Wednesday 31 August 2011

Monday 29 August 2011

"Grafiikka" - printmaking: etching


Anders Zorn

M.C.Escher

Alfredo Zalce

I'm sorry, I'm not feeling well, so no more artwork. I might add more later on.

I am also aware of that these might not be etched, but a combination of different techniques... there's
- etching - you cover the plate with wax or some other stuff and draw the image on the wax, and then etch the surface of the plate with some acid
- dry needle - you scraft the plate with a needle
- mezzotint - you prepare the plate by thoroughly roughening it and then polishing the parts you wish to stay lighter.
- aquatint - you prepare the plate by spreading resin on it and then etching it, so has a distinct granular feeling on it. The image is then created by further etching the plate, or scratching it aso.
and then there's some more

all these produce different surfaces, but I'm not in condition to look into it closer. I'm sorry.

Sunday 28 August 2011

"Grafiikka" - printmaking: engraving





Durer's Knight, Death and Devil and a pencil drawing inspired by it, by Theodor Baierl.
I know it's not an engraving, but I like it, and I wanted to show it with Durer :-)


Copper engravers make stamps and money. This little elephant is about the size it was made.


This is by Czeslaw Slania, a Polish artist, who became to know as the stamp engraver of Sweden and court engraver :-) I love his stamps :-)

White line engraving from 15th century

Thursday 25 August 2011

"Grafiikka" - printmaking: woodcut

I love the (often) black-and-white world of prints. In Finnish this type of art is called "grafiikka" - graphics.

First there was the woodcutting. Woodcutting is carving an image on a block of wood, and then transferring this image on paper with ink. Some woodcuts can be VERY finely detailed.


 as James Grashow's prints show... Amazing work...

Margaret Burroughs - Black Venus

Xiang Silou - Residence Among Flowers
Yes, it is a woodcut.

A lot of my favorite covers and illustrations are made in woodcut, 
like these by Andrew Davidson for Naomi Novik.

Rather Pauline Baynes-que by Wharton Esherick
So simple and perfect in its crudeness...


Cat-nap by Jacques Hnizdovsky

An Yumin

Dürer made his illustrations in woodcut... talk about intrigate and detailed!

Thursday 11 August 2011

Harriet Halhed

born 1850 in Tower Hill, Australia, died 1933 in London, UK

Lovely Victorian artist... wonderful use of paintbrushes and all, but it's practically impossible to find any pictures of her paintings! That's very upsetting.