D.Day 8 Finally Billy Missy

Wednesday September 26th After all the waiting I had a day working with the Torres Strait Islander Billy Missy today.

He'd got an image he's had on Lino for a while and as we doing a reduction test print thought he would finally get a use from it.

The idea was that I would teach Billy reduction and then he would be able to do it himself! I think having worked with editioning printmakers like Elizabeth, who do all the printing work, Billy saw me as the guy who printed.

So we chatted about his ideas, I advised, he cut and I mixed colours, inked up and printed.

Together we came up with a lovely little print and I tried out some colours I had been thinking of for my Stoney Creek print.
The first proof, to check the pressure of the press, was printed on the back of an old print of Billy's. The old design slightly showing through the new proof gave me a couple of ideas.

I think he was happy. He's talking about some bigger prints next time.

D.Day 7 Stoney Creek

Tuesday the 25th. I'm expecting Billy again today if he is not ill. Unlike yesterday though I've nothing to do in the studio if I have to wait all day to find out if he is coming in or not. I finished the Ibis yesterday and haven't been out drawing yet. At about 10.00 we phone Billy. He'd forgotten he has a teachers conference today. In tomorrow. I print up the Yarrabah shark for Elizabeth then go to pick up the family for a trip to Stoney Creek swimming holes.
While the kids play in the shallow water I explore up river. It's a hot prehistoric landscape of trickling streams amidst huge boulders.
It's Immediately apparent that in the wet season there must be a really dramatic torrent through here to pile stones this huge into such random collections. I got off a little sketch that has some potential.

D.Day 3 Yarrabah

Had a really interesting trip up to Yarrabah, an aboriginal community situated on the headland across the bay from Cairns.

Really good drive down the coast south for about half an hour then it's across the bottom of the bay and back up for another half an hour.

Pretty ramshackle area and pretty ramshackle school. We were followed in by a police can. Turned out it was CSI as there had been a break in. Wire cut glass smashed, blood everywhere. All to steal some condoms they give away free anyway.

One child arrived then left. Elizabeth, senior printer at Djumbunji, went and got a teacher who rounded up some more. Four kids arrived and reluctantly wandered in to the classroom. Then wandered out again. Sat down, got up, cut a bit of lino. Elizabeth did very well trying to get them to stay but it was like herding cats.

Thing was when they actual gave us a piece of vinyl to print it was usually something really interesting. As soon as it was printed they lost interest. "do you want to cut some more?"
"no"
"You finished"
"yep"

The picture belongs to one of the school children. We took the vinyl back to Djumbunji to print up on the proper press. Elizabeth was busy so I printed it up this Monday the 24th.

Looks pretty good. The drive back was equally spectacular. Snatched glimpses through the trees of yellow sandy beaches fringed by palm trees. Stripes of turquoise sea. Views across the bay to Cairns. Starting to get a bit if an itch to get out drawing.

Tomorrow, Thursday my first meeting with Brian Robinson.

Djumbunji Day 2.

Got a lift in this morning from Elizabeth the senior printer. I think they were worried I would go walkabout again and wanted to make sure I turned up this time. As I was waiting for Billy Missy to arrive I wanted to start doing something. I had a nice little itty bitty sketch of an Ibis from my Monday morning walk through the Botanical Gardens which face Djumbunji. That will do.

Managed to scan in, enlarge and print out my Ibis while all the Kickarts staff had a meeting discussing the forthcoming budget cuts to the arts. It sounded horribly familiar.

I was surprisingly nervous waiting for Billy to arrive. I felt he wanted me to turn out a perfect exhibition ready print first time with strange inks on a huge press while showing him how to do a reduction print with cross graduation. Probably made worse the anticipation of not knowing exactly when he was arriving. I spent the whole day watching the door and the clock while playing with my Ibis. As it was he didn't show up at all and I had a great idea for the Ibis.

It is a black and white bird which I though would work well as a print. Where the black parts are I'm going to do a bit of a repeat pattern of my own. Based on the thorns running along the edge of palm tree fronds. A bit of a pale blue/brown shadow along the belly and then the white back something special. A little bit of embossing. I'll cut a delicate feather pattern, offset print it onto a zinc plate, stop it out with tar, bite the plate then pass the Lino through the press with the zinc plate in position. It should then emboss the pattern into the paper to give a delicate white on white feathered look to the bird. Exciting.

Billy is coming back on Monday. I think I walk before I can run. We'll do an experimental hand printed picture first before we get onto the big boys prints and the big boy press.

Tomorrow a trip to an Aboriginal community school at Yarrabah for some Lino.

First days at Djumbunji

I've done two days at the Djumbunji print workshop now. The first day I just sat around chatting, getting used to the space and scribbling in my sketchbook trying to look like not just an artist/printmaker of international standing but a busy international artist.

I was a bit late on Monday. Having got dropped of too early to go in to the press I thought 'I know I'll have a bit of a stroll down to that art shop I saw on Sunday to buy a new sketchbook.How far can it be?'

Well three sweaty hours, a bottle of water and two blisters later I turned up at Djumbunji to hear they were about to send out a search party. I'd missed loads of artists who had turned up unscheduled to see the Welsh boy. The only one left was an artist called Billy Missy. Billy currently adds colour by hand tinting and is quite interested in adding colour reduction to his skills.

We had a bit of a chat and discussed his idea for a print. I then got a lift from Beverley, the General Manager at Kick Arts the Centre that runs the Djumbunji Press, to see the Brian Robinson exhibition at the main Kick Arts Gallery.

Very interesting mix of Traditional printmaking with contemporary references. The Hokusai wave being a particular favourite of mine, of course. I liked the in inclusion of a Nautilus as Jules Verne has a section where Captain Nemo runs aground in the Torres Strait. I'll be working with Brian on Thursday.

Off to Australia.

After all the organising, producing work for two exhibitions, finishing as much of the Work on our house renovation as possible before I go it's time.

I am currently relaxing in Green Park before ambling off to the Piccadilly line for the tube to Heathrow.

I am flying to Cairns for a six week print residency working with the wonderful Lino cut artists of the Djumbunji print workshop. Both Aborigjnal and Torres Strait Islands artist are going to show me what, why and how they do what they do. In return I am going to be demonstrating the colour reduction method I use. There will be a lot of chatting about print, printing and wandering about the exotic landscape of northern Queensland with a sketchbook.
I'm hoping to keep this blog more up to date and immediate, freed as I am from the daily grind.
Right off to catch my tube.

Oh the next picture in the oystercatcher series I printed with my newly covered Baren turned out okay.

Re-covering that *+%* Baren

I was long overdue recovering my baren. So long overdue in fact that I had bought three more of them to avoid having to recover each one as it wore out. So I am now the proud owner of four worn out barens.
I did have a first go a while ago and it took me over three hours and about 6 replacement skins to end up with, well it wasn't pretty but it did the job.

With thanks to Andy Bull from his website The Barenforum for the notes on how to recover your baren and other general print related info. http://www.barenforum.org/

This is halfway through the attempt;

Cut, trimmed and wrapped each side, folded the edges over, twisted the two arms tight and then knotted it together.

Not particularly too neat on the back but looks okay on the business side:

Well it did look okay until it mans up with one of the original Barens. Then it is painfully obvious just how shoddy my wrapping and tying off really is. The important thing though is that it does the job.

But even that one, as it was a bit loose on the tying off, hasn't lasted that long. So time for attempt number two.

I have a selection of bamboo skins which have to be sorted out to find one lacking any rips, making sure it's not too thin or too thick. This has to then be soaked under a running tap until it is soft and pliable. Then wrapped in a towel and, I kid you not, huffed over. Apparently the warm breath huffing down the tube of wrapped skin and towel further warms and softens the skin. Which allows you, apparently, to lay it on your board and stretch it. This is the bit where it is really easy to rip it. I lost about four the first time round. This time only the one went. Then it's trim one of the arms out and start the really hard bit;

I found I didn't have enough fingers to fold, pinch, hold and twist at the same time as keeping the pressure on the whole thing.

I did manage to pull the arms tight and tie them both off. Last time I didn't get this far and just knotted the two strands together. Doesn't look to hard but is one of the most dexterously difficult things I have attempted. The little Japanese fella who knocks these out must have fingers like steel bars.

Tidied up by cutting off the excess from the arms. The idea then is that as it dries out it pulls taut like a drum Again doesn't look to bad, especially when it is compared to my first attempt. Again though it starts looking a bit shoddy when you put one of the original 'properly' done barens in there. Still the important thing is that it works and I have printed with it since the end of May, which includes two courses and another four or five of my own prints. It may of helped that as I went to put a small  amount of camellia oil on the face of the baren, the whole lid came off and nearly half the pot glurped over the baren, the wooden board and the table. Did the chopping board a world of good as well.

Now I have a new-ish baren time to get on with the next print. Here goes.