Mixed Media Printmaking Blog

Time to explore and discover

inspiration / Linda Germain / March 26, 2019

Time!

Carve some out and claim it for yourself.

Are there ways that you can make it easy for yourself to claim time for art?
Are there small ways to work art making into your day?
Are there little changes that you can make that would support your art practice?

Some of the most powerful art making habits that I practice require very little time. I encourage you to be open to seeing how you can fit tiny art making habits into your day.

1 – Take a picture

I noticed this series of shadows when I was sitting at the Addison Gallery of American Art.

Shadows are my thing. I notice them all the time on my walks. It is pretty easy to pull out my phone and capture the shadow. The shadows can then become, stencils, drawings or prints.

Photograph your thing!

2 – Flip through books

Go to the library or bookstore and skim books that look interesting to you. You could look at a certain technique or artist or artistic style. Maybe even get inspiration from a completely new approach that you have never tried.

I hardly ever read an art book. I look at pictures and get more of a feeling from the books.

3 – Doodle, scribble or write

Find a pen and a stack of index cards and leave them everywhere:

beside your bed
on the coffee table
in your purse
in the car
in your backpack

The little index card journal can be used for:

quick sketches
imaginary drawings
collage
reminder notes and more

4 – Enjoy nature!

Nature can be an infinite source of inspiration for your art practice. Think of “nature” in the broadest sense. You can step out your office door in the city and let the sun shine down on your face!

Air, water, earth – find some and smile!

Let it sink in and then you can bring the feeling back to the studio in the form of:

sketches
ideas
photos
tools and
new energy and plans.

I hope I have given you some ideas on how to make time for your art practice. Maybe take an art class.

If you can claim a little time to feed your art practice, then that creative energy will spill over into other parts of your day. Enjoy!

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Inspiration, experimentation and intuition – books as materials

artist book / Linda Germain / March 7, 2019

Using books as ART materials is a circular process for me.

First I am inspired by something about the book.

It could be inspired by the:

cover design
yellowed pages
old notes or scribbles
color, drawings or illustrations
title or story
kind of paper
spine letters
old pockets or labels

Then the next step is experimentation. How can I take what I love and use it in a new piece of art work? This can be the scary part, if I am really attached to the book part and afraid to wreck it or lose it. So I start with books and parts that I am not so attached to.

The experimentation can be:

Cutting the book apart to use the covers
Making a black out poem on a page
Cutting and collaging pages
painting pages
folding pages into origami
replicating pockets and labels
Shredding pages into bits
Photocopy and enlarge drawings
Cutting words and making new meaning
Anything that you could do with paper is possible

Then the final step is following my intuition. This would be different for every artist.

The things that inform my gut feelings and intuition are:

the texture and feel of the paper
the color and age of the page
the strength of the material
the intended purpose/viewer
design elements/principles like texture, value and focus

It is a back and forth of building and covering, uncovering and revealing. I often don’t know where the process is going to take me.

I hope for a pleasing expression of materials that make the viewer want to get closer and interact with the piece.

I think layers of information can pull the viewer in. They want to know and understand. I think that will be different for everyone.

Join me – in the online class – Book as ART Materials – class starts soon. READ the details on the workshop pages and register today.

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Books, paper, pictures and more

book arts / Linda Germain / March 5, 2019

I love using books as ART materials. The book inspires and informs that art project.

Some books are loved for the covers.

Sometimes the illustrations and drawings can be used to make new collages.

I think the more I play with books and take them apart and re-form the parts, then the more ideas I get.

Children’s books are great for taking apart and using the pages, covers and words to make new art.

I find my books at the local library book sales. The books are unwanted and destined for the recycle bin, so I don’t feel bad about, cut, shredding and writing in them.

Do you have a few books that you would like to repurpose?

MAKE!

poems
collages
journals,
tools
photos
artist books

Let’s do it!

Check out the details of the online workshops currently being offered.

Pages can be curled and scrunched into new shapes and then photographed! FUN stuff.

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What do books mean to you?

book arts, monotype print / Linda Germain / March 1, 2019

I must admit, I am not a big book reader, but I do love books. They can be intimate treasures that have been touched by many different people.

Story – Dream – Adventure – Escape!

I love the old unwanted books. I love to hold them and turn the pages and take in the experience.

These are the things I notice:

text, words and stories
feel of the paper
design of the cover
Notes of ownership
Scribbles of a child
Glue mesh and paper of the spine
pockets & labels
withdrawal notice
copyright dates
publisher
illustrations, drawing and graphics
embossed covers

Most of the books that I use to make art were destined for the recycling bin, so I think it is a win-win situation that I can use the parts to make new art.

As the book is deconstructed, I learn more about and and love it even more. Of course some books feels so precious to me and they do not get torn up and cut apart. At least not yet.

Sometimes I use the covers and make new journals for drawings, doodles and prints.

If you have a collection of unwanted books and are brave enough to repurpose them into new works of art, then join us in the online art class – Books as ART materials. Class starts soon. READ the details on the workshop page.

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Print Day in May – 4th 2019

monotype print / Linda Germain / February 26, 2019

We still have plenty of time to plan and join the global community of printmakers for Print Day in May.

Print Day in May began in 2007 at the Monterey Peninsula College (MPC), Monterey, CA. The MPC Fine Art Print Club (now the MPC Printmakers) created it to encourage printmakers everywhere to create prints on the same day . . . an all-inclusive printmaking effort! Join the MPC Printmakers, and make some prints during Print Day in May!

You can get into the international event:

Register for free on their website
plan a print day with your print buddies
get psyched about and share your passion on social media with the #printdayinmay

I have been brainstorming ideas for the event. It will be a world wide print-along, a celebration of all that printmaking has to offer.

Here are a few ideas:

Print botanicals with your best friend
Make messy painted monotypes with your Grandkids
Make tiny gelatin plates and print a tote bag
Do a print exchange with a small circle of artists
Visit a print studio and print with them
Try a new method of printmaking
Do trace monoprints at a life drawing class
Make a manhole cover print

The main goal is to print and share the joy of printmaking with other. More info about Print a day in May on their website.

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