words + pictures from the studio of Joan Colbert
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Avenue, the cat, has a wonderful carpet that provided a colorful backdrop to his recent portrait. Just for fun the image was translated into a block print – less color, more magic!
Avenue’s Magic Carpet
block print (linocut) in hand embellished frame
Tags: cat, linocut, linoleum print, pet portrait, tabby
“Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and in all the nooks.”
Dr. Suess
There are a few additions to the Books in Print series, started last fall, all of which are on display at the studio at Summit Artspace. This has been a fun little diversion – even though many of us enjoy the convenience of digital books, there is something about groups of books collected on shelves or in stacks. Their warmth invites us to choose an old favorite or something new, to leaf through the pages or settle in for a long read.
On the subject of books: Last fall also saw a couple new Little Free Library additions right here in west Akron. Fellow artist and friend, Don Parsisson, designed and built a Cape Cod wood-shingled library (Little Free Library #17708) in front of his home.
photo ©Don Parsisson
Around the same time, Angel Falls Coffee Company installed an A-frame version, designed by artist, Steve Levey, adjacent to the coffee shop. It will be maintained by the Highland Square Branch Library.
Tags: block print, books, bookshelf, linocut, little free library, printmaking
Bookshelf
block print
Several new prints are now available at Don Drumm Studios & Gallery. These are just the beginning of a small series of bookshelf images – the plan is for an eventual bookcase of prints!
Books
block print
Vols. I, II, III
block print
Tags: block print, linocut, printmaking
Finally there are five prints to complete the Aconitum (monkshood) group in the As Potent as a Charm series! The final prints are designed to flank the first three, although they all work just as well individually.
Aconitum, the bane of women and wolves, is reputed to be deadly to whales, tigers and leopards when used in poison darts; its scent alone is enough to fell a mouse. The situation is dire for the little mouse in the print, Mousebane, where the potential for herbal poisoning is the least of its worries.
Meanwhile, the monk now must consider unearthly entities to his left in the print, Beyond. Two more common names for the queen of poisons, derived from the appearance of the Aconitum flower, are suggested: a rocket (blue rocket) soars into the the night sky above the devilish gargoyle lurking in the shadows (devil’s helmet).
Browse previous posts for more information or visit As Potent as a Charm on my website.
Tags: Aconite, Aconitum, linocut, linoleum print, monkshood, poison, relief print
Even though the initial three prints in the monkshood series, included in the Upstairs Downstairs exhibit earlier this year, worked fine as a triptych, I knew then that five was the magic number to complete the set of Aconitum inspired images. The ‘queen of poisons’ is probably best known as monkshood, but it also answers to leopard’s bane, devil’s helmet, blue rocket and mousebane (in addition to the previously depicted women’s bane and wolfsbane).
After many initial drawings of devils, the final sketch has him perched like a gargoyle, while the leopard eventually wound up on an overhead tree branch. Both drawings have been transferred to linoleum blocks and cutting has begun – printing can’t be far behind.
Tags: Aconite, Aconitum, block print, linocut, linoleum print, relief print
Well, not exactly off the press, but definitely new. . .
Just as quickly as the holidays were over, the focus switched to new art for a January exhibit that was added to the calendar in November. It became a game of beat the clock as ideas and drawings turned into finished and framed work. The desire for completely new pieces meant that there would only be a few.
As a continuation of the Potent as a Charm series (see posts from September, 2013), the new prints feature specific poisonous plants, but this time without actually illustrating them.
Monk(s)hood
block print
Tags: Aconitum, linocut, linoleum print, monkshood, relief print
