Happy New Year !

My Print: Banjo at Armageddon

The last two posts feature highlights from Pressing Matters VIII: Printmakers Group Show held at the San Geronimo Valley Community Center.  I made a new piece for the show titled Banjo at Armageddon. Here's a visual record of the making of the print.

First  I did a  sketchbook drawing

and reversed it....

                         I transferred this with carbon paper to a block.

                          I often re ink the image on the block.

           Next I used block printing carving tools and begin slowly cutting...

A closer look...

                             A completed block

Finished block compared to original sketchbook drawing

The on to printing. I inked the block and printed it by hand.

In this case, I decided to add a gray wash by hand.

This is the piece I put in the show.

Pressing Matters VIII:Printmaker's group Show Pt.II

As promised, here are a few more shots from the printmakers show exhibited in the Maurice Del Mue Galleries at the San Geronimo Valley Community Center.

                          Corina del Carmel "Long Journey" Lithography

              Fred L. Berensmeier's "Strolling Ostrich Echoing Ancestors"  Linocut

and Fred's "String Theory Meets Big Bear Teaching Story" Collagraph

                                        Al Ardelle's woodcut "Walt Whitman"

                       Gabriele Schwibach "Cypress Dream & Kelp" Aquatint etching

Sophia Larsen "Inner World" Lithograph & Monotype with hand working

                                       Elaine Nehm "Split in Time" Monotype

         Martha Cederstrom "Conspicuous Influence" Blockprint & Screenprint

Martha Cederstrom "7/16/15"  Drypoint

The artist Elly Simmon's mother, Sonia, did this etching, "The Card Players" in New York City in 1951

 Xander Weaver Scull's "Gray Wolf".  A Monoprint /Stencil. Xander makes his own homemade earth inks

Xander's "Humpback Whales" Monoprint/Stencil with watercolor

And Xander's "Green Sea Turtle"

Here's Elaine Penwell's poster for Feist at the Fillmore. Elaine is an incredible paper cut artist.

Janice Jahnke 's monoprint "Vases"

And Janice's "Balance"

Justus Evans of the San Quentin Prison Project. Here's his Linocut Reduction print "Days Ahead"

Also from the Prison Arts program are:

Frederick Tinsley's untitled Linocut

Gary Harrell's Linocut "Free Gary Harrell"

And "Look to the Future" a Linocut by Samuel Marquez

I'll go out the way I came in. The first print the Pressing Matters posting is by Katya McCulloch. So I''l end with her finely made Reduction Woodcut, "Osprey Tumbling"


This is most but not all of the Pressing Matters show. I couldn't get adequate photos so there's still a few pieces not featured. Thanks to all the artists who participated.