Slow Progress

I’ve made progress on two and a half fronts over the past few weeks. 

The half involves trying to do more drawing. My attendance at life drawing has been rather sporadic recently so I’ve decided that I need to get out and about with my sketchbook. What better opportunity than the Art Society summer sketching programme. 

Well, I sorted out and packed my kit, I got to the venues on time, and each time the heavens opened.  Fortunately the locations have been very carefully chosen (with proximity to cafe and toilet) so we’ve eaten cake, drunk coffee and nattered. I’ve been getting out and about, only the drawing is lacking!

In the studio (my work room has been upgraded) progress has been better.

I started playing with imagery in charcoal

Which I decided to translate into multi colour monoprints at Hot Bed

 I think I’m going to follow this way of working for this project. Its flexible and I can concentrate on exploring the imagery rather having to allow time to build or etch plates. I don’t think there will be a lot of interest in buying teetotal images (think they might be even less commercially viable than my French mausoleums) so the lack of multiple editioned prints won’t be a problem.

Recycle/reuse has changed completely. As  I was playing with painted music manuscript (I was thinking “music of the spheres” to go into my pierced metal ball) the phrase “weaver of words” came to mind. 

It stuck  and I’ve gone from this

through this

and  this

and this

And at the moment I think I have the components for the cover

And an idea of roughly what the content will be.

I now need to work out if I need to stiffen the old book pages (whilst still keeping the recycled ethos) for the pop ups and I’m contemplating trying to colour the insides of the hexagon to make the images read clearer. But hopefully this will be finished for the next NWBA meeting.