Conisborough Castle. Nearly finished.

Another dark green, and then a darker shadow colour.

One more final green, colour 14. This has got far too complicated.

Just the last dark colour to go now.

Back to the castle print

Three more colours added and things are starting to come together.

Then back to a dark green

and then a cooler shadow tone

New Work

I have been working solidly for the last twelve months or so, on work for a solo exhibition at Doncaster Art Gallery next January. This will have around 25-30 prints in it, all based on studies made around the valley of the River Don in South Yorkshire. Mostly landscapes but others with some Natural History content. So far I have 21 prints completed, so as I average about 2 a month I should meet my target. As all this work is for a particular exhibition, apart from posting the step by step stages on the blog, I have been keeping these prints under wraps and haven't shown them anywhere yet. However, this means that I am now running low on other work and my print drawers are starting to look a little bare. Which is good in one respect but as Art in the Pen is coming up next weekend, I am conscious that I am going there with pretty much the same work that I took last year and which I also showed at Printfest earlier this year. It doesn't look like I have done anything new for about the last 18 months! So in order to redress this over the last week or so, in and amongst other work, I have come up with a couple of new items just for next weekend.

Firstly a couple of simple prints done using the same block.

Badger 1
Linocut. 110mm x 150mm

I had been to that well known stockist of artist materials "Poundland" and bought a load of small brown paper bags, originally these were being sold as bags to put packed lunches in for childrens school dinners. I wanted them to put greetings cards and small prints in when I sold them. To smarten the bags up I printed this simple design onto the front of them all. Loathe as I was to waste a print on a "give away" I also printed a small edition of 12 onto some Hosho paper. Using the same block I also made a two colour linocut which I printed as a much larger edition of 24 also on Hosho paper. Actually my largest edition to date. I don't usually print more than 10 in an edition.

Badger 2
2 colour reduction linocut. 110mm x 150mm

These were pretty simple and didn't take much time to do so I came up with something else, slightly more complicated.

Otter
7 colour reduction linocut.
247mm x 150mm
Edition of 16.

Based on drawings made a couple of years ago of one in the River Nith in the centre of Dumfriess.

Slow going

Next two colours a light and then slightly darker shade of green printed in a band across the centre of the block. This is becoming much more complex than I had originally intended.

The next colour printed across the whole block should make all become clear.

Conisborough

A new block cut and inked for the first colour

Colour 1, a pale grey printed.

Colour 2, a pale brown grey. After printing this I decided it was too dark so I reprinted the entire edition again with a paler and more cream tone as below. Colour 3.

Now for the sky, Colour 4; blue

Inked block - and printed colour