Printmaking: Copper Plate #2

One of the hardest things about printing is that it is often unpredictable. It is not nearly as controllable as many mediums and hours of work can go to waste. 

For our second copper plate etching project we had to use a photopolymer layer as a ground. By placing objects on the plate with the layer and shooting intense UV light down on the plate, the 'shadows' of the objects are left. I chose a multitude of pebble I found on campus.

Sketch #1 
This first proof has a sketch on it of what I could potentially add to the print. It looks sorta like outer space to me

Sketch #2
This was meant to look like lava: where the rock once originated

Sketch #3
This segmentation made me think of a conglomerate rock 

I used melted crisco to get this splattered affect.. unfortunately despite hours of work the rocks got almost completely lost

I added a bit of turquoise to this print.. and a wash to try and make the rocks show up a bit more

Take a walk

Towards the end of spring semester, I decided I wanted to do something cool for Jackson before summer began and we saw each other much less. Of course a drawing or some sort of art-creation idea came to mind, but I also wanted to do something more unique and fun. So, in order to make it a gift but also something interactive, I made him a puzzle scavenger hunt! I used some extra foam core I had from mounting artwork and drew a picture of us in pen. I used my Blick markers to make the background vibrant - with a Spiderman symbol for me and Green Lantern for Jackson.

I outlined 30 puzzle pieces on the back of the drawing and cut them out carefully with my x-acto knife. Before I cut them I tested out what shape tabs would be easiest to cut: typical round, square, or triangular, and square tabs worked the best. 

I planned out the scavenger hunt in our dorm and all around campus, I took my a journal and rode around campus on my longboard, jotting down clues and deciding on hiding spots - one for each of the 30 pieces!

It took quite a bit of time, but I had a lot of fun doing it, and in the final week of school, I set it up! I was worried that people who find them/ weather would ruin them, so I didn't want to hide them until the day of, so I wrapped each puzzle piece in a clue and hid them all in the morning. Jackson was excited, he knew it was a scavenger hunt, but not what for, nor how extensive it would be! It was so much fun to finally do it and watch him get really confused over some of the clues.

Student art show!

I'm excited because two of the 6 artworks I submitted to the student art gallery got in! My final drawing for Drawing I last semester of the spider spinning a web against the night sky, and a Drawing II assignment from this semester of berries! The opening is this coming Friday in the Lord Hall Gallery! I'm excited for my birthday this coming Monday (April 2nd!)

This is my latest assignment for Drawing II that I did this past weekend. The objective was to draw a figure expressing either anxiety, isolation, or rage: I chose isolation and had Jackson pose for me, although I also took a picture because he couldn't hold that pose for hours! My roommate Robyn pointed out the way the shading looks somewhat geometric and I agree, I like it! I also like the way I drew his hands.

Below is a whole collection of doodles that I've done over the past couple of months in my little sketchbook. I do some in my free time, but oftentimes while I'm listening during class, it actually helps me pay better attention most of the time.

I really like drawing people in class, but they are usually just sitting in seats, facing away from me

I love using the Blick double sided drawing markers I got for Christmas but because I have a Japanese album-style Moleskine sketchbook it does bleed through on the other side!

I wrote this during the wicked warm week in March where temps got above 80 degrees!

...Trying to compensate for the fact that my marker bled through