mixed media printmaking

Printmaking, Drawing and Walking

2010, mixed media printmaking, relief prints / /

This is a soft block print of Rye on the Rocks, our family cottage at Rye Beach. I have wanted to do a series about the cottage, my grandmother, the weather, the emotions and mistique of the tiny place. Today I used a speedy cut block and it was very easy to carve with inexpensive carving tools. That is very satisfying.
On another note, the state of our country is getting me down and I usually live a very “protected” live – something is changing. I feel relationship to the chaos and crisis that they talk about in the news. Movement that is what I am using to get me through the day. I started with a walk this morning and in the studio I am moving from piece to piece, moving on, moving through just moving. My walk took me past the Spatial Relations exhibit @ the ArtSpace @ Bentley Library. It looks great.
I have several drawings of Kip going and I am just making the marks, letting things flow, letting stuff out. I came across a book by Fred Babb last week. “go to your studio and make stuff” that speaks to me. I like the open endedness about is. It is freeing. It feels good. But I get to my studio and I start to impose restrictions and expectations on the stuff I make. That is no fun and stops the flow of anything good.

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Prints, Puppies and Discovery

2010, Haverhill, mixed media printmaking, relief prints / /

It was a fine day on the farm today. I worked on cleaning perenials for the winter. This drawing of Kip has been evolving over the last few weeks. It is fun to work on it as the moment moves – or as she moves. I do like these colors. I played with the idea of self-portraits and simple printing plates. I did a very quick sketch. I cropped the image to fit on to the plate, and then transferred the image to a styrofoam plate. I think this will be a great process from the class that I will be teaching at the Newburyport Art Association this winter. It is fast, flexible and satisfying. For this process less is more and gesture drawing work wonderfully. You can experiment with colored papers, multiple ink colors, masking certain areas and it is so fast and easy that you could make several plates from one drawing depending on how you crop it. I am hopeful that the kids with like it as much as I do. I have tried printing these plates as intaglio plates and have varied results. I think that I will try this with the presses at New Hampshire Institute of Art next friday. http://www.linda-germain.com/

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Series of Monotype Prints – Paper Doll Dresses

2010, combined techniques, Haverhill, mixed media printmaking / /


I am getting ready for a workshop on Composing the Print at the Artists’ Playground in Newburyport, MA. So I am working with a new piece of gelatin and I made some fun stencils of a paper doll dress. I modified the basic stencil with stitching, salt, wire mesh, and thread. It was fun to work up this series of small gelatin prints.
Check out the video of the small dresses.

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Finding a Line of Inquiry

2010, combined techniques, mixed media printmaking / /

Back from my workshop with Tim Hawkesworth and trying to apply what I learned. One idea he introduced was finding a line of inquiry and working that with compassionate commitment. I may have a line of inquiry for the moment or the night but it does not seem to be “the” line of inquiry. But that is good enough for now. He also suggested finding what I like in my work and move from there, instead of focusing on what is wrong or what I don’t like. I am also going to study and look for artists I like and learn from them. www.linda-germain.com

Post by Linda Germain

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"She Moved IV" – painting goes on

2010, Haverhill, mixed media printmaking / /

This drawing/painting was reworked. It evolved and got cropped. I kept trying something new. Going Darker, going lighter, adding texture, trying a new medium. You would not think that Kip, the dog moves that much, but she does. She looks pretty sleepy and that she is too. I found that charcoal over oil pastel causes the charcoal to stick to the pastel and stand out. www.linda-germain.com

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