On How Printmaking Has Taken Over My Life and Other Art Related Things

     I feel a bit like I'm in an episode of the X-files and time has stopped functioning as it usually does. I'm not sure how, but all of a sudden it was Halloween, and then all of a sudden we're halfway through November. These last few weeks have been a bit of blur. 

     However, I do have evidence to suggest time has passed as usual since I have been handed back tests, I have pictures on my phone with dates between Halloween and now, and I have produced some art. So maybe this is less of an X-files moment and more of an Adam Sandler in "Click" moment. 

     Let me start catching up by presenting the last relief print I made, "Major Tom." 

     I really dig this print. I am impressed with myself, especially because this was such a chaotic, weird process. As I mentioned before, this is called a "suicide" or "reduction" print, where you print as you carve and every carving is final, every inking is final, there's no going back. I started out with 9 prints, and barely had 5 left by the end. I ripped one, printed one upside-down, and added a black outline on a couple which turned out too terrible to show in public. I really wish I had more, but life is unfair, so I'll just have to treasure the few I have. 

     That print made me realize a couple of things about printmaking. First, that it's more about the process than the actual image. Second, that a lot of wiggle room is necessary with each idea, you can't create a print to look just a drawing you make (unless you're a printmaking god or something). And lastly that you should be really open minded, if all of a sudden a mistake leads to something better than your first idea, do it. 

     With these free-spirited ideas in mind, I thought for the next print I'd wing it a little. The theme for this one is "Skin," so I thought about how stretchy skin is, which made me think of other stretchy things like bubble gum, silly putty, and rubber bands. So I created an image that looks like those things being stretched. That's the idea, as for the colors, the background, the lines, I'm improvising it all as I go! I hope it goes well, so far I have only two colors and I already love it. 

     Here is a picture of the inking process and the giant ink mess I made; it took a long time to clean up. 

     I have to admit that I have a love/hate relationship with printmaking, the results are amazing and the inking/printing process is meditative in a weird way. Yet, actually carving the wood. . .I'm often tempted to trow the plywood across the room! And also, sometimes the press handle spins out of control and hits me when I try to grab it, I have broken several nails from this! Regardless, I'm really glad I'm in this class. 

     Anyway, on to non-print things! Here are pictures of me drawing with my toes, because it's art school and nothing is off limits. (Don't get me started on how last semester I went dumpster diving in order to create a "fun house" of trash. . .)

(At least it sort of resembles a human, yes?)

     My figure drawing professor hung up a bunch of my class' drawings, some done with hands, some with feet, and a few done by drawing with piece of charcoal taped to the end of a long stick. I had 7 pieces up! 

     They are a lot of fun to browse, regardless of the fact that they are mostly drawings of nude, old men (We need some ladies to pose for us!). Well, this post has become a bit long, so I'm going to stop here. However, I will try to write about once a week since there's always a new project in the works or new doodle in my sketchbooks. More pictures on my Instagram! 

Di