Big Steamroller Printing Day on Sunday

This past Sunday, October 5, was the day that the steamroller project came to its ultimate conclusion—the printing of the huge woodcut blocks with a steamroller.  It was a beautiful day in Garrison, NY and we had a great turnout. There are some really wonderful (and nicer than seen here) photos of the event on the Garrison Art Center Facebook page and a really nice photo essay on this blog (link).

My plates went first and there were logistics that had to be worked out after mine and another set of plates were printed unevenly. After that, they rotated the direction of plates in relation to the steamroller drum which yielded better results. So, they very generously offered to print my plates again at the end of the session so that my 2nd print would benefit from the kinks having been worked out after the first printings.

Below is a step-by-step photo sequence that explains how the printing was done:

Here are some of the blocks waiting to be printed.

Inking up the plates with a huge roller.

Cutting the vinyl blanket to size before it's put over the underboard.

These are my 3 inked plates (triptych) side-by-side
on top of the vinyl blanket and the underboard.

Laying the proofing paper over the plates.

The top blanket layer goes over the paper.

The top MDF board covers the layers of
blankets, plate and paper.

Sweeping the dust and dirt from the roller drum.

Driving over the boards to print the plate sandwiched
between top and bottom boards, blankets.

Pulling the proof after printing.

Head Trap, Woodcut, 96" x 48" (8' x 4')
The second print had better ink coverage. Some areas were over-inked but overall it was pretty cool having a print this size.

Steamroller Project Work-In-Progress

Initial sketches (in book) and further sketch for the three 32" x 48" panels

I've been working away on the woodcut project for Garrison Art Center's Rolling on the River event. Above you can see the initial sketches that I was working with to create the composition that I am using for reference to carve the images.

I have three 32" x 48" panels which will form a 4' x 8' triptych print. The composition was designed so that each panel could stand alone as well as work in combination with the other panels to form a larger unified image. This was done partially for logistical reasons (fitting the panels in my car as well as easing the ability to hand-print later on—if I wish to—when I won't have a steam roller on hand).

Below, are images of the middle and left panels on the floor with my sketch reference handy to guide me as I carve the image into the wood. The wood that I am using is 1/2" birch plywood.

The bottom pic is of the right panel with ink applied so I could see the image more clearly and add details and refinements with more clarity. I'm still working on this but it gives me an idea of how the other panels will look and where I need to modify my approach as the image comes together.

Sketch reference on top of middle and left panel. Carving in-progress.

Right panel with ink applied so that I can see the image more clearly. Still working on details but the cow image is emerging.

Steamroller Printmaking

Though I realize that this blog has been very quiet of late, relying on old posts about watercolor monotypes and other intriguing techniques to satisfy visitors' need for information, I am now trying to get back to a (semi) regular posting schedule.

I have some news about a new woodcut project and I hope to document my experience and post this on the blog in the next month. I have been asked to participate in the Garrison Art Center's Rollin' on the River event where large-scale woodcuts will be printed using a steamroller. While this is certainly not a new thing in the printmaking world, it is something that is new to me as I have never worked on this scale before. I am working on a plywood plate that is about 4 feet x 8 feet which will then be printed on the event day, October 5, via steamroller. This event will help celebrate the Garrison Art Center's 50th anniversary.

More on Watercolor Monotypes

Left: BP's Legacy, mixed media monotype © 2014 Elana Goren
Right: Two examples of watercolor monotype plates with pigment reactions

I've discussed watercolor monotypes using pigments on this blog here and here. This post is a continuation of the discussion I started on my previous posts. And I would like to add to these previous discussions that if you would like to experiment with watercolor monotypes, you should use a new piece of plexiglass and not one that has been used previously for traditional oil-based monotypes. This is because any residual oil from an old plate will repel your attempts at applying watercolor/water media to your plate. I strongly suggest that once you have supplied yourself with a new watercolor plate, label it as such and reuse it only for watercolor/water-based media monotypes.

As for my work, I have been doing alot of experimentation with the abstract qualities of watercolor reactions on a plexiglass plate especially while working with the way pigments react to each other. I've noticed that blue pigments seem to like to repel others and this makes for interesting patterns that emerge on a plexiglass while the watercolor dries. But as I mentioned in a previous post, you need to experiment with different pigments and see for yourself what kind of results you can come with.

I have increasingly been interested in layering my color and using the watercolor abstractions as a base or (underpainting) for adding layers of color to create depth and atmosphere. It is difficult (not impossible) to layer watercolor monotypes over previously printed watercolor since you need to wet the paper before you print and this can destroy or very much weaken the image that was first printed on it. So, I decided to start printing oil-based monotypes over the watercolor base and layer my color that way. For oil-based monotypes, you do not have to wet the paper in order to print (though if you are doing an oil-based monotype on a fresh sheet of paper, wetting it will make it print better). 

Printing over watercolor on dry paper is tricky. You do not want your ink to be too stiff or tacky or it will not print cleanly and might even take some of the top layer of paper off in the dryer areas. I have been using a mixture of pigment, etching ink and block printing ink (trans base) to create my oil-based colors; a mixture that has been working pretty well. I had started by using litho inks but these are really too stiff for this layering process since they work best with damp paper.

The print on the left at the top of this post, was created with a base layer from a watercolor monotype that was a bright blue mixed with some rust colors similar to the plates shown to the right of it. I started to layer oil-based colors using some of the same pigments but obviously using reds and yellows more heavily. The fish skeleton is a linocut (relief) print. What I found interesting is that the blue pigment in the watercolor underlayer came through all of my consecutive print layers as shown in the two details below.

BPs Legacy, Detail

BPs Legacy, Detail 2

Carrier Pigeon Show in Chelsea (NYC)

My work is in a group show at the EMOA Space in Chelsea on 530 w. 25th street, NYC. Please stop by if you are in the NY area. It's a great show featuring the talented artists who have contributed to Carrier Pigeon Magazine. The show runs until December 14, 2013.

Etching Show at the National Arts Club in NYC

I am honored to have been asked to participate in the New York Society of Etchers Directors show which is being exhibited this week at the National Arts Club at 15 Gramercy Park South in NYC. The opening reception for the show is on Wednesday, November 6 from 6:30-8:30 pm. This is a really strong show and runs from November 3 until November 8—this week only.

The show will later travel to Chicago as work from the Chicago Printmakers Collaborative is also represented in the exhibition this week.

New Linocut for a Cause

Limited Edition T-Shirt Available for purchase at portchesterdogpark.com.

My sister is raising funds to bring a much-needed dog park to her town of Port Chester. I had originally created a logo for her group (shown below) which was silkscreened onto t-shirts and made available for sale at all Port Chester Dog Park (PCDP) fundraising events, but we needed something a little more. There was a special event at Garcia's at the Capitol Theater and she needed some special edition shirts to offer for sale at the event. So I thought, why not try to print a linocut plate onto the shirts and make them into wearable art? The above image is the result of that experimental effort.

Though I had never done it before, I figured that since oil-based printing ink is very tenacious and never wants to come off your clothes, I could use it to print tees. This notion was born from the many printing "smocks" I have as a result of the ink-clings-to-everything principle. So, my sister got the shirts and I carved the linoleum and we were set to go when life's ups and downs took a big nosedive in the week leading up to the benefit at Garcia's. It was a very rough week but at least the printing went pretty smoothly as I inked the plate and ran the shirts through my etching press. Drying time took longer than expected due to a combination of the weather being pretty cold and damp and the shirt fabric not letting the ink soak in as much as on the test shirts (old, worn tees) which dried faster. But, thanks to a tip from a printmaking artist friend, Ilse, I was able to iron the print using newsprint and a very hot iron which made drying time a lot faster. Note: this technique does lift some of the ink away.

If you have any interest in getting one of these shirts and helping to fund the Port Chester Dog Park, please go to their website: http://portchesterdogpark.com/ or their fundraising page.

The logo shirts are for sale too: