Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Rolling and Printing



Tuesday I felt like a disgusting beast.  By this time, I had begun carting a box of tissues with me wherever I went in my trusty aTi bag, hoping to be covert about my gross-ness and not skeeve out any of my classmates.  I tried my best not to interrupt the demonstrations and moments when Eileen would show us examples, and she made every effort to make sure I did not miss information.  I began the day by quickly coating my chipboard pieces in the Acrylic Medium.  I am so thankful to my colleagues for helping me to coat my pieces quickly so we could start the demonstration sooner.    

Eileen demonstrated to us the proper way to first mix our ink and then roll it onto the brayer.  I was amazed by Eileen's easy muscle memory as she keenly lifted the ink onto her brayer in smooth revolutions.  With such a masterful knowledge of the medium, she knew the precise length of one full revolution of the brayer without even looking.  I wanted to be able to do that!  Eileen showed us how to accurately measure the length of a revolution with a sharpie marker, which is a wonderful tip to be able to show my students as well next year.  By this time, I realized how large my pieces of chip board actually were.  While other pieces could be inked simply by going back and forth across the surface, I needed the "fan roll" technique.
 
I had not yet realized, or appreciated, how so much of printmaking happens upside down, with the artist looking at the back side of the paper.  The road map from the previous day is laid flat on the bottom, with registration marks written on the top and bottom of the design(and the back of your printing paper) to help align the new paper you will print on.  A weight is then put on one end of the paper to be printed on so one end can be lifted freely without fear of the top paper shifting. Pieces of chip board are then laid ink side up, one at a time, in the appropriate area of the "road map" or template and the delicate printmaking paper is lowered down on top of the board.  In a truly ingenious use of an otherwise common place object, rounded cabinet pull knobs are used to gently press the ink from the chipboard into the paper from behind.  The top paper, my print, is then lifted to see the result of the printing, and a new sheet is put in its place.  The process was both time consuming and instantly gratifying with each shape I added.  I am in love with the wood-grain texture that comes from the chipboard pieces and the delicate Japanese fibers.

Lunch was a much needed break of chicken orzo soup and tea with lemon, but again, I was always learning.  During our meal, I was able to hear about all of the amazing things my colleagues have experienced, from teaching in different types of schools, to teaching abroad, to masters programs, and international art exhibitions, residencies, and more.  Over the past couple of days, I have come to realize what a "newbie" I am, as I am surrounded by so many accomplished artists and teachers.  Beginning my journey with aTi, I am one of the youngest teachers here, and I can't help but think of how rewarding this experience would be to my fellow "newbies", with this type of opportunity to learn from dedicated artist/teachers who are so passionate about their work.  I am already beginning to decide which aTi workshop I would like to experience next year.

After lunch, it's back to the workshop where I begin printing my chipboard pieces again.  Eileen suggests to me that a way to incorporate the orange into my flowers to give them more dimension would be to roll a yellow-orange tone on just the edges of each flower using a tiny brayer.  The look that is achieved is beautiful and I am so excited to make my flowers seem more alive.


This was the night that the workshop participants went to the Noyes Museum to experience an opening exhibition.  I am disappointed to miss it, as I've been to numerous openings at the Noyes and they always have a wonderful display and a beautiful space, but I know I'll feel better if I get more of my work finished.  I stayed late in my workshop to finish each of my flowers(besides the center) so I wouldn't be so far behind Wednesday morning.  I am so grateful for the extended studio time, as my medicine has finally begun to kick in!  

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