Posted by at 11:18 AM, June 29, 2005
"Girls and Cat" click image for enlargement
This is a pen and ink drawing (black rolling writer on BFK) made by CNC Machine. The pen paths followed the contours of the gray areas of the digital image used as a 'map'. The first contours drawn were those which were the darkest tones in the image. The pen more or less follows the outer contours, spiraling inward about 30 lines per inch. Then the contours of the two darkest tones toghther, then the three darkest tones, and so on until the contours of all non-white tones were drawn last.
Here's a detail of the cat's face:
detail -- click for enlargement)
The lines do an interesting job of approximating the gray-tones of the original image and leave those complex criss-crossed curvy contours on the paper which I think are very beautiful!
The drawing took about 8 hours to complete at about three inches per second -- over a mile of line on this 14 x 14 inch drawing!
Now mike engrave it in steel by hand. lol
I like the line work in the cat too. The cat enlargement is more interesting to look at than the original (which is also wonderfully interesting). The enlargement of the enlargement (when you click it) is even more facinating. There is a randomness in the lines yet it still reveals a pattern (the picture of a cat).
I like Mikes ass't. Can it be trained to pull an edition? I rather enjoy doing the cutting &/or engraving by hand but after I get the finished print and the excitment of seeing the first finished one it (the printing) can get tedious.
I think the picture is very real looking and creative. Nicely done :-)
PS I love cats too!