Rainy Day at the Pond

Rainy Day at the Pond

7 x 5

hard ground etching

Here' s an etching which I completed recently which depicts a rainy day at a nearby pond. This image was inspired not only by the rainy weather we have had this fall but by 19th century Japanese wood block prints which depict the landscape in the rain. I wanted to see if I could capture the look of rainfall and also to evoke the mood it produces.

The plate was step etched, meaning that different parts of the plate were bitten for different amounts of time. The lighter areas like the trees in the distance and the sky were bitten for the shortest amount of time, then stopped out (covered with asphaltum) to keep them from continuing to etch. I then continued to etch the areas I wanted to be darker. The lighter areas were only etched for a few minutes. The total etching time was about 35 minutes.

All images can be clicked for a larger view. Here are a couple of details. The first one shows the line work in the trees, bushes and grass.

 This one shows the rainfall and the pond water.

This etching as well as several others are available for purchase through my studio. Click here for purchase information.

Notes from the print studio

Winter Trees

10 x 8

Etching/edition of 50

This fall I have finally had the opportunity to get back to printmaking after a long hiatus. I love the process, a wonderful combination of artistry and craft. Up until now, I had concentrated on drypoint which is a type of intaglio process which involves working directly on the plate. Recently I have done some etching which involves covering the plate with a ground and then working the image into the ground. When the plate is placed in acid, the lines incised into the ground allow the acid to bite the plate. It's a little bit of magic every time you print!

I am offering a few of my efforts for sale through my studio. They are priced perfectly for a holiday gift! Click here to see what's on offer and to purchase.

Drypoints on Parade

I am happy to say that these two little drypoints will be part of an exhibit at Davis & Blevins Main Street Gallery in St. Jo, TX later this month. The gallery is owned by well known Texas artist Donna Howell Sickles, and I am pleased to have been invited to show.

The theme of the show is Black, White & Limited Palette, so these small works seemed like a good fit.

Evening Pines

6 x 4 3/4

Drypoint on copper plate, Arches paper

The Pond

4 1/2 x 4

Drypoint, copper plate, Arches paper

Drypoint -The Pond

The Pond
Drypoint 4 3/4 x 4
(Copper plate, burnt umber etching ink, Arches paper)
Available at Deborah Paris Fine Art

I've been working on drypoints over the last week. I talked a bit about that process here and here. The copper plates I ordered finally came and I've enjoyed working on them. They are harder than zinc so the burr stands up better to repeated printing and holds the ink better. Plus they look absolutely gorgeous when they are inked. One of the things I am finding fascinating (and unexpected) is how much pleasure I get from both the technical and artistic parts of the process. In fact, I've come to realize that it's hard to make a distinction between the two. My goal is to find a vocabulary in this medium which reflects my aesthetic and makes the most of its special properties.

I'm offering this one in an edition of 10. Because the plate is re-inked and hand wiped each time, there are slight variations in each print (Whistler did it so I guess I can too!). You can click on the image and get a better idea of what the surface looks like. You can click here for purchase information.

Pines

drypoint-4th state
6 x 4.5

This is one of my drypoint efforts this past week, mostly just experimental to learn about making marks on the plate and how inking the plate in certain ways could result in different effects. I printed the plate a number of times and reworked it with the needle as well as varying the way I inked and wiped the plate.

I like the tonal qualities you can get by leaving some ink on the plate rather than just in the lines. Also, as I mentioned before, drypoint makes a more painterly line than etching because its composed of the line itself plus the burr that is made from the needle plowing through the plate. The ink actually catches in that burr, so it produces a less linear result when printed. I like that.

Adventures in Drypoint

Winter Greys #1 (2007)

6 x 6
Private Collection

Here is another small painting from the archives- a scene I see everyday in winter driving into town. So, I've been working away on a drypoint this past week. Drypoint is a form of intaglio printmaking where the artist works directly on the plate. No acid is used in this process so what is printed are the lines scratched into the surface of the plate and the resulting burr thrown up on either side of the line by the needle. Because of that, drypoint has a darker richer line than etching. It is also more fragile because the burr gradually wears away with each printing. Drypoint can be combined with etching (where marks are made in a ground covering the plate then acid used to "bite" those lines). Rembrandt did this with some stunning results.

The gradual wear on the burr, reworking of the plate, and variations in the way the plate is inked can produce a different version of the image with each printing. It's fascinating and the learning curve is steep! I'll try to get organized and show some process shots on the next one. In the meantime, enjoy Rembrandt!