words + pictures from the studio of Joan Colbert
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It’s been nearly a year since the Bradford pear was cut down and the bottom slice (cookie?) is now quite dry. Putting it to use in potential printmaking projects will have to wait, but in the meantime it can be enjoyed simply as is.
wall artwork: Coppice, monotype
Sometimes cutting blocks is simply . . . cutting blocks.
Tags: linoleum block, printmaking
There have been many surprises in the ongoing research on poisonous plants for the As Potent as a Charm series. Not the least is the number of common landscape/foundation plantings that add a hint of danger to the structure of the garden. Consider this threesome of familiar shrubs:
left to right: oleander, yew and rhododendron
Tags: drawing, line drawing, oleander, rhododendron, yew
The Solanaceae prints seemed complete when the fifth one was printed, but apparently there will be a new addition to the family. Envisioning a triptych, I decided to add another pairing that plays off of the tabletop motif of two of the earlier prints. When complete this sixth image will feature Datura stramonium and Physalis alkekengi, Chinese Lantern plant.
Tags: Chinese Lantern plant, Datura, linocut, linoleum print, moth, printmaking, Solanaceae
It’s been years since the Night Blooming Cereus, Epiphyllum oxypetalum, bloomed, but tonight’s the night! The spectacular flower and heavenly scent definitely make it worth staying up late. My patience may be further rewarded – I spied four more tiny buds!
This watercolor was painted about ten years ago following its first bloom.
Overnight Sensation
watercolor
private collection
Tags: epiphyllum, watercolor
From the drawing table . . . combining sketches for another print in the As Potent as a Charm series. This time it’s Brugmansia, specifically Brugmansia suaveleons, often called Angel’s Trumpet. This is yet another lovely, yet lethal, flower from the Solanaceae family. John Robertson, in his summary on The Poison Garden Website, says it best: “In northern climates this attractive plant is often grown indoors because people assume its common name refers to the look of the flowers rather than the indication that this is the sound to be heard after ingestion of a fatal amount.”
Tags: angel's trumpet, Brugmansia, drawing, line drawing, Solanaceae
Took a break from black ink and relief prints to work with watercolor, pastel and color (!) in this portrait of Ava, a fawn-colored Doberman.
Commissioned for a gift, there’s a bit of a ‘small world’ story to go with the artwork. The purchaser now lives in China, but the recipient is local. Apparently Ava lived nearby several years ago and participated in a monthly dog walk that was dubbed the Pooch Patrol. One of the evening strolls, and snapshots of the event, inspired my print, Ready to Walk – and there she is, with a couple of her walking buddies! Who knew?!
images:
Ava, mixed media
Ready to Walk, block print
Tags: Doberman, dog, linocut, mixed media, pastel, pet portrait, printmaking, watercolor
The mandrakes, Mandragora, make another appearance in the As Potent as a Charm series – this time in the fifth pairing from the Solanaceae family. Apparently they’ve been unearthed by a hapless dog that couldn’t resist digging in the dirt. Their underground relative, the potato, is a much kinder, gentler variety of nightshade.
image: Scuttle, block print
Click on the links to read more about As Potent as a Charm or check out the mandrakes in Red as a Beet.
Tags: dog, linocut, mandrake, nightshade, potato, printmaking, relief print, Solanaceae
Oh, those Best Laid Plans . . . which seems an apt title for another pairing from the plant family Solanaceae. That’s Henbane, Hyoscyamus niger, causing the chicken to be a little, uh, chicken. This is the fourth print of unlikely familial pairs from the nightshade family. Although the related vegetable isn’t visible in the above detail, the logical partner for henbane is (what else?) eggplant!
image: Best Laid Plans, block print
Tags: block print, chicken, egg, eggplant, henbane, linocut, printmaking, relief print, Solanaceae
Just completed – another mixed media piece in the Imprints series! The client’s only specific requests were the finished size and the inclusion of a compass rose. The tiny compass rose print guided the overall theme and inspired the title of Imprints/Directions.
image: Imprints/Directions, mixed media, private collection
View more pieces in the series on joancolbert.com.
Tags: block print, compass rose, mixed media, printmaking, relief print
