Re-Membering

When I first began woodcut printmaking, I knew nothing about it. History, theory, practice -- nothing. After having a dream about printing wood and pressing it to paper, I began carving potatoes in different shapes, stamping them out on paper. I quickly moved to a plank of pine board I had in the garage, some rusty X-acto knives long abandoned by my wife's dad, and some of her fabric paint. I then discovered Speedball ink, brayers, and poplar, and fancy papers.

This was all in the course of a week or two -- I move quick when I get obsessed.

Once I discovered Gwen Diehn's "Simple Printmaking," which helped me really straighten out the process, I went to the internet looking for as much information as I could find. I stumbled on  Baren Forum, a group I've written about in past posts They have been a great source of knowledge and friendship throughout my education in the art.

One of the features of the group is the "Print Exchange." Members who want to participate create a print, usually with a common thread (size, style, or a theme). After my "comeback" last summer, I decided that this would be the year I really became a member and participated. So, I have signed up, and I'm very excited to participate. For me this will be a "graduation" of sorts, a commencemnet into the next level of work. Please check back to see what I'm up to, and in the meanwhile, check out some of the past exchanges here:
http://www.barenforum.org/exchange/exchange_58/intro.html.