Linocut in Progress: Changes big and small

Back to the current linocut in progress. (Although, spoiler alert: It's already done and a framed print is already on its way to Ann Korologos Gallery in Colorado. It's probably not correct to call it "in progress" if it's already finished. But maybe I'm overthinking this.)

ANYWAY... After all that mucking about trying to find the right blue, it was a bit of a relief (see what I did there?) to get some straightforward swaths of ink on the block.

Reduction linocut in progress: Step 7 rollup

It feels a bit odd to be using all this warm color to create water reflections, but that's what drew me to the image in the first place. Getting the mixes rights has been a bit more challenging than expected; it was easy to go too dark too quickly.

Step 7 printed

And then, as if a lot of ochre water wasn't weird enough, it was time to start adding brown.

Step 8 rollup

But wait! This is a goldeneye, if you aren't from the Americas and haven't already guessed. Golden. Eye. Can't let the bird's head get all dark and gloomy before its eponymous feature is added, so it was a good idea to mask out the bird at this stage.

Step 8 mask

Okay, then. This is looking... odd. It was at this point that I really started to question all my life's choices. Was this going to end up looking like anything nice at all, or was the entire thing a bad idea? These thoughts are pretty typical in the middle stages of a reduction print, though. At least that's what I always tell myself. "Keep going. It might resolve okay. Hopefully. Surely. Maybe."

Step 8 printed

But if you think the water looks rather busy NOW, just wait. It's about to get really psychedelic. 

Step 9 rollup with mask

Look at all those crazy squiggles! Honestly, this was quite fun to carve, although it took longer than expected. I believe I added a bit of blue to the brown at this point... feeling a need to pull a little more coolness into this overly warm color palette.

Step 9 printed

And now for the point at which I had to summon all my patience. The temptation to run on and just finish this crazy water was high, but I have put off some of the bird details too long already. The most immediate need is to get that golden eye (and its reflection) on the paper.

Step 10  spot ink rollup

I realize this yellow looks almost absurdly bright, but remember that it is going on over a bunch of mid-value ochre. I made this ink as opaque as I could while still staying bright yellow, and then cut a mask to at least roughly contain it. I'm not worried about these shapes being much larger than they need to, because I know I have a couple of much darker passes to go over them later.

Step 10 mask to contain color

As expected, the yellow wasn't opaque enough to cover what was already in place, especially in the reflection. At this point I did kick myself a little for not tackling this yellow a little earlier... but the fussiness of the blue had been so aggravating that I just wanted to print some stages that would show actual progress. Instead I've created one more "fussy" step for myself, since I had to print the yellow twice to get the coverage I needed. 

I am reminded of a mug my friend Brenda gave me many years ago. It says, "It could be that the purpose of your life is to serve as a warning to others." She knows me so well.

Step 10 printed

Here was the print before the second application of yellow. Another, different, odd bit of color also needed to be applied to the bird's head, and I did that before I beefed up the yellow again. But I'll leave all that as the cliffhanger for the next post!