Raiding the holiday archives

Going back to a sketch made on holiday a couple of years ago for this print. We're on the Northumberland coast, the location will become apparent as the print progresses. Colour 1,  is a pale beige.

Great Northern Diver

Finished the Diver print.

Great Northern Diver

7 Colour Reduction Linocut. 190mm x 170mm. Edition of 8.

Final dark added to the birds head and parts of the birds back and wings.

Three more colours

After printing the last colour in the previous post. The next colour is a small but significant amount of red for the birds eye. There are three options for tackling this.

1. Ignore it altogether and leave it out.
This may be fine if the picture showed a diver floating around a mile off shore, but isn't really an option here.
2. Cheat and paint it in after I've finished printing the rest of the colours.
3. Do the job properly and print the colour.

We'll go with the last option. Firstly, I need to cut a stencil from a piece of tracing paper. I don't want too much of the block covered in bright red ink.

I've used the ink unmixed straight from the tin, as its a transparent water based ink when over printed on the previous colour it will darken to the correct tone.

It looks a bit of a mess but trust me, most of this is going to disappear under the next colour. Which will be a dark slate grey to establish the main tone of the birds back.

And then a slightly darker tone of the same colour.

One more dark tone should see it finished.

Next colours on the new print

Not much of the first colour will appear in the finished print, so carving away for the second colour, this pale blue went fairly quickly.

Now for some more complicated carving before printing the third colour which will be a darker tone of the same blue.

This isn't right.
There is a tonal difference here but not the one I was after. I got a bit impatient and instead of waiting until daylight, so that I could see what I was doing. I printed it during the evening under a rather dodgy artificial light. I knew it was wrong as soon as I'd done the first couple of prints, so I had another go in the morning.

Thats better. The image is now starting to make a little more sense.

There is quite a lot of material to remove now before the next colour can be printed. A good thing as it will give me a chance to ponder on the next stage. At some point I need to introduce a small patch of bright red. I'm not sure yet when, or how to do this. Time for a bottle of beer and some thinking.

New Print - First Stage

I've started a new print. I'll not show the initial working drawings as they will give the reveal away. Although the subject may already be apparent to some at this stage.

First colour after some very fiddly initial carving is this warm light grey. This colour will only show in a few areas but will help give some form to the lighter areas. 

After carving this stage the rest of the print should be relatively straight forward. Another five or six colours should see it finished. Stay tuned!

Last of the Illustrations

Finished the set of drawings for the local bird report. Here are the final three...

Common Sandpiper

Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm.

Rough Legged Buzzard
Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm

Common Whitethroat
Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm.

Just got the cover to go now - watch this space!

More Illustrations

Woodcock distraction display.
Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm.

Whilst cycling through Grass Wood in Wharfedale one afternoon this Woodcock flew across the road infront of me. It landed in the wood beside the road, limped off through the undergrowth, dragging one wing and making a call not unlike a Water Rail. The distraction worked as I was unable to find the brood of young it must have had crouched hidden nearby.

Dunnock
Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm

Reed Bunting singing from a Phragmites stem.

Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm.

Robin
Pencil and Ink Wash. 100mm x 140mm.