 |
About the Element
I've been working with a lot of heavy topics in my printmaking lately:
the war in Iraq, global warming, Darfur. I chose chlorine for the
Periodic Table Printmaking Project because my immediate mental picture
was a swimming pool, which I thought would be a nice light topic to
work with. As I researched chlorine a bit more, I found out that
chlorine gas is highly poisonous and has been used as a chemical
weapon, most notably during World War I, so I had to restrain myself
from jumping back into dark topics. I looked at some David Hockney
paintings for inspiration, Hockney's work being the gold standard for
swimming pool art, and I took it from there.
About the Print
I work in the Japanese
method of woodblock printing, called moku hanga. This method uses
water-based pigments and a hand-held device called a baren rather than
a press and it is known for multiple blocks and rich velvety color. For
the chlorine print I used five blocks and took 12 impressions, ending
up with an edition of 10 prints on Rives lightweight paper. My weblog, Woodblock Dreams, details the entire process.
About the Printmaker
An illustrator for over 20 years, I took up printmaking in 2005
inspired by a workshop with New Hampshire based moku hanga artist Matt
Brown. I love moku hanga because it's non-toxic, requires no press or
chemicals, and takes up very little space, so it can be done almost
anywhere. It's easy to do, requiring just wood, water, pigment, paper,
a knife, a brush and something to rub the paper with. But it's also an
extremely difficult technique to master. I love that combination.
anniebissett.com
Woodblock Dreams
|