Illustration Friday

This week's illustration Friday theme is tool.  My "Twisted Needle" linocut fits the bill. It's 19x24" on Bienfang Marker paper. Ink is Graphic Chemical water soluble black.  Illustration Friday

Some other recent projects, two drawings, about 5x6" and a Styrofoam relief print about the same size.

Permanent marker on upcycled food packaging.

Permanent marker on upcycled food packaging.

Graphic Chemical water soluble black on scraps of various printmaking papers.

Some not so successful prints using Styrofoam take out tray for a printing plate.

Some Artworks for a Portfolio

Today I applied for a teaching position at American River College. The following artworks are submitted for a portfolio.

Little Miss Muffett

5x7" 2015

Mixed Media Collage using printed papers, permanent marker, water color pencils and acrylic paints on wood panel. This was created as a gift for my hairdresser's newborn.

Tools of the Trade

My "Tools of the Trade" series is a series of paintings and prints based on the various tools used in printmaking.

Baren Collagraph

18x24" 2015

Collagraph Relief Print plate made using chipboard, paper cloth, tagboard, corrugated cardboard and twine. Graphic Chemical Water Based Ink #1659 printed on Strathmore printmaking paper for an edition of 5.

Baren

7.5x10" 2014 

Edition of 30 on Mulberry paper.

Japanese Hanga Style Woodcut print using watercolor and rice paste as ink. The ink is spread by brushing the pigments over the woodblock using a Maru Bake brush; a specialized brush that looks similar to a shoe brush.

Brayers Monotype

18x24" 2015

Subtractive Monotype of my pallet printed using Graphic Chemical water based ink #1659 on Strathmore printmaking paper.

Twisted Etching Needle

19x24" 2015

Linocut Proof Print using Graphic Chemical water based ink #1659 on Bienfang 100% rag Marker Paper.

U-Gouge Chine Colle

18x24" 2015

Chine colle using PVA glue, tissue paper, gift wrap and Daniel Smith oil base relief ink printed on Rives BFK lightweight paper.

U-Gouge Relief

19x24" 2015

Plate was PVC. This is a proof printed using Gamblin Oil Based Ink on Bienfang 100% rag Marker paper.

First edition of 4 on Uhtrecht 100% rag Printmaking Paper.

Maru Bake

7.5x10" 2015 

Edition of 30 on Mulberry paper.

Japanese Hanga Style Woodcut print using watercolor and rice paste as ink. The ink is spread by brushing the pigments over the woodblock using a Maru Bake brush; a specialized brush that looks similar to a shoe brush. 

Maru Bake Monoprint

18x24" 2015

Additive Monoprint using oil paints, stand oil, Turpenoid Natural on Strathmore printmaking paper #300 for an Edition of 4.

Maru Bake

8.5x11" 2013

Acrylic Painting on Paper

Vintage Brayer

8.5x11" 2013

Acrylic Painting on Paper

Split Compliment Brayer

11x14" 2015

This is a three color print using three rubber plates.  The colors Red Violet, Yellow Green and Blue Green were mixed using Sax True Flow water soluble inks. The edition of 24 is printed on Strathmore lightweight printmaking paper.

Vintage Brayer

7.5x10" 2016

Edition of 30 on Mulberry paper.

This is a working proof Japanese Hanga Style Woodcut print. Pigments used were watercolor and rice paste as ink. The ink is spread by brushing the pigments over the woodblock using a Maru Bake brush; a specialized brush that looks similar to a shoe brush.

Palest Pink Puff

2.5x3.5" ACEO 2015

Mixed Media Watercolor on upcycled food packaging (laminated cereal boxes using acrylic gesso to neutralize ph). Created using watercolor, watercolor pencil. permanent marker and sealed with acrylic medium.

Froggy With a Chance of Rain

2.5x3.5" ACEO 2015

Mixed media collage using printed decorative papers, water color pencil, permanent marker and sealed with acrylic medium

Skull After Van Gogh

18x24" 2015

Subtractive Monoprint of my oil paint pallet on Strathmore Printmaking Paper #300

Another Skull After Van Gogh

18x24" 2015

Subtractive Monoprint of my ink pallet using Gamblin oil base ink on Rives BFK lightweight paper

Eight of Swords

2.5x3.5" ACEO 2015

Inktense watercolor pencils and sharpie markers. It's inspired by the tarot card and a vintage circus photograph

The Magician

7.5x10.5" 2015

Acrylic painting on upcycled food packaging. It's inspired by a vintage circus poster and the Major Arcana tarot card the Magician and the tarot minor arcana Aces.

The Moon

2.5x3.5" ACEO 2015

Miniature acrylic painting on 4 layers of re-purposed food packaging laminated and sealed with gesso. Inspired by tarot cards.

The Star

2.5x3.5" ACEO 2015

Mminiature acrylic painting on 4 layers of re-purposed food packaging laminated and sealed with gesso. Inspired by tarot cards.

The Sun

2.5x3.5" ACEO 2015
Acrylic painting on 4 layers of re-purposed food packaging laminated and sealed with gesso.  Inspired by tarot cards.

The Preliminary Hermit

The first draft of the hermit...done 4 years ago. Over the past years I focused on the research and now I'm doing the design work. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to carving, starting the strength card, or wait till I've designed the rest of the deck.

Yesterday's digital collage, design work to prep for woodcut prints.

 

every time i look at the traditional hermit card my brain starts singing "this little light of mine..."

 i've always thought the lantern in the waite card looked like a cage holding a star prisoner...

 

Look at my card and the Waite side by side:

in the Waite card the hermit stands upon a baren mountain top with his caged star...

In my version the hermit holds his broken lantern/cage in corn fields admiring the feral stars in the heavens...

in the traditional card the hermit is holding his knowledge to himself, yes we do need to seek alone time to gather our thoughts and develop our higher selves but at some point we need to leave the mountain top and free the light...share our knowledge with others so that it grows and bears fruit...

Projects update and Nibblefest for May

I started carving an image of a vintage ink brayer on a woodblock when I was struck down by a nasty infection.  This is as far as I got but now that my energy is starting to come back and I've finished posting my entries for May Nibblefest Art Contest, I can pick this back up and finish it and maybe even print some proofs before month's end...

May 2015 Nibblefest Entries

Theme: Freak Show

I've decided to try and tie my nibblefest entries to tarot cards that fit within the theme.  I will try to do two ACEOs and one large painting using the substrates that I made by laminating layers packing.

  

Strength: an original ACEO created using Inktense watercolor pencils and sharpie markers (right). It's inspired by a vintage circus poster and the major arcana tarot card Strength. Click the following link to go to the ebay listing: 

 http://www.ebay.com/itm/231568592431?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

 

The Eight of Swords original ACEO created using Inktense watercolor pencils and sharpie markers (right). It's inspired by the tarot card and a vintage circus photograph. Click the following link to go to the ebay auction listing:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231568589429?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

 

The Magician is an original 7.5" x 10.5" acrylic painting on upcycled food packaging (right). It's inspired by a vintage circus poster and the Major Arcana tarot card the Magician and the Aces... Click the following link to go to the ebay auction listing:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231568572469?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

April Nibblefest Entries; theme was Space, Planets, Stars

 

Image on the left is The Star ACEO (2.5" x 3.5") miniature acrylic painting on 4 layers of re-purposed food packaging laminated and sealed with gesso.  The image on the right is the traditional tarot card that inspired it.

 

 Image on the left is The Moon ACEO (2.5" x 3.5") miniature acrylic painting on 4 layers of re-purposed food packaging laminated and sealed with gesso.  The image on the right is the traditional tarot card that inspired it.

 

Image on the left is The Sun 7.5" x 10" acrylic painting on 4 layers of re-purposed food packaging laminated and sealed with gesso.  The image on the right is the traditional tarot card that inspired it.

Upcycling Cereal Boxes and Other Food Packaging

One of my projects was to trim various food packages that I've been saving laminate 3-4 layers of same sized pieces together with gesso.  I did this to create illustration board like substrates for small acrylic paintings. Tea boxes I trimmed to ACEO size (2.5" x 3.5") then laminated three layers thick. Cereal boxes I laminated three thick. Acrylic paint, gesso and medium neutral the ph of papers they're applied to; making archival substrates of cheap materials! 

TIME Some Nibblefest ACEOs

I created a tiny print for this month's Nibblefest Art Challenge.  Nibblefest is a monthly eBay art challenge with a new theme each month.  The challenge is to create 1 to 3 works within the theme and list them on eBay with a starting bid of 99 cents.  The artists to get the most bidders (biddiers not bids) to battle over one of their artworks wins the challenge.

this is a little scrap of battleship linoleum i carved to make the open edition of ACEO size prints on various scraps of printmaking papers.

This was my setup while printing the ACEOs

a digitally watermarked version on a scrap of Rives BFK light. The text in the book is not in the original.  I put it in the scan.  I actually left the book pages blank so that I could personalize each print as I see fit...

blue time doesn't have any legible text in the book pages.  I did draw a bug on the left page when I colored the print using a new art product. To see the image without the digital watermark at the eBay listing click the following link:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231237516817

I drew an orchid in the left page of Green Time. I really really really love the Inktense water soluble color pencils I used to color these little Nibblefests. You can see what this looks like without digital watermarks at it's eBay listing:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231237519353

I drew some leaves on the left page of the book in Violet Time.  The Inktense color pencils are highly pigmented and brighter than standard water color pencils yet they are still translucent and can be layered and used with watercolor paints. This one is listed without the digital watermarks on eBay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/231237518318

A lot of really great artists participate in the Nibblefest eBay Art Challenge.  At least on of three listing by each artist must be an original artwork so it's a great opportunity to collect original fine art at an affordable price!  Just search NFAC on eBay between the 20th and the 27th of each month to see the theme and artworks for that month.