A Thousand Points of View

 In my day job as a color master and ink technician, I know how important lighting is to correct perception of color (or at least consistency). After finishing"Harbor Lights" I felt the colors could have been more intense. I tacked it up on the living room wall to so my wife and I could study and critique.

This morning, with the room full of bright natural light, I was surprised to find that the colors were far more vibrant than I thought.

The top photo is in natural light, the bottom in the yellow of blued incandescent. Quite a difference!

"Harbor Lights"

Eleven color reduction woodcut print, "Harbor Lights." I'm very, very happy with how this turned out. I wish I had been bolder in the sky colors, but I wasn't going for the bleeding sky of Munch's "The Scream," but more the gentle sunset of a warm summer evening on Lake Erie. But I've opened up a new avenue for the use of bright pigments in my work.

Closing Time

 Only one color left. One of the bad parts about reduction printing is that, as you pile layers of ink, the natural unevenness causes the final colors to be a bit patchy. I've seen this on multiple block prints too. I used to worry about it a lot until I got to see a Gustave Baumann print up close recently. Sometimes, as artists, we have to embrace those imperfections.

This is a very dark red. Maybe too dark? We'll see. It's hard to gauge how colors will look on completion. For example, though the sky looks really good, but I kind of wish I'd gone bolder. But then maybe it would be to cartoon?

Developing Story

As I've often said, reduction woodcut is like watching a Polaroid develop. There are stages, early on, when you aren't sure it's going to look right. Then, the image comes into focus, and panic turns to anticipation. What I love is that the colors begin to pop as I near completion.

Greatest Hits

The Etsy shop is up and running again, and everything gets free shipping. Just click on the photo of my press at the top of the page! There you'll see such award-winning gems as:

Lighten Up

 The first four states of my latest print. I am using fluorescent pigments in white to achieve a glowing sky. Pretty happy with the results.

Floating An Idea

Etsy shop is now back up. Just click on the picture of my press!

Whatever your impression of Buffalo, you haven't experienced it without a Kayak trip down the Buffalo River (not to confuse it with the Niagara River, on which a fellow DID try to navigate Niagara Falls once; that didn't go so well). A blend of rich history, the heroic reclamation of the land by nature, rust vs wood. Stop by the shop for more details!