Wood Engraver

The Freshly Cut Portfolio

2009-11-19T15:23:00.009-01:00

I decided to make thirty portfolios of the engravings that I had decided to edition from the "Freshly Picked" project. This is called "Freshly Cut". Each portfolio is handmade with red spine cloth and tie ribbons and marbled paper covered boards with dark green card inserts to hold the engravings.

I made a template so that I couyld sign each engraving neatly. This involved cutting a window in a clear plastic folder. It worked well:

Each portfolio contains the ten engravings with the same edition number. The first set are all numbered 1/100 and so on.

I decided that the images should be prefaced by a title page that I would print letterpress in the small Albion. I composed the type:

After printing a proof, I used makeready to give a neat and even printing:

Soon, printed sheets were drying on the rack:

I rather enjoy bookbinding and making the portfolios was a pleasant change. Here is the finished item:

Inside, a card folder contained the engravings:

All spread out:

The Freshly Cut Portfolio is available from my website at a price of £135.

These portfolios were destined for the Oxford Fine Press Fair. I took the opportunity to print some more copies of "Twenty Five Bookplates":

Its always a pleasure to use my nipping press:

However, bricks wrapped in brown paper provide the weight for larger stacks of drying volumes.

After a week of long days and late nights, everything was ready to set off for Oxford.

Chicago: WEN Workshop (4)

2009-08-19T12:54:00.008-01:00

*Warning - this post features an extraordinary number of printing presses*

Now this looks an interesting place to start a day:

Paul Aken's wonderful Platen Press Museum in Zion, IL.

Walking into the first room, we were met by a group of iron handpresses, including this handsome Hopkinson & Cope Albion Press:

The unmistakeable Columbian press. We were given the opportunity to print on this during our visit:

A large Washington Press:

A sweet Hopkinson & Cope table top Albion. There were many of us who would have liked to adopt this and take it home:

Finally, a wonderful Reliance:

In another room, Earl had found a Columbian No. 2 Platen press, similar to his own.

Everywhere, there seemed to be a handpress.

Carl and Rachel were among those who pulled proofs from the Columbian.

In the meantime, I explores Paul's "Toyroom":

In the book room, a poster that caught my eye:

I have never in my life seen so many presses together in one place:

Elsewhere, there were various casting machines, including this wonderful linotype:

It was getting towards lunchtime and some more people were due to fly out so we drove to the Illinois Beach State Park for a picnic lunch:

After lunch, we went to the beach for a last look at Lake Michigan. I skimmed stones into the lake and then sat and made towers of pebbles, contemplating the directions that my printmaking might go as a result of my experiences during this week.

We drove back to Sharen and Don's.

The basement was growing quieter and more empty all the time. Sometimes, Kitsi had found it difficult to cope with so many visitors but now she could relax again - and enjoy Sharen's proofing press:

Saturday morning found me relaxing again at Kildeer.

Then it was time to leave for the airport (and a wonderful upgrade!) for the flight home.

I am so very grateful to the Wood Engraver's Network for their kind invitation, to Sharen and Don for their generous hospitality and for the friendship and companionship of my fellow engravers. I know that my work will change as a result of my experiences and I look forwards to a time later in the year when I can start to explore some of the ideas that I am forming. In some ways, I left for Chicago a jobbing engraver and arrived back in England an artist.

Chicago: WEN Workshop (3)

2009-08-15T08:24:00.013-01:00

Wednesday morning was a working morning and it was interesting to hear the sounds made by massed engravers - the sounds made by movements of gravers against wood, of wood against leather sandbags and quiet words...

I engraved a little but my mind was partly on the presentation that I was scheduled to give after lunch. I decided to walk out and enjoy Sharen and Don's lovely garden and the wildlife that it harboured:

I watched a small group of Canada Geese land on the lake...

Seeing them against the reflected light was a wonderful illustration of a point that I wanted to make - the fact that sometimes opportunities present themselves like this; sometimes we "see" the world as engravings.

A brisk and welcome walk (accompanied by ominous thunder) to Chipotle and an equally welcome burrito set me up for my presentation before the assembled engravers and guests. I spoke about my development as an engraver, my influences and the way that I work, emphasising my belief in the importance of sketchbook work. The audience listened to me kindly and patiently. I enjoyed a most pleasant afternoon meeting people.

In the evening, we ate pizza and enjoyed the first of two sessions during which members made their own presentations of work.

All in all, a most enjoyable day.

Thursday morning found us driving to Evanston and Northwestern University. First stop was the Deering Library where eyes were caught by a reconstruction of a Gutenburg Press:

Once again, we were given access to some very interesting and beautiful treasures.

I poured over a set of re-strikes from William Blake's 1821 engravings for Thornton's Virgil:

We had already seen three early proofs from these blocks at the Art Institute.

I was particularly taken by a group of blocks engraved by Eric Gill. One seldom sees these and it was interesting to see how seemingly effortlessly they were cut and cleared:

There were more Blakes on display, including a wonderfully printed re-strike from one of his largest Copper Engravings: The Canterbury Tales:

The linear work in the background is simply beautiful:

I find this figure simply breathtaking in the way that she is drawn and engraved:

Yet more Blakes - his illustrations to Dante's Inferno:

There was much to catch the eye and cause debate:

In this case it was the "make-ready" formed from layers of tissue that was used to print one of Thomas Bewick's engraved blocks:

Apart from prints and blocks, there were some well chosen books; I could have pulled up an armchair and spent the day here.

We walked from The Deering Library to the Block Museum where we had the opportunity to examine some extremely fine engravings. I was pleased to have this session which was dedicated almost exclusively to American engravers.

We enjoyed lunch in the cafeteria and then walked to Bookman's Alley. This is a most marvellous bookshop and the hour we spent there was as pleasant as any during the week:

In the evening we enjoyed lovely food at a local restaurant befor returning to Kildeer for coffee, desserts and more member presentations. This was a most convivial evening. Carl played his concertina and farewells were said as some members would not join us for the final day.

I was given a very beautiful book:

A 1947 facimile of William Blake's "America A Prophecy"

I could not have received a more well chosen, appropriate gift and memento of my visit; it is a lovely addition to my own Blake collection that sits above me as I type:

To be continued...

Chicago: WEN Workshop (2)

2009-08-01T08:11:00.007-01:00

Tuesday morning found us driving towards downtown Chicago:

We met up at Cosi's Coffee shop where I grabbed a welcome smoothie.

We were in for a real treat at the Art Institute of Chicago. We visited the Print Study Room where a selection of prints and blocks had been selected for our enjoyment:

The first item could not have been more appropriate for me - three proofs from William Blake's wood engraved illustrations to Thornton's 1821 edition of Virgil.

The middle one is probably the most important print in terms of my own development as a printmaker. It is a tiny thing but of huge significance to me and one that I wanted to refer to when I spoke the next day:

Of the blocks on display, I was particularly taken by one engraved by Lucien Pissarro, son of the Impressionist Camille. If you click on the image to enlarge it you can see where the block is starting to split. This is not uncommon with engraved blocks, which are often made from smaller pieces of wood glued together:

Another exciting inclusion for me was one of the small number of wood engravings that the English Pop Artist Peter Blake (he of the cover to the Beatle's Sgt. Pepper album) has made.

We had lunch in the Art Institute restaurant and then took the opportunity to see some of the other treasures from the collection. I was particularly keep to see Seaurat's La Grande Jatte, having seen the other version and many of the preparatory sketches. Grant Wood's American Gothic was another "must see".

The works that made the most impact on me were by Ivan Albright. Having seen his work only in reproduction, it was stunning to see pieces for real. Even the carved wooden frames were fascinating. There was something Blakean about the figures on the frame of "Into the World There Came a Soul Called Ida":

I was particularly taken by a large gouche called "The Rustlers" (Thanks, Tony for the photo). It is an image that I find myself returning to over and over again:

Eventually, we had to leave and walk a few blocks through the city:

To catch a bus:

To the wonderful Newberry Library. Once again, we were able to view rare items at close quarters. Highlights included a large collection of engraved blocks by Thomas Bewick and an early book by Maurits Cornelis Escher.

Afterwards, we walked to the Sherwin Beach Press. Here we enjoyed refreshments, examined the work of the press, showed off our own and chatted to members of the Caxton Club. It was a very pleasant occasion.

This was followed by a drive through the city.

Then a stop to enjoy a view of the skyline and Lake Michigan.

We then parked and walked past hedges (some appropriately of box) to...

...the magnificent Buckingham Fountain:

This had been a long and tiring day but a most memorable one.

Chicago: WEN Workshop (1)

2009-07-29T10:19:00.011-01:00

The open studios were over very quickly and I had just under a week to prepare to fly out to Chicago as guest artist to the Wood Engraver's Network at their annual workshop. I had a pleasantly uneventful journey to Chicago O'Hare International Airport, where I was met by our wonderfully attentive hosts Sharen and Don Linder who took me to my hotel. I tried to ignore the fact that everything electronic that I owned reminded me that it was about 4am back home.

I awoke 4:30am local time Sunday morning and enjoyed a swim before a leisurely breakfast at six o'clock and a walk around the neighbourhood. There was a lovely lakeside park opposite the hotel.

After my walk I was ready for a nap and then, getting hungry, I wandered round to Tacos El Norte, a Mexican diner next to the hotel for a burrito. It was good to be back in the US again.

... and some drawing - working out the design for the block that I planned to engrave during the week - a view of part of our garden. It was a detail from the steps that already feature towards the left of the centre of this print.

Other engravers arrived during the afternoon so it was back to the diner for a beer and then we drove to Sharen and Don's lovely house where we set up our gear in the basement and enjoyed a very pleasant supper with the assembled engravers before heading back - very tired - to the hotel.

The next morning, we started work in earnest in the basement. There was so much space and the light was great to work with. I squared down my image and transferred it to the block so that I was ready to engrave. It was a real pleasure to get to meet and work with the engravers. I had known many of them for years through their work.

In the afternoon, we were the guests of Graphic Chemical & Ink Co. The lobby and offices were hung with a wonderful variety of original prints. We had a tour "behind the scenes" and watched the process of making printmaking inks from the selection on the medium...

... to the pigment grinder...

... and then the machines that use heavy rollers to make the ink smooth...

... before the cooled and thickened ink is transferred to the tins that we are familiar with:

Elsewhere, in the warehouse, there were gravers galore...

... and piles of paper to peruse:

We returned to WEN HQ for more engraving. I enjoyed the exotic elements of this lovely suburb of Chicago; hummingbirds and, later, fireflies.

We ended the day with a shared meal. The week had made an excellent start.

IN Print and Business as Usual

2009-07-15T21:04:00.001-01:00

The Open Studios have been and gone and were very successful. On the first morning, I received a copy of East Anglian Ex-Libris by John Blatchly. It covers bookplates related to East Anglia from 1700 to the present day and is a wonderful addition to the collection of anyone interested in bookplates. Dr Blatchly has included two of my engraved pictorial bookplates: my own that I use for larger books and the one that I engraved for Joan..

Since then, both presses have been busy as I have been working hard to complete jobs before I head off to thwe WEN gathering at Kildeer, IL.

As the engravings have dried, I have been sitting and signing and numbering them. I will feature this particular project in a couple of weeks time:

I am planning a project of my own to engrave in the US. So much of what I do is commissioned work that it will be a treat to do something for myself. This morning, I received a pair of wonderful boxwood "rounds" from blockmaker Chris Daunt. I use his blocks exclusively in my work. These are beautiful and, for me, the natural shape of the wood is a pleasure to work with. You may remember one that I engraved before.

I fly out on Saturday - so much more to be done.

Open Studio - First Weekend

2009-07-06T08:31:00.005-01:00

This year's first Open Studio weekend was a very pleasant occasion with a steady stream of visitors and pleasing sales which, traditionally, go towards my purchase of printmaking paper for the next twelve months. The weather was beautiful, with the sun streaming in but not as hot as earlier in the week, when the rollers on one of my small Adana presses melted in the heat.

Inside the door, There was a wall of framed engravings, a browser containg the newly editioned prints from Freshly Picked and a folder of the engravings for Philip Pullman's A Outrance. This was followed by a group of sketchbooks to show how projects develop from the first pencil sketches to the final ink drawings:

The central table had wood engravings for sale in browsers:

Also on the central table was a disply of many of many of my engraved bookplates and some of the books that they have featured in:

At the far end, I was demonstrating engraving and carrying on with one of my current projects:

Moving through into the press room, there was another wall of framed engravings behind the smaller 1865 Albion Handpress:

The recently tidied shelves had small displays, including some of the engravings that I have made for wine labels:

"Red", the larger 1902 Albion was in use to demonstrate printing from engraved blocks:

I was able to get on with some work, enjoy the company of new and old friends and have a relaxing but surprisingly tiring weekend.

It all happens again next weekend and you will be most welcome to visit.

I made another short "Walk through" movie and, this year, added commentary as I walked around. Here it is:

Open Studios 2009

2009-07-03T21:18:00.002-01:00

Once again, I am opening as part of the Cambridge Open Studio scheme. My studio will be Open from tomorrow (July 4th-5th and 11th - 12th) between 11am and 6pm.

I will demoinstrate engraving and printing on the Albion handpresses. There will be engravings for sale but there is no obligation to buy - feel free to come and look.

The details are here: http://www.camopenstudios.co.uk/ you can find them by searching for me in the "Artists" section. I will post photographs very soon.

In Print - And A Book Launch

2009-06-07T11:50:00.006-01:00

I recently received an email from Lewis Jaffe, who many of you will know from his excellent bookplate blog, that he had written an article about bookplate collecting for Antique Week magazine, which featured the meerrkat bookplate that I had engraved for him on the cover of the Central and Eastern editions:

I have been tardy in catching up with my appearances in print so here is another, an article based on an interview in a book edition of a glossy magazine circulated in Hong Kong:

Freshly Picked was published last week and I was very pleased to attend the launch party in the wonderful vegetable garden of the Hackney City Farm in London. The food was wonderful, especially the giant chorizo, snail and sorrel paella:

The vegetable garden is a lovely space and a great setting for the book launch party. I made a few small sketches while I was there. Here is a selection of photographs:

Back in the studio, I have been working on another series of engraved bookplates and hope to feature some of these in my next post.

Linocut by Gertrude Hermes

2009-05-15T13:35:00.006-01:00

I have always regarded the work of Gertrude Hermes very highly. Her lively cutting and wonderful textures makes her work a treat to behold. It was, however a unexpected pleasure to be offered one in a gallery yesterday. The proprietor had shown some interesting works and, knowing that I was an engraver, went to an upstairs room to fetch another print. It turned out to be a Gertrude Hermes Linocut.

The image is of a bullfighter. This is not a particularly sympathetic subject for me but her handling is masterly. The black image is printed over a textured background printed from another block (Click on the images to enlarge them):

The print was signed and dated 1955 and inscribed "Bullfight 4" and then "No.1". On the reverse were two labels, the artist's address and a second one informing the reader that this was the print in the original frame that was exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in 1956.

I asked the price of the print and was told an acceptable sum. I decided to go away and think but, in the end, decided to buy the piece and add it to our collection. Once broght home and cleaned, we identified a suitable spot and I hung the linocut.

Gertrude Hermes taught Sarah Van Niekirk who taught courses that I attended in the early 1990s. Hermes was married to Blair Hughes-Stanton, who taught my former colleague Pat Townshend, who first showed me the ropes of engraving. As a result, I have always felt that Gertrude Hermes was part of my printmaking ancestory and, having enjoyed her work in museum collections, I have, for a long time, hoped to acquire a piece. I am very happy.

Freshly Picked

2009-04-29T13:38:00.007-01:00

I received my advance copy of "Freshly Picked" this morning. I have already shown the blocks and some images here but this was the first time that I saw how my engravings had been used.

Here are a series of photographs of the book - click on them to enlarge.

The book is handsome (I didn't design the cover):

My engravings have been reduced and used as endpapers. I am very pleased with the end result; the engravings look good in green:

Hwere is a selection of the engravings:

Introduction:

Basics:

Summer (One of my favourites):

Autumn (My favourite):

Growing potatoes:

Far Flung Food:

All in all, I am very pleased with the result. This is my first "High Street", rather than fine press book project. It covers both the growing and cooking aspects of growing ones own veg and I'm looking forwards to reading it. It is published on June 4th.

Our own vegetable production is coming along nicely and things are stirring in the new raised beds:

Recent Work: A Outrance

2009-03-26T11:38:00.014-01:00

A Outrance ("To The Death") is a chapter from "Northern Lights" by Philip Pullman. It is being reprinted by Oak Tree Fine Press, whose books raise money for organisations assisting children living with or affected by HIV/AIDS. Click on the image below to find out more and express an interest in purchasing this book.

My original contribution was to collaborate with Chris Daunt and Harry Brockway to produce six full-page illustrations. My two were "Lyra consults the Alethiometer" and "Bears Fighting". The latter shows the point where two armoured bears fight at a dramatic moment in the story. My sketch had elements bursting out of a narrowed frame:

However, I engraved the image to the full frame so that it fitted in with the other engravings:

*Click* on any of these images for more detail.

I was asked to produce some further images and managed to fit them into a tight schedule. These included three decorated initial letters.

Letter A shows Lyra sitting out on an Oxford rooftop. Here is the sketch, followed by the engraving:
The Letter F shows an armoured bear:

Here is a stage in the engraving of the final one:

I was very pleased to capture the measured gaze of this powerful and thoughtful bear:

The next engraving was designed to be used at the end of a part page of text. Here is the engraved block, followed by the final image:

The most exciting part of this project was a large title page. Here is my sketch:

This involved buying the largest endgrain block that I had used. I have engraved larger images, but never on wood. Here is the block:

The drawing was transferred (in reverse) to the block which had been darkened with diluted ink and, slowly, I started to engrave:

I reworked the bear at the top of the image to make him much more powerful and fierce:

The central part of the block had to be cleared. I had drawn out the title by hand in an uncial style so that it could be made into a printing block. I divided the central area into small squares and cleared them one at a time with an alternation of round and square scorper:

After I had finished that, I squared the area up and repeated the job. It took two full days to clear and I ended up with my fingers covered in sticking plasters to try to avoid blisters as I worked:

Eventually, I was happy that I was ready to take a proof from the block and it was clamped into the bed of "Red" the 1902 Albion handpress:

Here are proofs drying on the ceiling rack:

And here is a proof from the block. Click on the image to enlarge it. I am particularly pleased with the powerful muscularity of this leaping bear:

Finally, I engraved a small press device as a gift for the publisher:

I really enjoyed working on this project. I thoroughly enjoy re-reading Philip Pullman's remarkable books and applaud the efforts of the Oak Tree Fine Press to raise funds for such an important cause.

Recent Work: "Freshly Picked"

2009-03-26T11:06:00.003-01:00

I started my working year with a large illustrating job. This was to engrave nineteen illustrations for "Freshly Picked" by Jojo Tulloh. Many of the images were set in allotment gardens and so this was pleasant and sympathetic work for me

Here are the nineteen blocks. I will try to print a group of them together on the larger Albion to make an image the size of a small poster, possibly with some wood type text.

*Click* for larger images.

Here are some proofs printed from the blocks:
I will be choosing some of the images to edition in the summer. I will announce them here when I add them to my main website. I have to confess that there is a lot of new work that needs to be added to it.

"Twenty" - My Best Work?

2008-11-25T22:22:00.008-01:00

Autumn flies into winter and no mistake!

Indoors I have finished engraving the block for the Society Of Wood Engravers portfolio.

With a larger block such as this, I use "Red" the 1902 Albion handpress:

Here is the block held firmly in the bed of the press and inked ready to take the first impression.

I am really very pleased with the first print pulled from the block. This is unusual for me as my heart usually sinks. Being pleased is a good thing. It still took five "states" before I was sure that everything was good. Here is the first printing of the final impression:

The various states are hung to dry:

It is time to print the edition of 100. The first twenty-five will go in the portfolios that will be offered for sale. Impressions numbered 26-50 will go to the artists and the remaining fifty will be available from me late in 2009.

The edition is to be printed on a particularly fine paper: The Edwina Ellis paper from the Zerkall mill in Germany. Each sheet yielded six prints. This called for some careful folding.

I then used a breadknife to cut the sheets giving a slightly ragged edge called "false deckles"

Here is the final engraving. A and J play the piano in our dining room. It measures 5 x 5 inches. Click on the image to view a larger version.
Other family members are suggested in the photographs atop the piano. The central "photograph" is just 6/8th inch across:

I am really pleased with this. Perhaps it is the best thing that I have done. Works that involve my family are always very important to me.

Outside, it is getting colder. My pots of Sempervivum contain remnants of snow:

Finally, a recent visitor that A spotted just outside the studio. A toad. It was happy to sit and pose and I plan to make an engraving from the photographs early next year.

Cards For Christmas

2008-11-17T13:21:00.006-01:00

This year I am collaborating with A to produce a range of Christmas cards for sale.

They are printed by hand on "Red" the 1902 Albion Press from my original engraved blocks. We used 300gsm Canford card and each one has a high quality "Conqueror envelope.

The cards are blank for whatever seasonal message is required.

Here they are:

And here are the images in more detail:

These cards are available here

Autumn, Work In Progress... And A Special Offer

2008-10-12T15:56:00.009-01:00

According to the colours in the landscape, Autumn is here at last.

From the bedroom window...

In the garden...

Today, however, it was so warm, sunny and calm that it would have graced July, rather than mid-October. Time to pick the last produce from the summer garden, starting with tiny, wonderfully sweet yellow tomatoes..

...and grapes. The fig tree was quite productive this year as well...

...and we still have lemons left for a few more Gin and Tonics.

There are still quite a few flowers in the garden. These French Marigolds are grown in the kitchen garden to deflect the attention of the carrot flies away from the carrots.

Inside and sorting out a large pile of engravings that I cleared from the studio during the Open Studio in July. These are just things that were around the place in little piles - finally sorted.There are current stock engravings, others that have been "retired" from exhibitions, some for Ebay and some that I will reuse for proofing on the reverse...

Meanwhile, I have been working on several engravings, including a large (for me) five inch square image for the portfolio marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of the relaunch of the Society Of Wood Engravers. Working on a lovely block made up of pieces of endgrain boxwood, made by Chris Daunt.

Twenty five engravers are each contributing a print for a portfolio. Every print is based on a number between one and twenty five. My number is twenty. The theme is a piano duet - twenty fingers (and thumbs). I also liked the association between the number twenty and the word score, which has both numerical and musical connotations.

Here is my working sketch...

The next photograph shows the drawing of the image in reverse onto the darkened block. I am using simple perspective to draw the piano keys, with a vanishing point just above the centre of the block.

The engraving begins. The players are J and A, who both play the piano. I started with the highlights on A's jacket and hair.

And here, much of the engraving is done. Click on any of the photographs to see more detail.

More photographs of this project will follow in the next post.

* * * * * * * * * *

When I started engraving, printing could sometimes be rather a trial and I tended to print in fairly small batches. The Albions, and my years of experience using them allow me to go back to these earlier images and complete the editions relatively easily.

A recent engraving to be completed was Digging The Tree, one of my "Brothers" series. This engraving, which remains a favourite of mine, was also one of the first to feature Ely Cathedral in the background. The scene sees our sons digging a Christmas tree ready to take it into the house and decorate it.

Image Size 10 x 5.7 cm

As a special offer to my readers, a number of these engravings are available here for a much reduced price.

Recent Work (4) Nelson

2008-09-25T21:23:00.012-01:00

I recently completed a "Keepsake" to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of Horatio Nelson. This was a commission from The Kings Lynn Arts Centre.

The keepsake was engraved on a large block of English boxwood. The design has many elements, including Nelson's birthplace, Burnham Thorpe church, The arms of King's Lynn, A map showing the position of the Battle of Trafalgar and the columns at Trafalgar Square and Great Yarmouth.

These photographs show the progress of the engraving ("click" on the images to enlarge them).

Here is the partly engraved block with the original drawing that I worked from.

The finished block:

Part of the edition was printed for members of The 1805 Club. Those prints had additional text printed from a small second block. It is difficult to engrave small pieces of wood. An easy solution is to tape offcuts around the small block, making it easier to hold:

The finished block has been fixed to the bed of an Albion Handpress; ink has been rolled onto the block ready for printing.

I don't often appear in this blog.Here am I "pulling" an impression.

A scan of the finished engraving:
Finally... the keepsakes are printed, dried, trimmed, numbered and signed.... ready for delivery. They will be sold at an extremely modest cost at the Fermoy Gallery of the Kings Lynn Arts centre. the exhibition runs from 27th September until 1st November.

As a bonus, here is a short film explaining how I went about engraving the small second block:

Recent Work (3)

2008-09-02T21:35:00.007-01:00

Summer, such as it was, is nearly at an end and the harvest, such as it has been, is nearly in.

Here is the story of my engraving for the BAREN exchange number 37, which had the theme of a journey. It brought together two things that I had been saving, namely, the idea of making an image based on Cornish gardens and using a lovely natural "round" of boxwood sent to me by blockmaker Chris Daunt.

I started to engrave the block in public at Art In Action (see previous post). I worked on a very detailed area of plants at the bottom of the image and then moved on to engrave the sky.

I returned home, safe and sound, despite brake failure and continued to engrave. In fine weather, I worked in the garden, fuelled by large cups of tea:

The image gradually took shape...

...until the engraving was finished and I could take a proof.

I usually proof in the smaller Albion. I worked through a few states as I tidied up the engraving until the block was finished and printing commenced...

...followed by drying.

Here is the final image. The print is in memory of Wanda Robertson who passed away earlier this year. I bid farewell to another old friend, my Vandercook proofing press which I used to proof and edition my engravings from 1999 until the arrival of my first Albion press. I have sadly neglected it in recent years and it has now gone to a home where it will be loved and used.

So I will end by raising a glass to old friends. A glass from a bottle featuring one of my engravings on the label. I have engraved several designs for wine labels over the last few years. This is the first one that I have seen "on the shelf"; I spotted it in the shop attached to my local service station, of all places.

Cheers!

Art In Action: Looking Back

2008-07-25T18:33:00.004-01:00

My second Open Studio was as successful as the first, with many visitors dropping by to see what goes on and marvel at the small space in which I work. As soon as the Sunday stint was over, I started to gather things together for Art in Action. Some new work needed to be printed and other engravings awaited framing. The days were somewhat crowded. J returned from Prague in the early hours of Wednesday morning and, somewhat later that same morning, I started to pack my bits and pieces into the trusty VW. From this...

To this...

I set off late morning and after three hours, I was in rural Oxfordshire and brewing up the necessary tea:

Unlike last year, the printmakers were sharing a tent with those who practice drawing. This is a logical combination for me as all of my engraving is underpinned by drawing. I set out my workspace:

At the far end of my area stood the magnificent 1876 Hopkinson and Cope Albion handpress

Opposite, and in other parts of the tent, were framed engravings:

During Art in Action, I was working on an engraving to be submitted to the 37th BAREN print exchange. This is on the theme of journeys. More of this at a later date.

The first two days were absolutely mad. I was demonstrating engraving, printing on the Albion and handling sales and queries about bookplates; I started to lose my voice. J and A arrived on Saturday and the pressure eased considerably. J took over sales and kept my stock in order and A demonstrated the art of printing on a Victorian iron handpress; he is becoming a skilled practicioner:

Other printmakers were also in action. Laurie Rudling prints a collagraph:

Around a corner, Jason Hicklin inks an etching plate before printing it:

Opposite me was the extremely talented Karen Wallis, who was working on a huge drawing done over the four days in response to the event. You can see me posing with the Albion to the right of the centre. See the whole drawing here.

Taking a break from printing, A practiced his engraving skills.

J and A left in the early evening and I stayed to help dismantle the contents of the tent, leaving Oxfordshire at about 9pm. No floods this year, just a pleasant and gradually darkening evening in England. It was just over an hour later when disaster struck and the brakes failed on my van.

Art In Action 2008 - Next Week

2008-07-11T07:23:00.000-01:00

As soon as I have finished my second and last Open Studio this coming weekend, I will be packing everything away to take to Art In Action at Waterperry near Oxford.

From the website:

How it all began

Art in Action was created out of a simple observation: people are fascinated when artists and craftsmen openly demonstrate their skills and discuss their work.

Bernard Saunders, then guardian of Waterperry Gardens, decided to organise an event at Waterperry based on this principle. Artists and craftspeople would work as if in their own studios, with the public as audience.

In 1977, 51 artists and musicians took part and 14,000 visitors arrived. The event is now a showcase for over 250 demonstrators from a wide range of disciplines including painting, sculpture, drawing, ceramics and textiles. Art in Action 2006 attracted about 22,000 visitors.

The event has expanded over the years to include practical classes (open to all ages and skill levels) , performances of fine music and dance, dialogues on arts and crafts, a craft market, and a range of refreshment facilities.

Aims of the event

To create a relaxed and friendly environment where artists and craftspeople can demonstrate and discuss their techniques with the public.

To present high standards of artistic skill and creative design.

To show the range of possibilities that exist in each artistic field.

To bring together accepted masters and young beginners.

To create a concentrated display of talent that inspires all.

To broaden the knowledge and understanding of traditional arts and craft skills of other countries.

To support the artist community with a high quality event that will encourage purchases and commissions.

I will be travelling across country and setting up on Wednesday. Last year was a tremendous success, despite being caught up with some truly awful weather. (Link to my blog of Art In Action 2007)

If any of you are going to Art In Action this year, do drop by and say hello at the Drawing and Printmaking tent.

Open Studio Weekend 1 and New Work

2008-07-08T19:10:00.001-01:00

Despite odd showers of rain (to be expected on this final weekend of tennis at Wimbledon and so many other outdoor events) I was very pleased with the first weekend of the Open Studio. It was great to see old friends and new faces. Some people had traveled quite a distance to get here. Here is a record of a quieter moment.

The Cambridge Open Studio flag flutters in the sun to welcome you all:

Inside the door you can see a collection of my bookplates and articles about my work from several countries:

Glancing round, you can see through the open door of the pressroom to the small 1865 Albion press and some framed engravings:

More framed engravings, the drying racks, the inking table and a mandolin - its great to play a tune or two as a break from printing:

Now we can see both presses. A was giving demonstrations on "Red" the larger 1902 Albion:

Some of the shelves had been cleared to make room for sketchbooks, examples of my wedding and Christening images and the Seamus Heaney project:

Leaving the pressroom again, "Dr Snake" guards some more door-hung engravings:

Out on the main table, miscellaneous odds and ends:

I set up my engraving kit at the end of the table, finishing a block featuring a figure in a library with books and fossils:

When the sun did shine, it was pleasantly warm and A and I could take our breaks outside:

Here is a walk through of the whole thing. No commentary, just birds singing and music by Brian Eno:

The weekend is over and I'm back to work - designing a bookplate in the garden.

Its great to look up and see one of my favourite flower beds.

Meanwhile, below the table, another kind of distraction as one of the hens absent-mindedly pecks at my jeans:

Today, I was working on designs for three separate projects. They are all now ready to engrave so I will have plenty to demostrate with next weekend and at Art In Action the following weekend. Here, I am finishing the design for an engraving on the theme of a journey for a print exchange. I will be using a lovely natural "round" of boxwood made by Chris Daunt:

Do drop by if you get the chance to next weekend. I am open on Saturday and Sunday between 11am and 6pm. Details here.

Open Studios 2008

2008-07-02T21:10:00.001-01:00

Its that time of year again and I'm getting ready for my open studio.

A warm welcome to any of my readers who might be in the Ely area during the first two weekends of July (5th/6th and 12th/13th) between 11am-6pm. See here for details (you will have to look me up in the directory).

In 2007, I used a gallery space near Cambridge but this year I will be at home near Ely in Cambridgeshire. Of course, I am nowhere near ready yet - mainly because I am still continuing to work on engravings ( had originally planned to take the month of July off but I don't want to build up a big waiting list).

My studio is a room within a larger garage building and , while it is fine for day to day work, it isn't the greatest space for demonstrating engraving or displaying my wares. I spent this afternoon and evening clearing space in the mail room to set up a table. This was no mean feat as it was cramed full of all kinds of junk that has either been discarded or moved elsewhere - such as into the camper:

Here is the cleared space - yes this is the "after" view, not the "before":

Here is some of the printing paraphanalia. The large blue press in pieces is an Arab treadle press undergoing cleaning and restoration. To the right is a bookbinder's nipping press on a stand. Below that you can just make out a small Adana 5 x 3 resting on an unrestored Vandercook No. 0 proofing press. In the background are small cases of type and cans of ink. Click on the image to enlarge it:

Here is the view from the cleared space looking into the studio. You can see the small Albion through the door and cases of type outside.

Thankfully, it was cooler today, which made the work easier. Yesterday was rather hot and the garden started to wilt a little. The lavender is looking lovely:

The stone heads seem to enjoy in the sun:

A robin decided to strike the kind of pose that I would love to see on a snowy day:

One of the hens finds a shady spot:

Meanwhile, I have been continuing work on a very detailed block that features a nude. It is very difficult to capture the texture of flesh with wood engraving. I treat the figure as if I were drawing it in ink - a series of lines. The scale at the side of the block is in centimetres, not in inches. the block that you see is two inches wide.:

The design features a book. I find it easier to draw it larger and then reduce the drawing. I prefer to do this by the old fashioned method of squaring up the drawing and then copying it onto smaller grids. Below, you can see the original sketch and two smaller variations:

The book was transferred to the block and then other elements were added.......

...and engraved.

Well it looks like I will have a busy few days now. One of the good things about the open studio is that I will be working. I hope to have this block finished at the weekend - and the next one started.

Finally, if you do make it to my Open Studio, do stop off and see our friend Heather Maunders who produces vibrant watercolours. Find directions from the Cambridge Open Studios website.

Another Week In The Workhouse

2008-06-07T08:35:00.000-01:00

A busy week and a pleasant one with everything looking so lush and green:

Its my favourite time of year both in the English countryside and in the garden:

We had a sort through the garage, making space for my Open Studios during the first two weekends in July. I have identified some excess letterpress materials that will be sold during the summer:

In one old case of type: dormice have made their larder:

Lots of engraving going on. A lightning strike on a tree takes shape destined firstly as an illustration but then to be editioned later in the year:

Another illustration, freely drawn on the block and outlines drawn in with a medium spitsticker. I will be commenting on the different tools that I use in a later post.

A bookplate starts to take shape for the second time. I had to start this again after I found a soft area in the wood that was difficult to cut precisely. Under any circumstance when I am not entirely happy with work there is only one option - to start again.

Thank you for the positive comments about the illustration for our niece's wedding invitation. The text was printed locally and then I added the engraving on the front using "Red" our larger Albion handpress. I paused part-way through to make a short film of the proceedings.

Recent Work (2)

2008-05-25T10:20:00.000-01:00

My grateful thanks to Hans who has agreed that I can share this with you. It is a short animation of the engraving of a bookplate that I finished a couple of months ago. It is one of my larger ones, being 4" tall by 3" wide and I particularly enjoyed tying together the different elements (trees, wagon wheel, vines & trout) that Hans wanted. A bookplate is a very personal thing, whether for personal use or a gift. Most of my working life is spent creating them and I find the process of working with the client to convey aspects of a life into a small space very interesting and satisfying.

Here is the film. The scans of the engraved block have been reversed so that the image can be seen to grow and move easily into the final section that shows the various "states" leading to the final image.

Here is a scan of the final plate:Now back to work - two illustrations and two bookplates to finish in ten days.

Recent Work (1)

2008-05-21T06:36:00.001-01:00

This is always a busy time of year for me and I have several engraving jobs in hand, as well as preparing for my Open Studio events and Art in Action in July. I photographed the various stages in the engraving of an image for the invitation to the wedding of our niece and her fiancee. Here they are.

Starting with a lovely piece of boxwood prepared by blockmaker Chris Daunt:

As always, I darkened the block slightly with diluted fountain pen ink so that I can see both drawing and cut marks:

The design was transferred to the block - making sure that I reversed the drawing:

Once happy with the drawing, I went over it with a fine ink pen and, straight away, made the first cuts - using a medium spitsticker for the lines and a round scorper to clear the sky. It is a good idea to move between two tools like this to add a bit of variety to a day of relentless engraving.

Next, I cleared more clouds, started to cut a tone for the sky and made a start on some very detailed work on the walls and windows of the Scottish castle where the wedding will take place:

I Carried on with the sky and then switched to clearing the corners with a wide square scorper. It is important to lower this wood considerably to make sure that it doesn't pick up any ink to leave nasty inky marks around the final image:

Back to working on the stone face of the building:

Nearly there:

A fine tint tool was used to lay down close lines to suggest the trees in the background:

I worked on the foreground, stippling to suggest gravel on the drive. The corners are now quite a bit lower than the face of the block. Finally, I added diagonal lines and horizontal lines to the face of the building.

The block is not finished, but this is a good stage to take the first proof. If I take too much out, I cannot put it back. The block is fixed to the bed of the smaller (1865) Albion press.

The first proof form the block shows the first state; this often shows lots of work to be done. I lightened the sky and the trees in the background and added horizontal lines to lighten the drive in the foreground. the building was pretty much there - I just needed to tidy up some small details. The various states dried on the rack above the press:

When I printed the fourth state, I knew that I had finished:

Here is a scan of the finished engraving. The image of 75 x 50 mm (about 3 x 2 inches):

And here is an enlargement to show some of the details.

It took about four days to complete the work. It's not unusual to spend a day on a square inch of detailed engraving. Between bouts of engraving, there was time for drawing, designing and even a spot of gardening.