The Last King in Riggindale

 It's been a while since I last handprinted a linocut and I'd forgotten how much of a workout it can be. This linocut, a reworking of a much smaller wood engraving is too big to go through my press so it was back to the baren and a wooden spoon. In six hours I managed to print 11 impressions, although I think only 8 of them are good enough to sign and number at this stage so I'll need another session later to print up the number required for the edition. I was planning 20 but I think I'll settle for 10, unless I can get access to a press with a bed big enough to take an A2 sheet of paper.

The Last King in Riggindale

Linocut.

298mm x 421mm

The title refers to the Lake District valley that was the site of the last breeding pair of Golden Eagles in England. 

Exhibition News

 I was pleased to receive a  notification earlier today that my two submissions to the Calderdale Open Art Exhibition have been accepted. The exhibition which runs from the 30th September to the 9th April is held at the Smith Art Gallery in Brighouse, West Yorkshire. Despite the fact that the gallery is in my home town this will be the first time that I have exhibited my work there since I was 7 or 8 years old, when I had a painting of a Hull Trawler shown there in an exhibition of local school childrens art. The only thing I remember about this being visiting the exhibition with my parents and getting really upset because the gallery had labelled the work as the Fighting Trip rather than the Fishing Trip as I had titled it. Anyway the two accepted works are the mezzotints below and as they are both signed and titled below the image there shouldn't be any problems this time.

Where Seven Streams Fall

Sylvan Cathedral

In other news I will be at the Hebden Bridge Print Fair at the Town Hall on the 23rd and 24th September. Local for me, it makes a nice change to only have to travel a couple of miles up the valley from my home. Further afield, I have been invited to take part in Great Print 9 at the Rheged Centre in Penrith, Cumbria. This exhibition runs from the 8th December to 3rd March.

New Prints

 I have been working on a number of images all of which have over the last couple of days come to completion and been editioned.

Badger

Wood Engraving

30mm x 70mm

Golden Eagle 

Wood Engraving

23mm x 72mm

Sylvan Cathedral

Mezzotint

200mm x 300mm

Ink, Wipe, Print - Repeat

 Got up this morning and began to edition the new mezzotint. After around 7 hours working managed 10 impressions.

Two attempt and still can't take a decent photo of the print

Prospect Studios Mezzotint Workshop

 Weather wise it's been a pretty miserable weekend with two days of non-stop heavy rain making the rivers run high with brown peat stained water. So what better way to spend the weekend than teaching a mezzotint workshop in good company at my favourite studio, run by Alan Birch at Waterfoot in Rossendale. Just an hours drive over the moors from home. With a mixture of artists, some of whom had been on my previous workshops there and some others making their first mezzotint prints it's been a thoroughly enjoyable two days with some really stunning results.

3rd State

 I took two impressions this evening from the current mezzotint plate in progress. Ist impression at the top, 2nd at the bottom. Printed the 2nd impression with a little more pressure so combined with the better inking it's a crisper image, although you wouldn't believe that from the dodgy photo. Trust me it is. 

Almost there now just some tidying up to do in parts then it will be ready to edition and show at Art in the Pen in August.

Hawthorn Printmakers Charcoal Black ink. 

220gsm Fabriano Rosapina.

Image 200mm x 300mm

Working proof

 Time to see what the state of play is with the latest plate. So I inked it up and pulled a proof.

This is the plate, which looks quite well developed and for once I've managed to take a half decent photo of it.

And the print, still some way to go. The design is there but the lighter areas still need a lot of work.

Starting a new plate

 For some time now I've had an idea in my mind for a new mezzotint. Based on a woodland lane that leads down into the valley near my home. I splashed some ink around and came up with this.

It's very rough but a fair approximation of what I had in my mind. So I made a more careful pencil drawing in reverse ready to transfer to the plate.

Now we are getting somewhere and the image can be transferred to the plate. I usually have plates with grounds prepared in advance, it means that once I have an image I can get straight on with the engraving without having to spend hours preparing the plate beforehand. The first stage is to start establishing the lightest areas of the plate.

Visions of Landscape

 Visions of Landscape Exhibition at The Storey Gallery, Lancaster. On now until 22nd April.

Batik paintings by Simon Clarke, Paintings by Michael Howley and Pete Clarke, Photography by Phil Darby, Ceramics by Stella Boothman, Anne Cahill and Sue Turner, Encaustic Wax by Susan Brazendale, Glass by Karen Redmayne and prints by Anita Burrows and Stuart Brocklehurst.