May 6, 2010

Handcarved ATC

Seems I have been very quiet on my blog.  Thank you for those of you who have visited and even left comments wondering how I am doing.  I have been busy...as you will see.

This is a print from a linocut of a rooster that I did last week.  I thought it was funny that after I had finished my two ATC for the month...I am trading within a group... I opened my mail from them.  One of the women wrote:  "Faces are okay but they should look different.  Are you doing any women?  Why not?"
Well as you can see I did some different kinds of faces...but neither one was a woman.  Why am I doing male faces?  I like them.  Why don't I do women...they are suppose to be soft and pretty and I don't want to do soft and pretty...hard and coarse from work and worry is what I enjoy capturing in faces.  Also I don't think I have figured out how to do faces well enough...so the more I do the better I think I will get.
     My daughter, Catherine, actually turned me on to doing faces.  She drew faces for a whole year.  Mostly just girls...or anemia ..which to me look unisex.  One day, a couple years ago, Catherine wanted to do a hand carved stamp.  She drew a picture of a face.  I told her that it would never look like a face, it is just to hard to carve and that she should start with something easier.  Like a red head she never let that kind of talk stop her.
Now for an eleven year old I was pretty impressed with these images.  So I thought I would try to do some faces.  I was pretty surprised how well mine turned out...even in the drawing stage because I didn't normally draw faces....so that is how it all began.  Here are a couple of linocut of women that I did a while back.
    The one on the right, her hat is shading part of her face.  I may have to try to do women again...but you can see the old and the young.  Maybe the young is looking into the face herself old....maybe this is why I like to do men I can distance myself from the fact I am aging.
One of the things I like to do is line up all the images that I printed and look at them like a Andy Warhol painting.  I am not a consistent printer.  Isaac is a better printer than I am and he didn't want to help me because I want him to print too many.

5 comments:

the wild magnolia said...

Amazing work dear. A quilt of faces maybe?

Anonymous said...

An interesting insight into your process. Thanks for sharing. I like the hexagons too :-)

Tod Hensley said...

very nice. i like roosters. i also like wood and lino cuts. makes me want to stop my embroidery and buy some linoleum and carving tools...

Kari said...

These are very professional-looking! I really love roosters, too ~ they have such character. I can see you have been very busy. I've been able to post less and less often lately, for I seem to be busier or less organized, I'm not sure which!! xo Kari

Quilt Architect said...

Thank you friends for your comments! I love having things for you to look at.
Flying Haystacks, I read how you had streamlined your work area so you could get more done. I was just thinking..."If I would only focus on one thing I might get further than I do"...so I don't know I really like your focus and art!!!

Kari I like roosters as well. This one looks like he would be one that was always looking over his shoulder. Always prepared. You weren't going to get anything on him. I love watching hens too they are such an example of being a good mother.

Kaye Turner thank you for finding my ramblings interesting. I think hexagons are an addiction.

Wild Magnolia, Thank you,I would like to do something with a face in quilting...but I can't start another project right now.