An American Dragon in London, Barenforum exchange 51

An American Dragon in London

Artist:   Patricia B. Phare-Camp

Paper:   10 x 15” Mulberry Paper

Image:  13 x 8”

Ink:      Graphic Chemical Water Soluble Ink. Silver and Black mixed to make Graphite.

Inspired by the historically significant rubbings of Merle Green Robertson.  The imagery in this woodcut print is from an appropriated work of art located at the British Museum.  Rubbings from historic sites eliminate the need to desecrate another culture’s sacred temples to display them in museums…

Yaxchilan Lintel #15 is a 23.25” x 34.5” Mayan bas relief carving dated from AD 755.  It depicts a noble lady performing a blood letting ritual to call in a vision.  Wisps of smoke from the basket of burning blood soaked paper take the form of a “Plumed Vision Serpent.”  A god emerges from its mouth to give spiritual guidance to the lady Wak Tuun.  Mayan nobles often used hallucinogenic herbs to initiate religious vision and dull the pain of auto sacrifice.

FOR MORE INFO SEE:

Merle Green Robertson:

http://www.archaeology.org/0205/abstracts/merlegreene.html

http://www.sunofmexico.com/photos_galerie_mexique.php?action=affiche&galerie=22723562@N05&server=6081&photo=6064350386&tof=6064350386_4be39bedfb&mcle=yucatan&PHPSESSID=fd7a32b88e7d304045e0603d147ec768

http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/50011098?rpp=20&pg=6&ao=on&ft=*&who=Maya&pos=111

YaxchilanLintel 15

http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/aoa/y/yaxchil%C3%A1n_lintel_15.aspx

Latest Projects, Grandson's First Relief Print, Year of the Dragon Cards & Baren Forum Exchange #51

This is the first printing plate of 2012 for me; a 6x4" piece of battleship linoleum.  I've yet to print it.  Its said to be Quetzalcoatle, this bas relief is from the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico.  Full size photo can be seen at: http://www.mesoweb.com/features/jpl/34.html.

This detail of a 10x15" woodcut printing plate I'm currently carving is Mayan.  Its Lady Xloc Lintel #25 at the British Museum.  I used an image from http://www.ancientsites.com/aw/Post/1229630.  There is a cool video about Mayan bloodletting ceremony at: http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/2004/maya/womenatcourt-p2.htm

This is a scan of my grandson Austin's first relief print.  He carved an "Easy Cut" plate, its a soft rubber material much like the smaller white drafting erasures.  The image is 5.75x6" on 8.25x8.5" cotton rag paper.

Well I've blogged long enough, I'm behind on the making of my American Dragons...They're both due 1st of February and I've barely begun the carving of the larger woodblock and school starts next week!

outside the box

 I've had this box lying around in an attempt to prod some inspiration.  It was given to me to create a work of art around it for Outside the Box a fund-raising auction in Auburn California.  I knew I wanted to do something in encaustic with but was completely uninspired visually.  

Last week I attended a meeting of artists asked to create mesoamerican installations for the upcoming Festival de la Familia, well the research I conducted afterward became very inspiring for the box project...

First I needed to prime the box with all natural rabbit skin gesso, acylic gesso wont work with all natural bee's wax encaustic paints.  So I went out to the studio and searched my painting cabinet, only to find I'm out of rabbit skin glue...think think...ok we'll use all natural rice paste and all natural mulberry paper to make a nice white all natural surface for the encaustics to adhere to...

Next I sized images I liberated from the www, sized them to fit the box and then printed them onto masa paper.  Of course my printer only prints 8.5x11" sheets so I had to print them tiled and then assemble the tiles onto the box.  I pasted the tiled printouts to the box using rice paste.

The largest surface, on the outside of the box

The inside of the box

 

 outside edges  drying beside the smoke box where I am smoking a pastrami.  Thought I'd use the heat of the smoke box to facilitate quicker drying of box.  Its been raining and everything is taking forever and a day to dry...