Dreamboat proof

Rolling, rolling, rollin'

A thing of beauty - my great green luminous lolly of a roller. Works like a dream!

Prints charming

 Mudgee local Lesley Robertson cut and printed three great blocks over the weekend in the studio beside the Rosby woolshed. The first, a black and white, was a lively little green turtle hatchling - will post a pic when I get it.

This second project combined two leafy images in warm natural tones. She already has plans for future versions in a variety of colours and the odd blind emboss thrown in for good measure.

Playing around with colour

He is still a bit sunburnt at this point but I'm liking the touches of gold on her.

Nouveau kitsch

This block (Dreamboat) is for the next OpenBite exhibition, Flow, coming up later this year. Am ambivalent about the image - I waver between loving its florid excess and finding it just all too much... But I'll wait and see how it prints...

The road to Lloyd Rees

The print below is Hero's Journey. The third son is always the successful adventurer in fairytales. Throughout the image there are signs that his two older brothers may not have been successful in their earlier quests...

Midnight proofs

And another late-night proof, swiftly generated to assuage my curiosity.

Print-deprived

Am feeling the lack of easy access to a press a bit acutely at the moment - I have a few blocks I've been itching to proof but have been pressed for time to impose on my usual alternative printing venues down in Sydney. So just hand burnished a couple on whatever paper I had with me up on the coast to see how the blocks are going. So far so good. This is Hero's Journey (with apologies to Lloyd Rees :) )

Lloyd Rees Festival 2013

Along with my fellow exhibiting Plate Paper Block printmakers, I have been invited to produce prints inspired by Lloyd Rees' The Road to Berry as part of this year's Lloyd Rees Festival in the NSW Shoalhaven Region.

Our prints will be shown initially at the Kiama Art Gallery and then along with major works from the Art Gallery of NSW at the Shoalhaven Regional Gallery in an Oct/Nov exhibition which forms part of the 2013 festival. For further details see the Lloyd Rees Festival website www.lloydreesfestival2013.com

The four of us have already leapt at the challenge and been inspired by this phenomenal artist.
In the words of Bill and Ted: "We're not worthy..."

Plate Paper Block - exhibition opens at Fairview ArtSpace, Mudgee

Mid week opening at Fairview ArtSpace was as enjoyable as we anticipated. The enthusiastic art community has been very supportive of us over the years and we always feel welcome. Gallery Director Helen Harwood's shift to exhibit predominantly print works in her gallery this year marks an exciting change of direction for Fairview. She supplemented the show with explanatory posters on printmaking processes and some beautifully laid out blocks and plates.

Generation Gap

In many ways I prefer whatever block I am working on to the resulting print (I am sure I have mentioned that more than once already...). Another jolt comes from seeing the first printed mirror image of a drawing you have spent so much time working on in reverse.

But once the edition is complete and all the prints are on the drying racks my enthusiasm for the image returns. And then seeing the framed work on a wall somewhere brings a different kind of satisfaction.

Nowra opening

The prospect of free food and wine plus great artworks always draws a good crowd...
Group shows work well because our mediums of choice are so varied - drypoints, etchings, woodcuts and linos - there's guaranteed to be something to appeal to everyone.

 

Who thought it was a good idea to hand me a microphone after a glass or two...?

We are all looking forward to the opening of our next showing of Plate Paper Block Fairview ArtSpace, Mudgee.

Everything Ancient is new again

Cutting in the sunshine again - age old imagery, butter soft lino, feline shadow - happy days...

The usual concerns of carving text in reverse on the block have an interesting added twist when incorporating hieroglyphs. These still have to be carved backwards to the way they will print but also need to be read towards the 'faces' of the glyphs which should also be pointing in the same direction as the figure the text refers to. That sounds a bit like mental gymnastics or a reverse somersault with pike but, without making pretzels of my train of thought, hopefully the printed text translates as "Young people these days, no respect..."

Start the year with a show!

My love for regional galleries and galleries in regional Australia continues unabated. With uncertain funding and fluctuating attendances, such galleries are dependent on the hard work and enthusiasm of their curators, managers, hanging teams and paid and volunteer staff. One such person is Tracey Glenn - the manager of the Shoalhaven City Arts Centre which will be hosting the next group show I am taking part in - Plate Paper Block. (See invitation below)

In a months time we will be touring an expanded version of this exhibition to the Fairview ArtSpace in Mudgee, which the energetic Helen Harwood has transformed into a specialised printmaking exhibition space. Both galleries are well worth a visit - especially while Plate Paper Block is on show!

Submerged

More faded glories of maritime pasts.

In my mind this drowned figurehead retains some power despite her unseeing eyes and cracked visage.



Submerged  (lithograph)







Submerged on the limestone lithoblock

 
I can't seem to escape those allusions of classical antiquity.

I find myself revisiting certain eras or motifs like thematic touchstones.

- Or maybe I just have a limited visual vocabulary...