Monday 12 March 2007

hmmm...




I was looking under my bed for some scraps of paper to draw on and I stumbled across these etchings and aquatints of trees that I made in Autumn last year. I knew I'd made them but I thought I only had the plates, not any actual prints. But here they are! It's made me realise how much I miss this type of printing though, process intensive and so much to learn. These prints are just proofs really, and I feel like there's so much further to go with them. Maybe I will take a printing class or something. I think having access to a press makes all the difference, I haven't really discovered a way to print etching plates without one, you just can't get the pressure!

When I finnished my degree I felt so overwhelmed with making art. I felt it had taken over every moment of my life and I had perhaps lost sight of what I wanted to make in the midst of all the assesment and 'advice' I was receiving. I felt like I needed a break from it all, that I was taking it too much for granted. I felt like I didn't know what I actually wanted to make, I needed to miss it again.



Well, now I definitely miss it! Very much so! I feel I'm slowly finding what it is I want to do, without the pressure of it being 'art' or 'craft' or, in fact, anything. It's quite liberating to just do what I like. That may sound silly, (it certainly does to me!) but Art degrees can get so, well... involved. Hmmm. I did these drawings today, they're not finnished yet...



Sorry for the blurry photos... from my phone, and I didn't look at them when I took them, but you get the idea...

Don't know. Now I have no sudio and work full time in a none-too-creative job everything seems to take twice as long to bear resemblance to anything half decent. But that's ok I think.


Am making some spicy sweet potato kebabs for tea (Or poo-on-a-stick as my house mate commented, maybe she's got something there...) and listening to the Gary Stewart Band who happen to be having a rehersal in my living room... You should listen, they're very good!



And finally, in reply to Amisha, the bunny (from previous post) is from 'Nursery Knits' by Debbie Bliss, my Grandma gave me the book (She works in a charity shop and comes to visit with some right treasures, tubs of buttons and knitting needles and books). I think it's still in print, it's full of cute outfits with matching animals and shoes. The rabbit is my favourite though, I'm on my fourth one!


Here is the first one I made for a little baby called Seth. He was made with bright blue pearly wool, lovely!

Right, I'm off.

1 comment:

amisha said...

the tree prints are amazing. and i love the new work... so glad you are feeling that energy again. i can imagine how doing it full time in a school setting would be overwhelming... now you have the freedom to do exactly as you like!
and thank you for the pattern info... debbie bliss does have the cutest kids stuff :)