Lino block (68 x 45cm) while being cut; then inked with linseed oil ink and printed onto linen. It needs more pressure, but the prints on japanese paper were ok.
Remember, no need to understand everything
Category: Linocut
Cat critic
Today I was cutting the little circles above the moons and below ‘rhaid deall’. All going well, it took most of an Archive Hour on the radio. Then, of course, there’s always a critic who has to sniff around the entire block.
Yuletide Felicitations!
Yule 2017
Printing some postcards and a few cards to fold and put into envelopes when they’re dry…
Yuletide
A thought, for those followers who are waiting for a linocut class. The picture shows a block that will be printed in one colour only. The outlines of the lettering have been cut first. At the moment I’m cutting around the holly leaves, not really staying with the pencil lines. Creative cutting?
Cofiwch!
Midsummer
Sometimes people get lost in the act of cutting lines. I might see how it prints now.
Printing a t-shirt
It is a few decades since I printed any fabric, apart from the odd t-shirt with transfer paper. Using my lino block to print a t-shirt seemed a good idea this morning.
Lawrence’s Linseed Relief Ink is much nicer to print with than water-based stuff. I opened the skylight above the table, because people in my house dislike ink fumes. As I was about to place the block onto the shirt, a spider swung down from my fringe. A quick break to find a better place for the spider… did the cat come and rescue me? No. She sat on the stairs and made noises.
After placing the block onto the shirt, I realised I hadn’t planned what to press down with. My toolbox is heavy, but didn’t seem heavy enough. I folded the sides of the t-shirt into a parcel around the block, put it on the floor and stood on it.
I used the rest of the ink to print a couple of paper posters. Cleaning up took place in the garden, in the sunshine. Here’s the moment before the white spirit tipped over onto my foot:
But the t-shirt might be OK
Update – post-election badges:
http://stickittothetories.org.uk/product/i-didnt-vote-tory-badges-only/
Don’t Vote Tory
Lincoln
I’m sure I once made a linocut of the view along Park Street, with Sanctuary records on the left and Ruddocks ahead. It’s filed somewhere safe…?
Ruddocks is an art materials shop, book shop, stationers (etc) and the place where you would always meet one or more friends. We used to ogle pastels, paints and inks before buying materials to make our school and college homework.
In recent years they’ve hosted art classes, including life drawing sessions with Roy Ridsdale. His classes were the only useful part of my foundation year at Lincoln College of Art. Life drawing is often dismissed as a waste of time. It isn’t, unless you’re in a badly lit room with an uninspiring tutor. I’ve seen videos of some life classes that look similar to watching Sid Vicious teach guitar lessons. Anyone would be bored in a class led by someone waffling about something they don’t understand… but maybe drawing can’t be taught. Learn by doing.
Ruddocks is closing soon, after 145 years. I bought all of my favourite pens there in the 1970s & 80s, also some very useful craft tools during my last visit (5 years ago!). There’s a whole essay to be written about the loss of creativity and crafts in schools, while C21st life is being dumbed down.
Anyway, this linocut, of a view further down the High Street, was made in 1979. There’s a clue at the bottom corner:
berry daines 
