[Baren]: The mailing list / discussion forum for woodblock printmaking.

Baren Digest             Saturday, 6 November 1999     Volume 09 : Number 769

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From: Dutch Stowe <dutch@crystalridge.com>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 07:43:17 -0800
Subject: [Baren 6484] Introduction 

	Hi! everyone my name is Dutch and I have been lurking (I hate that term )
out here since "Digest issue #689" Trying to get to know y'all. 

	Short Bio:
		I am a 56 male living in Los Angeles am married to Phyllis and several
cats, 1 dog and about 8 chickens and one parrot. Am retired (due to a
disability) and taking up art ,something I always wanted to do and could
never find time to get formal training (i.e. school)I am a beginning Print
maker and am fascinated with woodblock printing. I am attending Vally
Community Collage for my art training and one of the classes I take is
Print making, which is an introduction to all forms of print making for the
first two to three semmesters; then you can concentrate on a speciality. In
my case, this semester I have started to work on Relief (woodblock for me
)printing. 

	There's lots more info about me and if anyone is interested I will be
bring a longer bio: up on my web site this month along with my first effort
with woodblock.


	This part is for john.

>Julia Romanenkova Kiev, Ukraine. 
>Ukrainian Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture. 
>"GRIFFIN" online Magazine.
>julia_r@sabbo.net 
>http://www.internations.net/uk/griffin 

	I hope this helps. I just went to this site. When you get the first page,
just click on it and it takes you to what seems to be an index page which
informs you that they will upload the magazine in November. If you want to
communicate with them click on the "Griffin Art Group" and it will give you
an e-mail address to send mail to. Also it has two rings which might be of
interest to print making.

	1. Ex Libris Web ring
	2. Printmakers Web ring

Hope this helps.

Thinks for the opportunity to participate

Dutch Stowe 
 
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From: Maria Arango <Maria@mariarango.com>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 07:57:45 -0800
Subject: [Baren 6485]

Woodblock related stuff, where does everyone get their cherrywood? Also,
once you have printed, let's say you find a few wrinkles and bumps on
paper that it acquired in the process of drying and shrinking. Any hints
on flattening the paper after prints are completed without hurting
anything? Thanks.
Health to all,
Maria

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From: B Mason <bemason@concentric.net>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 08:23:27 -0800
Subject: [Baren 6486] wrinkeled paper 

Hey Maria,
This is fairly easy to get rid of. Are you printing in oil or water? If
oil and the paper is dry, spray it with water, layer between blotters
and weight it down. Be sure to change the blotters after 15 minutes and
then daily until the paper is dry. The first change in 15 minutes is the
key to no wrinkled prints.

I always layer my prints as I do them in blotter paper, with newsprint
over the top of the print to protect the blotters and rarely weight it
down. I remove the newsprint after a day. The weight of the stack of
blotters is enough to keep things flat, especially where it is so hot.
Maybe your paper is drying too fast, at 88 degrees this could be so and
there is no humidity, right?

If you are using water based ink, you do the same thing, but much more
carefully, spraying the paper very lightly from the back side. If you
use rewetting ink it is concievable you could wash the image off the
paper or at the least damage it so be very careful. Hanga seems pretty
safe from this as the ink really permeates the paper, but I would be
very careful anyway.

This is guaranteed to work. You could try just weighting them down dry,
if the wrinkles are small it might work.

good luck with your "wrinkles"...(.and she's so young too.) heeheehee

I am starting to sound like Wanda, maybe we have been together too much!

Best to all
Barbara

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From: James G Mundie <jimandkatemundie@juno.com>
Date: Fri, 5 Nov 1999 12:38:22 -0500
Subject: [Baren 6488] gold and paper 

Very interesting essay on applying gold leaf, Dave.  

A question for the oil-based printmakers among us:  does anyone know of a
suitable method for applying gold leaf over oil-based ink?  I have in
mind an image for a smallish print which would be greatly enlived by a
touch of leafing, but I don't want to screw it up by mixing oil and
water-based techniques.  Any suggestions? Jack?

***

One other thing -- I went to buy some paper the other night and while I
was waiting for the fellow to wrap up my purchase, I started flipping
through the sample book.  They had a red paper (in 'rose' and 'poppy') in
stock called "Lama".  I'm not sure if that name refers to the brand or
the type.  Anyway, the paper has a lovely red color which would suit an
upcoming project.  Anyone have any experience with Lama or any
suggestions?  I asked the clerk about the paper and his face just went
completely slack ("Uh... paper?").  I didn't have enough cash on me to
add that paper to my bundle to take home and play with.   
Maria, I remember you asking a while back about red paper... any luck?

And speaking of paper, I called Kinsella Paper for their pricelist the
other day and I must say that their prices are among the best I've seen. 
Certain papers are slightly more expensive than from other dealers, but
the majority are less.
Take a gander for yourself:   Stephen Kinsella, Inc. Fine Art Papers, 
P.O. Box 63132, Olivette MO 63132 USA,  1-800-445-8865, fax 314-991-8090

Mise le meas,
James Mundie
Philadelphia USA

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From: Maria Arango <Maria@mariarango.com>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 10:22:29 -0800
Subject: [Baren 6490] Re: red paper 

> Anyone have any experience with Lama or any
> suggestions?  I asked the clerk about the paper and his face just went
> completely slack ("Uh... paper?").  I didn't have enough cash on me to
> add that paper to my bundle to take home and play with.
> Maria, I remember you asking a while back about red paper... any luck?
>

Jim,
No experience with Lama. The thing to watch out for on colored papers is
light-fastness. Here in sunny LV, I usually place a small piece on the
driveway half covered with something opaque. In as short time as a
couple of  hours I can tell if the paper is going to survive the test of
time by checking fading.
I found Murillo printmaking in many bright colors, but it is
heeeeeaaaaavy as cardstock. Flax Art Supplies carries it, I can't
remember the url but you can go to my site and click on LINKS to find
them. They actually have a small square of each paper they sell on the
web. I also found some Indian handmade in astonishingly bright reds and
oranges that faded to beautiful pink and peach after half day in the
sun, too bad, because those were very thin and strong.
When I was looking last, someone suggested printing the background color
first in the precise color I wanted the paper. Would work once I get my
press, but by hand on a larger print would be a lot of work.
Also check out Dan Smith catalog, they now carry some Japanese papers in
bright colors and list them as colorfast.
Hope this helps,
Maria

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From: "Jeanne N. Chase" <studiojnc@prodigy.net>
Date: Fri, 5 Nov 1999 14:21:43 -0500
Subject: [Baren 6492] various 

Horacio
Just getting around to my e mail, since my phone was out of order for 3 days
and then my ISP, Prodigy was down for 2. So have tons of e mail and am
answering rather late. I agree, with you on the black and white issue. While
I, too love color, I am so much more at home with black and white. I find it
so dramatic as; Kollwitz, Goya and have you seen the work of the late Isabel
Bishop?  She did all black and white, fantastic prints.
I think your work is very dramatic.

Josephine
Just checked out the work on your site. Thank your husband for me. Not every
mate takes such interest in the others work. I especially like the
Metamorphosos Series. Do you work on different series at one time or do you
work on a series until you have exhausted that subject and go on to another?

Dave
Did we ever decide what the next Exchange subject was going to be? Thanks
for putting the white line woodcut on the Enclopedia. It turned out pretty
good.

Maria
Your driveway must be an attention getter with all the colored paper being
tested!!!  Your site is really growing and getting more interesting every
time I visit. Hope you are having a successful new career!  With all that
energy you are putting out, I am sure it will take off!!!

Dutch
Welcome to our little group. Will be anxious to see your web site. Are you
sure that you do not have any more room for more pets????

Jeanne N

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From: Jack Reisland <reislandj001@hawaii.rr.com>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 09:23:54 -1000
Subject: [Baren 6493] Re: gold and paper 

James  wrote:
> A question for the oil-based printmakers among us:  does anyone know of a
> suitable method for applying gold leaf over oil-based ink?  I have in
> mind an image for a smallish print which would be greatly enlived by a
> touch of leafing, but I don't want to screw it up by mixing oil and
> water-based techniques.  Any suggestions? Jack?

It's not difficult to get gold leaf to stick in place with a variety of
adhesives. Actually, it's more trouble to keep it from sticking where you
- -don't- want it. To that end, make sure that the inks on your print are
completely dry, then print  (or stencil) the area you want gold with a nice
tacky ink, and it wouldn't hurt if it was reddish or a deep yellow, as gold
leaf is actually a little transparent. Carefully lay down a piece of gold
leaf, cut to the appropriate size (it must be handled with a soft brush, do
- -not- touch it with your fingers, it will stick!) Once it is in place, and
any small voids are patched with scraps, leave it until the underlying ink
is dry, Then the excess gold can be brushed off, and the gold can be lightly
burnished in place.

Jack

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From: David Bull <davebull@woodblock.com>
Date: Sat, 06 Nov 1999 07:32:07 +0900
Subject: [Baren 6497] Re: Viruses 

Maria wrote:
> once you have printed, let's say you find a few wrinkles and bumps on
> paper that it acquired in the process of drying and shrinking. Any hints
> on flattening the paper after prints are completed without hurting
> anything?

There are actually a couple of different types of wrinkles involved
here.  The kind that come when a piece of paper is dried out in the open
are usually easily fixed by re-moistening the paper and drying it again
under weights, as a couple of members have noted.

But there is another kind of wrinkle that does not respond to this
treatment.  If you have used too much paste in your print (or if you
have used some types of commercial paste), it sometimes happens that the
area of the paper with this paste will shrink _considerably_ when it is
drying.  Of course the entire area of the paper shrinks when it's
drying, but those areas with heavy paste shrink _more_ and thus pull the
paper into a distorted pattern of waves and wrinkles.

There does not seem to be any cure.  Remoistening and flattening under
heavy weights does not help.  The paper 'remembers' its new shape ...

The solution is simply not to let it happen in the first place.  Avoid
'sticky' commercial pastes (such as the Japanese 'Yamato nori'), and
take it easy with the paste balance in the print.

***

Jim asked:
>A question for the oil-based printmakers among us:  does anyone know of a
>suitable method for applying gold leaf over oil-based ink?

Out of my line Jim, but if you pick up the small book/pamphlet
'Practical Gilding' by Peter and Ann Mactaggart (available inexpensively
from Sinopia), you will find lots of info on methods of applying gold.

***

Jeanne asked:
> Did we ever decide what the next Exchange subject was going to be? 

I guess this one is in my court at the moment - there was a wonderful
amount of feedback and commentary a while ago, and a zillion suggestions
on how to approach it.  

If you don't mind though, I think I'll sit on it for a bit longer.  Even
if I were to start something up right now, the next couple of months are
going to be a bit busy for everybody ... it's not really the best time
of year to get involved in this I think.

But I'll put something up before the end of the year, so that we can get
registered and set-up for working on it in the first few months of next
year.

In the meantime, I'm still open for suggestions and ideas - I am a long
way from making a decision on just what to do ...

***

Maria has been updating her http://www.printmakingstudio.com site with
'how to' info on printmaking.  Nice stuff Maria, and I'm happy to see
other practical info on woodblock printmaking being available.

I'm not trying to 'do it all' myself, but the fact that the Encyclopedia
is there tends perhaps to put a damper on other peoples' desire to put
practical info on their own web sites.  So it's nice to see this other
source of information coming together.  The more, the merrier!

Dave

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From: Maria Arango <Maria@mariarango.com>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 15:32:21 -0800
Subject: [Baren 6498] Re: more paper 

Jim, forgot to mention Canson Me Teintes pastel paper, comes in a wide
variety of colorfast bright colors. The pastel side is "bumpy" but I
have had great success printing on the reverse smooth side, wet or dry.
Takes the ink well and resists the vicious attacks of my deadly wooden
barens.
Maria

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From: B Mason <bemason@concentric.net>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 1999 17:22:33 -0800
Subject: [Baren 6499] gold leaf 

Jim,
I tried for a while to get the gold only where I wanted it and wanted to
work on dry prints for obvious reasons, gold leaf will stick to anything
wet. What I finally discovered is that if you use "Ailene's Foiling
Glue" and thin it down at least 1/2 and 1/2 with water you can put it in
a squeeze bottle with a needle nose and put very fine lines where you
want it. It is available at craft stores. This glue will be white when
it goes down, sort of milky looking. The more water you add the more
transparent it looks. It dries clear and tacky. After it is dry, lay the
gold leaf down and brush with a soft bristle brush. I use those Chinese
2" brushes, the cheap ones found in hardware stores, natural handle and
white/yellow bristles, the bristles are about 1 1/2" long. If you want
to use a brush to lay the glue down, you will have to thin it more than
1/2 and 1/2 with water. Using this ratio and a squeeze bottle, the lines
are raised up a bit and actually make the paper look embosses. Once you
practice you can get very fine lines with this process. The bottle I use
I got at Dan Smith, but it is not available in their catalogue. I went
back and bought about 20 of them so if you cannot find one locally, let
me know and I will send you one. They hold about one ounce of mixture so
are quite small. I have tried everything under the sun to get gold leaf
on my work the way I wanted it (Idreamt about it....too wierd) and it
took me a year of experimenting to find this process. It works very well
over dry oil based prints. If you thinned it too much, it might not work
so well. I know they say not to use your hands, I have only had one
print discolor in 6 years, so guess I have non-oily fingers, as I use my
hands. You could wear disposable plastic gloves....I had quite a
discussion with the conservationist at the Museum here about the
archival ness of this glue and we finally decided it is a polymer and
inert so probably won't change the paper in any way. Other
conservationists may have other ideas.
Good luck
Barbara

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End of Baren Digest V9 #769
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