Ground Theory Monotypes

New Poster Design

This poster was designed for The Yard Studios.  If you are in or around Winchester come on by and see what The Yard artists have been up to, maybe you'll find something awesome to hang on your wall or to put on top of that boring table.

Ambit

Skulls have been a staple of my work for the last several months.  I finally feel like I'll be able to shake them all out here pretty soon.  Many of the prints I have been working on run with the idea of cycles, reflection and multiples.  This print continues along this course.  The background is photocopy lithography (also know as gum transfer, xerox lithography and paper lithography), the mid-grounds are screen printed while the foreground is a linocut.  I have been very interested in cross-pollinating printing techniques.  Most are experiments for larger scale works and some of the experiments have failed but the knowledge gained from this testing will be applied to future projects.

I have been a bit obsessed by white, black, silver, and gold and have managed to slip them all in on this piece.  The eyes of the skull are made of reflective foil.  When viewing the work the eyes change color (as reflected by what is in front of them) as you move around the print.

I look forward to moving into larger scale using these techniques.

New print developing

Hoosier Table

 

 
Small table made from reclaimed pallet lumber celebrating my ties to the state of Indiana.

Interspace

This hardback book and slipcase contains several screen printed pages that are concealed within folds.  When looking at the book it seems to contain blank pages, but as the book is opened every other page set features colorful foldout sections.  The production of this book was inspired by a visit made to the Sedlec Ossuary in the Czech Republic. 

Kitchen Lithography Test

There is a new lithography technique that has been kicking around the internet this year that I was immediately intrigued by because it is non-toxic and the ingredients are easy to find.  Kitchen Lithography was invented by Emilie Aizier (http://www.art-emilion.fr/index.php?id_dossier=47) and has been published generously online by the artist so that everyone can benefit from the process.  After several attempts at the process (seven to be exact) I was finally able to create a decent image.  I'll have to admit that I nearly abandoned this technique because of all the various failures that I had, but a good nights sleep and not wanting to be beat down by what is such a simple process overruled my impulse to quit.  On the eighth attempt I was able to achieve an image that does resemble a traditional lithograph.  The process has some finicky bits but has some incredible potential for creating lithograph-like effects without all of the traditional lithographic chemical processing.

I plan to create notes of my experience with this technique and detail what works and what doesn't work to try and nail this technique down.  I hope that sharing these notes will help others achieve quality- quick results.

Images:  The top image is the aluminum foil etched with cola and inked with a 50/50 mix of etching ink and relief ink, the middle images are the first two prints pulled from the plate, the bottom  image was the third print pulled and most successful.

This recently completed book is in entitled Outsight Inside.  It features five woodcuts created in the span of a week that illustrate swirling thoughts that occurred just after waking from sleep.

Rhein Series

For a long while I have been interested in the idea of taking coated etching plates with me on journeys to create some kind of memory of the travel. I have not pursued this because I was not interested in creating traditional landscape or portrait sketches as I wanted more of a tactile and direct method of creating a physical remembrance of the journey itself. Shortly before a recent trip to Germany I decided that the best way to achieve this goal was to strap the coated etching plates to the bottom of my hiking shoes and walk as long as possible before the plate fell off of my foot. I wrapped a hooked velcro strap around my hiking shoe and stuck a piece of loop velcro to the back of the plate. Although the plate was somewhat flimsily attached to my foot, I was able to get some interesting marks from a variety of different surfaces throughout the Rhein River Valley. These plates have not yet been etched but I am looking forward to inking them in a variety of different ways and printing them on different papers as well as creating a small edition of books detailing the entire experience. I will write a more in depth post about the plates, the steps, surfaces and process when I have completed the printing.

Interstice

Drawing of a lawnmower made by a backhoe

Book Parts

Book Parts

Book Parts

New Paintings

New Woodcut

Prepatory sketch for upcoming project

Monoprint in Progress

One of six images that will be bound into a book. At the rate that the printing is going it will be roughly two months before it is completed (proofed, printed, bound and slip-cased).

Proof 1

Woodcuts in progress...

New Woodcut - Stellar Moor

I've been obsessing over skulls lately. We all have one encased in our bodies and it is part of the hard tissue aspect of us which is left behind once we are gone. This work was inspired by a lecture given by Neil De Grasse Tyson of the Hayden Planetarium. The lecture focused on cosmic perspective and how many of the elements found in our bodies can also be found in the makeup of the cosmos.

Woodcut in Progress

Screen Print Nearing Completion