Thursday, July 03, 2008

Baren Print Exchange 37: Drop Some Breadcrumbs by Phare-Camp

Baren Print Exchange 37: Drop Some Breadcrumbs:
While you travel in your grand adventure please leave a trail of breadcrumbs so we may follow and catch up to you when it's our turn to travel...

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I finished my print for a Baren Forum print exchange. I'm getting it done early as I'm going to Tennessee for a month to visit my son and his family.

The picture here is my printing set-up. I like to print at the kitchen counter as I'm right by the sink and also I prefer to work standing up and the kitchen counter is the perfect working height for me.

This image is of my test strip for the inks I'm using. I can't just do pretty lines all in a row---no I have to make it fun. Anyway I had to also test the transparencies of the inks as well since I planned on overprinting many of the colors. I'm using Speedball water based inks. I mixed up a dark brown with brown, violet and a touch of gold; a moss green with green, a little yellow and more gold; a misty blue with blue a lot of silver and the last color a tan with brown, yellow and gold.

this is the block. its a 9x12" rubber block that is very easy to carve and it holds details rather nicely as you can see by the 1st stage proof I pulled









this is the second color. Instead of carving a block I cut the not-green areas away from a 9x12" sheet of "Skratchfoam" a brand of print medium that is very thin sheets of Styrofoam.








Here you can see 2nd state proof.









and here the print in it's 2nd state.




This is the third color plate,










the third state proof









and the print in its third stage.




for this last little bit I used one of the Scratchfoam pieces that I'd cut away from the green plate and used it like a stamp, taking care to position it just right around the little wren.










And here is the completed print.....




Tuesday, July 01, 2008

What the Heck is This?

Does anybody know what this bundle on the right is? It was given to me at Gion festival in Kyoto Japan back in the mid 1990's. No one at the time could tell me exactly what it was...


Now another question...here is some sake that was given to my father, I believe in the early 1980's. Haven't opened it as I don't know if this sake should be consumed warmed or cold. It is packed in a nice cloth lined box and came with a set of sake cups.


The next what is this question will be about a wonderful tea I got at a theme park in Japan. I loved the stuff and I'm almost out of it and don't know how to get more...I'll post a scan of the pamphlet that came with it when I find it again...

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

WMDs an NFAC Entry and other Ebay Listings

I've listed several landscape works for auction on ebay

2 works were inspired by Mt. Joyama, visible from my mother's studio window when she lived in Ohito Japan. One is a sketch and the other is a woodcut created from the sketch. See the works and learn more about them at:

Joyama sketch: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=230265423615


Joyama Woodcut: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=230265327017

Another work is an original one of a kind monotype print of a grazing American Bison.


Buffalo: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=230265416558

The last item is a political woodcut print of a tank emerging from a cloud of sand during a dust storm.

WMDs: Wagons of Mass Destruction: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=230264722521

WMDs is my entry in the Nibblefest Art Contest, a themed art contest beginning on the 20th of each month. This month's theme is "Mist" I thought this print expressed the idea. Please be sure to search for NFAC at ebay to see more great entries from other artists, each starting at just $0.99. Thanks!