Linocut in Progress: Wrapping up the iris

So where were we? Oh, of course. We were trying to figure out how I'd managed to put eleven color passes on this little (5x7 inches) linocut without actually resolving the image.

The answer is, of course, poor planning. Or more correctly: no planning. I was so anxious to be printing that I just dived in to a block that had been roughly drawn out probably 9 months ago... and I didn't really give any thought to the end goal.

After the last ochre-to-blue blend, which created some darker leaves in the lower part of the image and warmer tones in bases of the flowers, I finally sat back and assessed. And I wasn't particularly pleased. It just seemed too... something.

I thought perhaps I needed to do (ahem) just one more ochre-to-blue pass and create a few more details. So I did that.

Reduction linocut in progress, Step 12

And I still wasn't happy. These darker bits in the flowers were now too dark and they had become quite clunky.

So I did something I rarely do. I fished out some white ink, added it to a little bit of ochre, and then added some transparent base to it. I applied this color only to a few small areas within the flowers.... et voila....

"Iris," reduction linocut, thirteenth and final color pass. ©Sherrie York

The flowers now have a better relationship to the background and everything feels a bit more harmonious.

There were many ups and downs during the printing of this linocut. This was partly due to the lack of clear planning mentioned above, but of course I was also working in a new space and new environment... and I hadn't done a reduction print in six months. Can you believe it? Neither can I. No wonder I was getting a bit cranky.

But I've definitely dusted out the cobwebs now, and hopefully the next piece will go a little more smoothly. And yes... the next piece is already underway!