quite know what I was getting into when I picked up this book, and I raised my eyebrows when I discovered it was all about vampires and the legend of Dracula, but I’m glad I stuck through it.  Turned out to be a totally enthralling mystery/suspense/thriller, laced with romance and lots of lovely imagery of Eastern Europe.  The descriptions of Budapest have placed Hungary near the top of my ‘places to see’ list, with a quick pop over to Istanbul to check out the Hagia Sophia and wander the street markets.  This novel was rich with historical lessons, too, about the Ottoman Empire, the fall of Constantinople and the major figures of power that ruled in Eastern Europe in the 1400’s.  I had no idea that Stoker’s Dracula was inspired by a real person, and was surprised to find that the horrific crimes committed by Vlad Tepes, as listed in this book, seem to be true.  Dark, interesting stuff.  My book club rates our reads on a 5-star scale, and I’m giving this one a solid 4.  Well worth all 675 pages.

I had my first printmaking class at a local art school on Thursday and loooooved it.  We will be learning several different printmaking methods over the next 8 weeks, and we started this week with monotype printing.  Paint is rolled onto a plate of plexiglass and overlaid with any stencils, and the image is then rolled onto a sheet of paper using the printing press.  I love the little imperfections that result from the process – it’s good for me to have to relinquish some control with my art.  And the fact that I showed up to class without the faintest idea of what we’d be doing and walked out of there with several prints four hours later made me quite happy – below are my faves.

faux bois:

branches and lace:

drippy silhouette:

I’m on the lookout now for fabrics/objects/textures that I can bring to class with me next week.  Feels good to be back in the creative saddle!