Category: Printmaking

Slaying Humbaba in a limited palette

I just finished a small oil painting, once again returning to a favorite pair of heroes, Gilgamesh and the wild man Enkidu.

And once again returning to their slaying of the hapless Humbaba, poor Humbaba.

IMG_5107Slaying Humbaba (in a limited palette)

2014

oil on canvas

16 by 20 inches

I initially worked with this theme after having read the Mitchell translation of Gilgamesh (some of the sexiest passages around, quite steamy). Initially I worked out a composition based upon a Syrian relief panel from the 10th cent, translating the basalt panel  into an  intaglio plate.

img_3462this being the inspiration,

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I’ve enjoyed the progression of this composition, working and reworking trinities. But now I must get back to  my OTHER Hero Twin and string my marionettes of them  as I want to make a little film. Wish me luck.

Until next time,

be well,

Lg

Loki- a new relief print

Today was a good day, at least studio wise . A bit of painting in the morning, a lovely run to clear the mind and then relief carving . I decided to use two blocks, frantically carving before class this evening and the following artist’s proof is the result .  I ended up running a series of ten-next week I will run another.

I’m not usually pleased but this little bugger delights me.

I hope you like him as well;I’ve named him Loki, after Wagner’s “Ring”.

 

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Loki

Two color relief print on paper

paper dimension 8 1/2 by 11 inches

2014

I’m enjoying this class at the Craft Museum,walking distance , a  wonderful teacher, warm and encouraging and just a great group of folks, all at different levels, all trying to express themselves with line on paper. Making stuff, not just consuming stuff.

Speaking of consuming this print, and soon others, is available for purchase through my Etsy account :  Link to my account

Well, I  must eat, about to pass out, but until next time, be well,

Lg

Tlaloc and the Magdalene

Happy to back at the printing press, albiet a much smaller , less substantial press. I feel I am ready to explore relief printing once again. I decided to play with the theme of the Magdalene, last week’s attempt was awful but I am more pleased with last evening’s results.

Greco-Magdalene:relief copy

 The Magdalene

relief print on paper

8 by 10 inches

I wanted to visually convey my understanding of the  gnostic conviction that Mary M. was in fact a truer apostle than the rest in that she had actually witnessed both His death and His resurrection . Not to mention the profound relationship , physical or not, that the two shared. Her asceticism is  in sharp contrast to the church of the  “anointed” apostles.

The following is last weeks attempt, I guess I was rustier than I had expected. She looks decidedly Paleo not ascetic.

Greco-Magdalene:reject rejected print

I also cleaned up another print from last printmaking class. I think opening him up a bit added clarity. It’s a silly prayer card for a rain deprived LA.

Greco_Tlaloc's Rain Dance:relief copy

Tlaloc’s Rain Dance

relief print on paper

8 by 10 inches

Have a great day,

Lg

Blocking in Devils and Saints

The day was spent blocking in two small panels-I’ve discovered the joys of panels and feel it best suits my process. I have a large canvas in the wings, prepped and ready but for today devils and saints.

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blocking in St.Kevin & the Blackbird

oil on panel

This is a small panel, only 12 by 12 inches, it is to be of St.Kevin and his blackboard. I’m basing it upon a relief print that I made last year . I’m enjoying my ability to stretch my wings so to speak with color; a sharp contrast to the print.

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My second panel, also small, only 18 by 24 inches is inspired by my ongoing fascination with gnostic thought. I haven’t named the painting yet but it will  be something to do with the apotheosis of Sophia or gnosis. As usual I’m enjoying playing with little devil fellows.

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The symbolism for this painting is based very loosely on an 18th cent print, I’m guessing Masonic in nature. It was wonderfully creepy in that way allegory often is. I need to locate a copy of it, but it entailed a nude women wearing a crenelated crown and holding chains that supported the  sun and the moon  all while standing upon a skull. I’ve made a few alterations stylistically but I’m happy with her. The snakes further symbols of wisdom. I dreamt of making this painting the other evening and my dream guide was insistent that she stand upon a black cloud. So black it will be.

Well  I must run and tend to other aspects of my life ( namely marketing, ugh) but until next time , be well,

Lg 

Honoring the Virgens

As the feast day of the Virgen de Guadalupe dwindles to a close I have been busy working on a relief print of the OTHER virgin birth, that of Coatlicue bringing forth the fearsome fire god  Huitzilopochtli.

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Sanctified Huitzilopochtli

Artist’s proof, relief print on paper

This is just an artists proof, it will be part of my series of “Bodega Baroque” votive candles dedicated to the Old Gods.

What I love about living in this region, where devotion to the Virgen is so widespread, is this sense of WHICH Virgen are we speaking of on this feast day?

The kindly brown skinned girl we all love, or the ancient madonnas of Mesoamerica?

Many scholars believe ( as do I) that the dark Roman Catholic Madonna is in fact an ancient, browner goddess.The goddess Tonantzin, “Our Mother”, being  a reasonable predecessor ; this link provides some interesting  and concise opinions.

Tonantzin:Our Mother

Tonantzin-Our Mother (image sourced from link above ).

I’m enchanted most particularly with She of the Skirts of Serpents, mother of us all, but most particularly of the brutal and demanding Aztec fire god Huitzilopochtli. She was about to be torn to shreds by her wrathful children, indignant by her so-called “immaculate conception”; but in a grand bit of theater, Huitzilopochtli swoops in fully armed and annihilates his siblings. A far cry from a sweet nativity setting, but what an engaging narrative.

P1000331 copyCoatlicue, from our recent trip to the Museum of Anthropology.

I’ve been working on three paintings, one of which is this virgin birth, almost finished, here is an early peek.

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 As this is the season of Virgin Births, I have been working on holiday cards. Sadly without a proper press, relying upon the old wooden spoon, suffice to say my right side is aching. Thus far 25 on this “Chinois” paper, still counting.

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Well I must get back to work,

until next time take care,

Lg

Tzimmes and the Maize God

Chanukah begins this evening and tomorrow is Thanksgiving .

As I prepare for tomorrow’s feast, our  first “official” dinner party since  moving back to LA I am feeling particularly grateful for the diverse influences that have shaped the person I am today. My first partner Douglas and his lovely family were German Jews, from them I was exposed to the joys of Jewish culture , including Chanukah.  Tzimmes ( a tasty treat loosely translated from the Yiddish  as a “big mess/deal/fuss”of stewed sweet potatoes, carrots and prunes) was always on the  Chanukah table this time of year and my own pot of  this aromatic stew bubbles away.

I am also  in the thick of preparing the centerpiece. Given that it is Thanksgiving , I am honoring our indigenous ancestors with prayer candles to the Maize God, Hun Hunuhpu. Thus far 10, and counting…

Without my relatively recent exposure to this rich culture through a marvelous professor ( who I now consider a friend), my infatuation with all things Meso may never have been. For that I am also grateful.

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Like little soldiers, my Maize God prayer candles stand at attention waiting for their place on tomorrow’s banquet table. St Stephen, first Christian martyr leads the troops.

The diablo  vase was from a ceramic class I had taken a few semester’s back. I may very well be the WORST ceramicist ever, but surprise, surprise, I like decorating vessels.  This, I decorated post firing with oil colors, won’t last forever, but at least until I croak!

IMG_3889I’m thinking of marketing these candles, not just Maize God but a variety of Meso deities , plus other saints, Christian and otherwise, sacred and secular. What seems a fair price? Not looking for extravagant profit but  a reasonable price-thus far the candles themselves are a little under two bucks. Feedback very  welcome.

Well happy Chanukah, happy Thanksgiving,

be well, be safe,

until next time,

Lg

Searching for Tlaloc

When visiting Mexico City we were determined to find a massive fountain Diego Rivera  had designed for Chapultepec Park. The mosaic fountain depicted, appropriately for the city’s water-works, the rain god Tlaloc. Finding this fountain proved to be difficult, we encountered blank stares when we discussed what we thought would be a well-loved emblem of civic pride.

Sadly this great work seems to have been largely forgotten. Time has moved on and much of the elaborate fountain schemes are dry and neglected. Rivera’s work has been restored (click here for info concerning its renovation ) but there is a sense of desolation to the place. That and it was fast approaching dusk, we were lost as hell, in a strange city, in a VAST park without a clue as to how to get back to the b&b-thank the old gods for Google map apps.

But we did return and now safe and sound I have crafted a relief print of the great god, he should be our deity in sun parched Southern California. Happily I have found a small press available for use at the local Art & Craft Museum on Wilshire Blvd.

IMG_4510Blessed Tlaloc

artist’s proof, relief print

I hadn’t realized it at the time but I was influenced by Rivera’s playful interpretation of this most fierce god; a god so relentless for tribute he demanded the blood of tearful toddlers.

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Rivera’s take on the god, magnificent image NOT my own but that of National Geographic from the article above.

My own, far lamer images follow:

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Intricate aquatic themed mosaic work covers almost every surface.

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Difficult to capture from the angle, but a detail of his face.

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The back of his head features a different face.

This trip established for me a profound respect for Diego Rivera and his work, I hadn’t much of an opinion before, but the breadth of his work astounds me.

Must get cracking’, I have three canvases in various states of completion.

Until next time, take care,

Lg

Bringing Randy Blue Fauns to Class

I’m taking an introduction to digital photography class and frankly I hate it.

Although it is an intro class, a working knowledge of Photoshop is in order (something I was unaware of).  I might very well be the only person in class who has never worked with the program; my fellow students zip from one application to another.  I feel like a dinosaur.

Our first two assignments have thankfully been hands on, and I have done  relatively well. It is not without a bit of smugness that I  have observed my fellow students’ inability to render.

The following is a silly exercise in which three pared down elements must be synthesized into a narrative. In spite of hating the class, the assignment was fun; I might do another version.

This effort was inspired by Sartre’s No Exit. 

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visual exercise II

The following is the assignment sheet:

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My printmaking class is going very well, this is my third semester and although I have produced only a few prints I can claim  to like,  I am learning a lot. Thankfully my anxiety that my professor did not like me or my work has proven to be  due to ridiculous insecurity. He has proven to be very helpful and supportive of my work in spite of our aesthetic differences. I look forward to afternoons spent at the press in spite of the oppressive California heat- apparently printmaking studios do not warrant air conditioning.

The following image  is the final version of my first dry point exercise . Again, I see flaws but I now know how to better handle the technique , next I plan to combine drypoint with aquatint. 

IMG_4118Temptation of St Anthony

drypoint intaglio print

Well that is it for this evening , have a lovely weekend and to my fellow Landsmen, L’Shana Tovah!

Take care,

Lg

Back To Class, First Proofs

The Fall semester began this week and one of my courses is Printmaking III- I cannot believe how quickly time has flown. I am still very much the novice, but I do feel I have a better grip on this elusive medium. This first week of this semester I have focused upon two plates : one a relief print on lino ; the second an intaglio drypoint on copper.

I am determined this semester to achieve a better grasp of intaglio , I find it so challenging. The following are early proofs, the lino being the more successful of the two.

IMG_4098 Redemption of the Father

Artist’s Proof # I

relief print,lino on paper

plate 10″ by 12″

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 St Anthony of the Desert

Artist’s proof # II,

drypoint, copper plate, 6″by 8″

As I said the intaglio needs a lot of work. Given that I am determined to work solely in drypoint for this print, the “burrs” are causing me some trouble. I will this weekend rub them out, adding more marks as needed. This is when I wish I had a home press, I am burning with a desire to resolve this problem NOW!

But I must practice patience,  taking deep Ujjayi  breath. Printmaking is not an immediate art, at least with out a home press.

The inspiration for the relief print, which is close to complete, is the following watercolor ( a VERY immediate medium ). 

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Redemption of the Father