Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 4)

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 4) Originally uploaded by randubnick

On Friday morning, I went to Red Brick to work on this collage/decoupage project. The heart-shaped box once held a Mother's Day gift from my daughter. Now I am transforming it into a keepsake box, using metallic ribbons printed with floral and paisley patterns. On Friday, I concentrated on the border, which is going to be blue forget-me-not flowers and leaves. I also added more leaves around the roses. Progress seems slow because I have to find the right piece of the right pattern, and then make it fit. With the flowers and leaves, I try to place the pieces so the result looks somewhat natural or believable (so each leaf looks like it could be attached at that angle, etc.). The experience is much like doing a jig-saw puzzle in reverse. However painstaking the work, it is not tedious to me, and I am having a great time. This is fortunate, because this is just the top of the box, so there is quite a bit left to do.

Passover Parsley (Digital Woodcut)

Passover Parsley (Digital Woodcut) Originally uploaded by randubnick

I always buy a big bunch of parsley for Passover. I love the taste of parsley and I always eat any that comes my way! But I also love the way it looks! This image began as a photo that I took of a bunch of parsley on my kitchen counter. I decided to make the photo into a digital woodcut with Painter IX to emphasize the texture of the leaves. Then I used a gentle color overlay on the background. This may sound like a lot of trouble for something that is usually just a garnish, easily overlooked. But on Passover, parsley becomes part of the rituals of the seder. (It is dipped in salt water, combining the hope of spring and the remembrance of tears). Ritual, like art, can call our attention to things that we ordinarily overlook.

Patterns on the Mountains (Monotype)

Patterns on the Mountains (Monotype) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the third print from Tuesday night's printmaking class at Red Brick. I am using the mountains (Colorado Rockies) as subject matter. For all the prints I made this week, I experimented with using materials to create texture. For all three prints that I made, the material I used was some netting, the kind used to package fruits and vegetables. In the first print (posted two days ago), I ran the plate through the printing press with pieces of netting on it. The second print (posted yesterday) is a ghost image of the first, so the grid pattern was made by ink that remained on the plate once the netting was gone. For this third print, I put the pieces of netting under the brayer and then ran the brayer back and forth over the netting to create texture. Then I ran the plate through the press, and this is the result.

Ghost Print of Mountains with Sky and Grid (Monotype)

Ghost Print of Mountains and Sky with Grid (Monotype) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the second of three prints that I made in Tuesday night's printmaking class at Red Brick. After I made the first print (Mountains and Sky with Grid, posted here yesterday), I could see that there was still a good amount of ink left on the plate, so I decided to try making a ghost print from the plate. (A ghost print is a print made from the ink remaining on a plate after it has been printed). This is the result: the same imagery with softer colors. I was experimenting with adding texture. I created the grid with pieces of netting, and the pattern remained on the plate after I removed the net. I didn't know if the grid pattern would show up in the ghost print, but I was glad to see that it did.

Mountains and Sky with Grid (Monotype)

Mountains and Sky with Grid (Monotype) Originally uploaded by randubnick

Last night was the first of three more printmaking classes in a session I am taking at Red Brick Studios. I am using memories of the Colorado mountains for my imagery because I love the mountains, and often paint them. With familiar subject matter, I can focus on process, which certainly gave me enough to struggle with last night. I decided to experiment with adding texture with various materials. Of the materials available, I chose netting (often used for packaging oranges) because I liked the square grid pattern. For this print, I used one plate, and applied red and blue pigment to create mountains and sky, using a small, narrow brayer to create some variation in value. Then I tore triangular pieces of netting, ran the brayer over them to try to get them to stick, and then put the whole thing through the printing press, net and all. After running the plate through the press, I was VERY disappointed because the netting had left very strong white areas that overwhelmed everything else in the image. But instead of taking the print off the press and discarding it, I removed the netting from the plate and ran the press over the plate (and the same piece of paper) a second time, in the other direction, and the result was the image posted here here. The added color from the second time through really helped. The netting was still visible, but more subtle, and the mountains and sky could also be seen clearly. I was much happier with the result. The grid inexplicably floating in the sky is surreal and illogical, but makes me think about visual puns (sky and water), and verbal puns, like cell phone networks or internet crisscrossing the mountains. In any case, I am glad I kept going and found a way to salvage this image.

Daffodils in the Sink (Digital Woodcut)

Daffodils in the Sink (Digital Woodcut) Originally uploaded by randubnick

Yesterday I posted a posterized version of a photo of daffodils, taken back in 2006. Yesterday I also made a digital woodcut of the same image. I used Painter IX and played around with the options until I had the amount of black and the number of colors that I wanted. I think this version is a bit more dramatic than the posterized photo.

Daffodils in the Sink (Posterized Photo)

Daffodils in the Sink (Posterized Photo) Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today was a busy day, but while I was right in the middle of a very important conversation, I realized that I was looking at daffodils blooming outside. That's when I realized that after all this waiting around for it, spring snuck up on me while I wasn't looking! Unfortunately, there was no chance to take pictures of the daffodils I saw today. I hope I will another opportunity, but meanwhile tonight I found some photos of daffodils that I took back in March of 2006. The one I like best is very simple picture of daffodils in my stainless steel kitchen sink, as I got them ready to go into a vase. Tonight I opened the photo in Painter IX and used digital pastel to clean up one little distracting piece of foliage. Then I posterized the photo, and here it is.

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 3)

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 3) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This weekend I spent a little time working on this project. This is a heart-shaped box which originally held a Mother's Day gift from my daughter. Now I am transforming it into a keepsake box with collage and decoupage. I am using printed metallic ribbons with acrylic medium and a little bit of metallic acrylic paint for the edges. This weekend I worked mainly on the border, using going to little blue forget-me-not flowers and golden leaves cut out of the ribbons. I still have a lot of ribbons, but there are only two remaining that have a floral design. So it takes a little time to find the pieces I need. I am not doing a lot of planning, but just let the design develop as I work, and I sometimes I feel like I am watching this thing assemble itself. Well, I only worked on this for a short while, but it was wonderful time spent in this fantasy garden.

Basket of Pansies (Posterized)

Basket of Pansies (Posterized) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the photo that I posted yesterday, but posterized with Painter IX. I adjusted the levels of posterizing until I got the variation in shape and color that I was after. I am glad that I stopped rushing through my errands just around long enough to take this picture at the grocery store.

Basket of Pansies (Digitally Modified Photo)

Basket of Pansies (Digitally Modified Photo) Originally uploaded by randubnick

Here north of Boston, it's a long wait for spring weather, although we are finally getting some warmer days here and there. Today there were baskets of pansies on display outside the supermarket, a sure sign of confidence that spring is coming. Pansies can be planted when the temperatures are still too low for anything else. I was happy to see the pansies and took some quick pictures with my phonecam. I liked this photo the best, so I cropped out a truck that was in the background, and adjusted the contrast. Then I opened the image in Painter IX and used digital pastel to repair some torn petals on one flower. I also used digital pastel so simplify a distracting pattern in a small area of the background. This was a bit of fuss for this little image, but I thought this photo had potential and I wanted to clean it up to posterize it. To be continued. . . .

Bass River, Beverly MA (Posterized Photo)

Bass River, Beverly MA (Posterized Photo) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a posterized version of the photo I posted here yesterday. I opened the image in Painter IX and adjusted the posterizing controls until I got the effect I wanted, the bright lights dancing on the water.

Bass River, Beverly MA (Crop)

Bass River, Beverly MA (Crop) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a crop from a photo that I took one night last week with my digital camera when we stopped at Beverly's newest Starbucks. The dog and I waited in the car while my daughter ran in to get coffee. The parking lot has a great view! I loved the lights of the city on the water so I grabbed my digital camera and took a quick picture without thinking about settings or even the fact that my headlights were on! And then it was time to go. Later, when I transferred the picture into the computer, I could see that the headlights had indeed ruined the foreground, and I needed to crop out the car's interior. But still, once I had done the cropping, I did have a nice image of what interested me most, the city lights reflected in the quiet river. Because of the darkness and the aggressive cropping, the focus is very soft. (It's not the camera this time; it's the photographer!) But I kind of like the effect of the soft focus. And I think it has possibilities for a posterized image. To be continued. . .

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 2)

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 2) Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today I finally had a chance to go back to the studio and work on this project. I am making a collage and decoupage project from this box that originally held a Mother's Day gift from my daughter. I am creating the design using printed ribbons, two or three inches wide. Today I added some forget-me-knot flowers around the edges of the heart. (After all, this is going to be a box for keepsakes.) I also used some gold metallic paint (acrylic) around the rim of the box. This will make it a bit easier when I am pasting ribbon near the edges. The paint is transparent in thin coats, and works well with the ribbons I am using, all of which have a metallic sheen. I had a great time this morning. The hour flew by and it was hard to stop! To be continued. . . .

Mountain Silhouettes (Ghost Print)

Mountain Silhouettes (Ghost Print) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the second print that I made last Thursday night at printmaking class at Red Brick. It was made by printing a plate a second time without re-inking it, creating a paler version of the same image. I had already made a monotype using two plates (see yesterday's post). I removed the shapes cut from myelar (inked in red); there was still plenty of blue pigment left on the plate, especially where those myelar shapes had been. So I used the plate to print on another piece of paper, and here it is. I was surprised by some of the effects, but pleased on the whole. The texture was created when I pulled off up the myelar sheets, and there are also some traces of red pigment. The image reminds me of the Colorado mountains on a snowy day.

Mountain Silhouettes (Monotype with Two Plates)

Mountain Silhouettes (Monotype with Two Plates) Originally uploaded by randubnick

I made this monotype in Thursday night's printmaking class. We each made a print using two plates. The teacher also demonstrated how to use shapes cut from myelar sheets. I am still using familiar mountain imagery so I can concentrate on learning the process. First I made the cutouts, cutting the myelar sheet into two pieces with just one curving diagonal line, for a mountainous shape. I decided that I would use the other half of the myelar sheet at the top of the plate, so the bottom edge would create another mountain silhouette. Then I covered the first plate with blue pigment, put red pigment on the two myelar shapes, and placed them on the inked plate. I used cardboard to scrape away some of the red and blue pigment, to add texture and to create light areas where ink from the second plate could show through. For the second plate, I mixed a pink color and added some gel to create transparency. The second plate is supposed to add a layer of transparent color and perhaps texture to the print. When both of my plates were ready, I ran the first plate through the press, creating the dark red and blue areas. Then I ran the same piece of paper through the press with the second plate, creating the pink areas. The two plates weren't lined up perfectly, so there is some white at the bottom and a pink area at the top. But I liked the effect and really enjoyed learning something new!

Radio City Music Hall April 1943 (Colorized and Rescued Photo)

Radio City Music Hall April 1943 (Colorized and Rescued Photo) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is a colorized version of the photo I posted yesterday, a snapshot rescued from my mother's album. This was taken during my parents' honeymoon trip to New York, just before my dad was shipped overseas to Europe. The pink tone in the photo appeared when I scanned it into the computer, and it gave me the idea of adding more color. I used Painter's digital pastel to add some soft color, to make it look like an old tinted photograph. (I looked at some color images of Radio City because I wasn't sure of the colors. During the day, the big letters of Radio City look red, but at night when the lights are on, they look orange or yellow.) Well, in any case, I am not going for historical accuracy here. I am just using color to suggest the sense of excitement of seeing that I imagine my mom experienced when she saw Radio City Music Hall on her first trip to New York City.

Radio City Music Hall April 1943 (Rescued Photo)

Radio City Music Hall April 1943 (Rescued Photo) Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today I found a snapshot in my mother's photo album and decided to rescue it. This album begins with my mom's first date with my dad. They met during World War II; my father was from Brooklyn but was stationed in Pueblo, and met my mom there at a USO dance. After dating just three months, they married on April 4th, and went to New York for a brief honeymoon (and for my mom to meet dad's family) just before my dad was shipped overseas. My mom kept the album going while he was away, including snapshots of what was going on at home in Pueblo, and snapshots that my dad sent home from Europe. She pasted the photos down on black paper and wrote captions for the photos in white ink. That's how I know that they went to Radio City Music Hall on April 22 to see the Easter Revue and "Flight to Freedom". This was one of several Broadway shows and performances that they saw that week, and I am sure the excitement of the trip and the shows was a great distraction for both of them, in the face of an uncertain future and the long separation ahead. I don't whether the photographer was my mom or my dad. The original snapshot is very small. I scanned it into the computer. I really liked the basic composition, so I just cropped it a bit to eliminate some sidewalk and a manhole cover. I adjusted the contrast, and used Painter IX to sharpen the focus and clean up one scratch. The pink tones were there when I opened the file in the computer. I kind of like the pink; in fact, it made me think about adding more color to the image. To be continued. . . .

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 1)

Heart Shaped Box (Collage Day 1) Originally uploaded by randubnick

On Tuesday, I went up to the studio and started a project I have been thinking about for quite a while. I am going to do another collage and decoupage project, similar to the tray I made last summer (which you can find here by searching for "Ribbon Roses" or styrofoam). Just like last time, I am using printed metallic ribbon, given to me by a friend. But this time, I am covering a heart-shaped box which originally held a wonderful Mother's Day gift from my daughter. I saved the box because I wanted to make it into a keepsake box. On Tuesday, I started by covering up the big Clinique label on the front, and worked out this composition as I did so, starting with a few of the cabbage roses leftover from the Ribbon Roses Tray. I am using acrylic gel medium as the glue. I had fun placing the roses and leaves, and had a wonderful time getting this started. I know from making the Ribbon Roses Tray how laborious this can be, but I hope to avoid some of the mistakes I made last time. In any case, I really enjoyed working on this project, and can hardly wait to get back to it.

Yellow Crocus (Digital Woodcut)

Yellow Crocus (Digital Woodcut) Originally posted by randubnick

Two days ago, I posted a photo of yellow crocus, and yesterday posted a posterized version of it. This is a digital woodcut made from the same photo, using Painter IX. The colors are less intense, but the shapes and patterns are more apparent. I think this version has potential as a pattern, and I might try that later on in the week.

Yellow Crocus (Posterized)

Yellow Crocus (Posterized) Originally uploaded by randubnick

This is the photo I posted yesterday, posterized using Painter IX. Posterizing creates flat areas of color, like a poster. It sometimes works well with low resolution photos, like this one. In this case, I think the effect is to make the colors just a little brighter.