Copper Plates

I found the Copper Spirit plates. They need a good clean up, but not to bad for being in storage for so long. Always wanted to weld the plates together for a wall hanging. Kind of glad I didn’t.

The plates still need some fiddling around with. But I am glad to confirm to myself that the Copper Spirit will fit on a standard 22×30 inch sheet of paper.

My plan is to start with the bottom plates and print the image in layers. This is what I was left with when I took all the top layers to get to the bottom plates. It is going to need a little bit of planning and organization. Multiple possibilities also. The plates are etched on both sides of the copper plate.

When I get a few printed versions of the Copper Spirit. I am going to glue the Copper Spirit together and hang it on the wall. I don’t weld, but I am sure there is a good glue strong enough to hold it together. That I can do myself:)

Dreaming of getting back in the Studio and playing with lots of ink,

2022 Challenge

One With Copper, Art Every Day Month and Blogging for Peace November 5, 2009. Art Installation on my back porch in Ottawa, Ontario

Before Christmas I was thinking about how to get myself back to work and creating. But I was again not expecting everything to come to a stop AGAIN. I am so Bummed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And only getting back to work and busy and productive will help.

Anyway, came up with this idea – from a long time ago. I have moved a few times since then and one challenge will be finding the plates. Then seeing if I can fit them on the Studio’s big press. Next- will I need to print each plate individually? And so on, a good printing challenge.

I have never liked promoting myself with shows and selling. So this project “One With Copper” has never been in a gallery. More fun to buy ink and paper 🙂 then framing, The project has video, art installations, prints and lots of photos. The above photo of the copper bird was supposted to be a big wall hanging. It never got done. So hopefully in 2022 I will be able to print it.

One With Copper photo collage “Copper Spirt Kiss”

So for now “again”, I am sitting at home knitting, reading and playing my flutes, drum, and guitar and talking to myself. Trying really hard to stay motivated.

Hang in there and Stay Safe.

++A Printmakers Beach Dream & +

I miss the beach, printmaking and art installation fun. Soon Soon !
Roof Top Dreams … an old alumium etching. Dreaming of new ones. Soon Soon !
  • Photo Collage and the big foot person is me.
    I will never be a dancer. But I Dream I can when I am playing my Flute.
    I love playing waltz’s 🙂
    Dreaming is Hope

Playing with ink coming soon…..

Yes, I need to commit to getting back to the studio. Right now I am loving my time in the garden and playing with my music.

All is well 🙂

The healthy news is:

” I miss my art!!!”

Pet is visiting again and loves to hang out when I am playing music.

I sure hope my inks are not all dried up. Very Scary Thought.

Something fun I used to do – playing with my copper plates

I am committed to pushing the restart button 🙂 !

I Had to Scratch into Copper this evening.

I hope this means the studio will be opening soon. Around 6:30pm I just had an urge to scratch copper 🙂 I have had this old piece of copper backed with car paint from my toxic first years of printmaking back in the 80’s and early 90’s. So I gathered up some tools and just had fun.

The car paint over the years had gotten scatched up, so I covered the scratches with sharpie marker.

The hands are mine. I really do have a crooked finger. But I can still reach F sharp on the guitar:)

Finished, for now. That was fun. If it etches well and I come up with a lively colorful background….. I might call it “Dragon Eye”

Wishing Everyone the best in 2021

I haven’t been to the Studio since last Nov. 5th.

I was playing with another idea, not sure where I was going with it 🙂 No title.

At the apartment I have finished a collagraph plate with Cats and and Dragons in it.

No title yet for this image.

I am so grateful for my Fibre Arts and Music – Celtic flute, Guitar and Bodhran that I can play with during lockdown.

Looking forward to the vaccine being available to ordinary people. Stay safe and remember to be kind (true key to happiness).

Cat With No Hat

Great day Thursday in the studio 🙂 I played with a 5×7 copper demo plate from a mini fundraising workshop for the Print Studio on the Sunday before Covid lockdown. GASP:/
This was the copper plate before it was etched in the Edinburgh Etch for about 2 hours.
From the left Speedball Screen Filler, the next out line was painted on with Golden Stop-Out Varnish for Intaglio Printmakers, and the next outline was good old black Sharpie maker. The other marks on the copper plate were made with a Lithographic Crayon .
I hope you can see it, there is one roll of Black Graphic Chemical W/S Block Print Ink. I think it makes a great Aquatint and so not fussy:) just one straight roll and nothing added to the ink.

The etched plate and proof. I love working on copper plates this way. The Aquatint is so rich and so simple.

I love the look of woven paper and this was an experiment I did awhile back – I painted Screen Filler on both sides of the woven paper. There are 3 layers of Screen filler. I found them in my drawer of stuff. I thought I had printed more then 9 but that’s OK, the plate is still in great condition for more printing.
I only wipe off the plate with a rag 🙂

The blue paper was dyed in Japanese Indigo that I grew. I used to dump scraps of paper at the end of a dye day and leave them over night. I have a huge pile of small pieces of paper form my plant dyes. It is just another fun thing to do!

My time in the Studio is Zen time, This winter printing is hopefully only all playful subject matter. Like my summer gardening. Printmaking makes me happy.

The “Cat With No Hat” Is still in the thinking/planning stage, I am not sure how I want to edition the idea. Again 🙂 something fun to think about.

Before I left the Studio I took some photos from 3 corners of the Studio. Our Print Studio is at the Nepean Creative Arts Centre and is run by the Ottawa/Gatineau Printmakers Connective

Stay Safe and do lots of Happy Printmaking 🙂

Happy Days in Print Studio

4 Happy Days playing in the Studio. Got to have Music, lots of Celtic Flute and Drumming 🙂

I took lots of photos of what I am playing with in the Studio, so this blog entry is a very condensed version of the four days. I have about 10 maybes completed of “All In A Days Work” and I am moving on to start playing with two old ImagOn plates. So glad I did not strip the plates. Once Upon a Day I was very concerned about making my plates and prints perfect. Not anymore, wrinkles are OK 🙂

So first a little about “All In A Days Work” copper etching and then an introduction to the ImagOn Plates.

I added some color to the cats.
“All In a Days Work” and I think this one is finished.
This is a detail of another Print.
The print from the detail, Pretty sure it is finished.
These are the two ImagOn plates that are not perfect, a few wrinkles in the ImagOn. But I was so excited when I pulled the first proof. I played a bit with the proof.
detail of inked ImagOn plate.
The first proof.
Detail of the grass from outside the Studio door.

I have no Idea what I want this image to say. ?? Thinking about making new stencils and working on a maybe back ground color. ?? such a nice fun thing to be thinking about 🙂

Started playing with the background Idea for the ImagOn plates. It is an old piece of paper cut to the size of the two plates and painted with Speedball Screen filler with a bit of cheesecloth added.
The two plates all inked all nice and neat. So in need of a theme/idea.

That is my condensed version of my time at the Ottawa/Gatineau Printmakers Connective Print Studio. So grateful it is Open.

Stay Safe & Happy Printing.