More, more new collage:
On the one hand, this is the third of three full-scale portrait collages in 3 weeks - Eep! [pats self on back - gold star!] On the other hand, while I'm excited to have a good start, [public note to self!] there's still challenging work ahead to bring the series to completion - sewing all the parts down and then framing.
But I'm getting ahead of myself; firstly, how did we get to this point?
I started with the
portrait block from 3 weeks ago (the same block as the
Pierrot with balloon). I wanted to try a different way of modifying the print to change the position of the eyes. For last week's collage, I carved and
alternate set of eyes and pasted them on top then drew over them. For this one, I put an isolating coat on the print early and then drew eyelids on top:
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| (this is the original print underneath) |
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| drawing on top of print to change the eyes |
I think it's working surprisingly well after (I think?) 6 or 7 layers.
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| I also had fun reworking the bird and adding metallic ink to the eye |
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| and lots of drapery-time, drawing both in dark on light and light on dark |
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Early in the week, there was drawing and carving this new gloves block.
(It's the first time I've tried carving both hands in a single block.) |
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| After proofing, I printed it in grey ink on lavender paper, then spray painted and drew on it [repeat]. |
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To me, changing the ink and paper colors and adding additional layers of ink, pencil and paint makes a big difference - like going from having 2 notes at an octave [1, 8] to having a chord [1, 3, 5, 8]. But I'm also curious, because I realize that, individually, these are minor changes, and I don't have enough distance to be objective. I can't imagine how it looks to other people - does it feel different without knowing the process? [Hmmmmm] I took a photo of the proof and the gloves together in the same shot [but still not sure...]
I decided to have a little (more) fun. I carved the hands without knowing what the figure would be holding and went through a few options before deciding to collage in a real thing (hoping to make the mystery real so that it might blur the line between a representation of drama and an actual drama...) So...I wrote a message (in very nice Gothic script!) and rolled it up. The ink bled through just enough to show that there's something written on the paper, but it's tied closed (and will be sewed into the paper). A little secret message, tied up with a red bow, hidden in plain sight ;).
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| An example of a variation that didn't make the cut: I spent a long time working on this lovely wreath, finished it in the wee hours of the morning, and went to sleep with a feeling of "art-mission accomplished - thumbs up!"[Can we guess where this is going?...] The next morning, I walked in and immediately started humming along "less is more, love is blind..." [Uh oh - That was not what I wanted to be hearing on the mental soundtrack upon seeing this first thing in the morning - sigh.] So, it got the ax, (but I'm including a photo as consolation ;). ) |
I've been pushing hard on these, but trying not to lose sight of the overarching goals of the project as a whole - the organizing and clearing out things in the studio and out continues.
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| I don't have 50 shades, but I do love gray... all organized, sorted and ready for a new spot. |
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| Look what I saw next door - Eep! |
All from this past week and within walking distance of one another [ :o !]
