sketchbook cuts

 

sketchbook bits from August. watercolor, ink.

Blurry photo of my first oil painting, it's a steep learning curve...

In drawing class this week we had to look at some figure drawings by "masters" in books and in the Medieval and Renaissance exhibitions at the local museum of fine arts and produce copies and reinterpretations. I'll scan or photograph these better when I get them back from my instructor.

Life Drawing

Life drawing sessions should be long enough that there's time to get properly warmed up and then hopefully get into the zone where the drawing becomes automatic. I like to enter that space where I'm drawing faster than my conscious mind can process what is being done until after it has been done, interpreting visual stimuli and engaging motor functions at just the right level to keep the conscious mind fully occupied, too fast to be able to consider the act before doing; it's like removing a barrier.

Dominique Pétrin Palazzo II

Palazzo II is the exterior counterpart to Pétrin's "Gala" in situ treatment of the ARPRIM space, a visually arresting silkscreen makeover of existing surfaces.

Gala

YAMANTAKA//SONIC TITAN

Yamantaka // Sonic Titan is a Canadian experimental music and performance art collective. They present two distinct versions of their work, one conceptualized as a large scale theatrical performance art project and one recast as a touring rock band, and describe their style as “Noh-wave”, a pun on Nôh theatre and the No Wave style of experimental underground music. Their first theatrical work, a drag rock opera called 33, premiered at Toronto’s Buddies in Bad Times theatre as part of the 2012 Rhubarb Festival, while their rock band show has appeared at several venues in 2012, including the All Tomorrow’s Parties and NXNE festivals.

Managed to see their performance of "33//渦"it was one of the coolest things I've seen in a while.

Intaglio Printmaking

I didn't really know what intaglio was before starting this course, screenprinting was full so it was either this or lithography for a printmaking choice for the semester, it's been fun and interesting so far.
The basic process is to cut a thin sheet of copper to a desired size that functions as the plate or matrix that will be used to produce prints, bevel the edges with a file and polish the plate with steel wool, degrease the plate, apply contact paper to the back, coat the plate in a "ground" which is usually like a kind of wax that has to be melted on a hot plate, though it can also a liquid or another process altogether, like an ink solution applied by airbrush. Once the wax ground is dried, it can be etched into with markmaking tools, then given an acid bath (we use ferric chloride rather than an actual acid at school), which corrodes into the metal exposed by the drawn lines, providing a negative surface for ink to adhere into. There are also various cleaning steps that need to be carefully observed, as well as the use of solvent-resistant gloves and a respirator mask.

Etching a design into the wax hardground covering a copper plate

After the marks have been made and the ground/resist material removed, the plate is given a vinegar bath and the paper cut and soaked in water to increase its absorbency (I think?). Then the messy stuff begins; ink is selected and mixed with various modifiers and manipulated until it reaches the desired consistency.

Inking workspace

 

Ink is applied to the plate with a putty spreader and pushed around so that it fully saturates the depressions, then excess is removed with scrapers, newsprint, starchy material called tarlatan and the surface dusted with a light brushing of talc, the plate must be inked and wiped for every print so it can be a fairly long process, not to mention cleanup if you make as much of a mess as I did.

Pulling theoretically identical prints from one matrix on Rives BFK paper

Ink is transferred to paper by way of a massive printing press, a template is used to properly align the plate and paper which is especially important when the project calls for multiple passes or if several plates are being used. This project was just one plate and simple linework etching techniques, this week I've been learning about alternative methods like aquatint, mezzotint and lifts which are generally used to produce tonal, textural effects, the next project will be much more complex.

Sketchbook cuts

from the Summer.