Archive for ink
Pen and Inklings
Posted in BYGONE ADVERTISING AND PACKAGING, DESIGN, LIVING IN THE PAST: NOSTALGIA with tags ART, bottles, drawing, ink, old advertising, pen and ink on March 21, 2010 by echostainsShaking the dead by the Finger
Posted in ART, ART PORTFOLIO MY PERSONAL ART, CRITIQUE CORNER, LIVING IN THE PAST: NOSTALGIA, PAST PLACES with tags acrylic, dublin, filler, ink, st michen, Styx on February 23, 2009 by echostainsIn this painting , I used ink, some acrylic and filler. I tend to use a lot of this as an impasto, it mixes well with acrylic and gives a nice surface for painting on using inks etc. Originally this painting was called St Michan’s, after the Church in Dublin, where I spent my birthday shaking hands, (well a finger actually) with an old dead crusader (traditional) in the crypt. So from one old crusader to another ………happy to meet you mate, but I can’t say you brought me any luck, though, at least I AM still here, so that will have to do to be going on with lol!
Altered art book page 18 Heaviness is not always Metal
Posted in ALTERED ART, ART, DESIGN, MY ALTERED ART BOOK PAGES, MY SURFACES, WORDS AND COMMUNICATIONS, WRITING AND BLOGGING with tags altered book.landy, forevertron, ink, junk, printed paper on February 15, 2009 by echostains
Continuing my Altered art book with page 18, I am continuing with the ‘junk’ theme. On page 17 I looked at the connoctations of the word ‘junk’, exploring drugs and assemblage (disgarded stuff used to evoke memories). On this page is an image of a hand made machine. I don’t know what it is, I just picked it because it looked like it would revolve (which fitted in with the text). Don’t forget, a lot of these images and words were chosen a long time ago, and the original reason has been forgotten. The text on this page reads as follows: –
He stared down at the machine
The machine began to revolve
a gritty roaring sound like the ocean dragging pebbles
soaked up by a piece of blotting paper
It made me think about other pieces of junk. Junk that we carry around with us: unwanted thoughts, blind beliefs, superstitions, paraphanalia which we don’t really need but which we are frightened of letting go of because ‘something bad’ may happen.
The machinery part of the text put me in mind of this place ‘Forevertron’ Wisconsin USA, the biggest scrap metal sculpture in the world. Its inventor Dr Evermore sounds quite a character…….
From construction to destruction. In 2001 London artist Michael Landy destroyed all his possessions in the name of art. He shredded and granulated everything, and I mean everything, including his credit cards: everything. This took place in an Old C & A store in London and lasted 2 weeks. The exhibition was called ‘Break Down’ and by the time the exhibtion ended Landy was left with his cat and girlfriend. Why did he do it? Apparently it was a statement about Consumerism and more…This is what he said at the time:-
“I see this as the ultimate consumer choice. Once Break Down has finished, a more personal break down, will commence – life without my self-defining belongings.”
For more about Landy
Media used; inks, photocopy image, printed paper
Scratching the Surface and other Crevices
Posted in ART, MY SURFACES with tags acrylics, ceramics journal, decorative surface, ink, journals, polyfiller, surfaces on January 18, 2009 by echostainsI managed to get a new scanner today, so we’ll see how these images come out…… Given that its one that also prints and photocopies, I’m not expecting great things.
Mmmm, thought so, as I expected, not a good result. This image is very large though, I may have to shrink it or try to remove the Moire…
I love surfaces! I love to decorate them! I can work for hour upon hour building surface upon surface. I hadn’t been in Uni long before I started t decorate my journals. The first one just had a big sticking plaster in the shape of a cross over it! This is one of my Ceramics journals. I used a variety of inks and acrylics: I also liked to mixed a little Polyfiller powder too….
Altered art book: page 14 Helsinki not ducked nor flinched from
Posted in ART, MY ALTERED ART BOOK PAGES with tags artists, finnish architect, finnish artistsaalto, hand blown, helsinki, ink, MY ALTERED ART BOOK PAGES, paimio chair, rubber stamp, schjerfbeck, sculptor, self portrait, titanic, water colour, wirkkala on January 16, 2009 by echostains‘Helsinki’
‘And they’d duck and flinch’
This page really stumped me! Why had I chosen those words? What did I know about Helsinki? Why was I attracted by this word? I had no alternative but to bite the bullet and follow the words I had chosen a couple of years ago. When I chose the words originally, I thought of ships sinking, probably the Titanic. I think the stamped star was going to be a ships wheel. However, I looked at some Google images and painted a small water colour of HELSINKI! I then decided to research some Finnish artists: I found a few.
One of them, that some call the Father of Modernism is Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto, b. 1898 – 1976, a Finnish architect whose work incuded glassware, painting, architecture and furniture. He liked to experiment with materials: bending wood to form his famous Paimio cantilevered chair, originally designed for tuberculosis suffers.
Another Finnish artist, Helene Schjerfbeck (b.1862 -1946), was known mostly for her self portraits, painting 36 of them during her lifetime. This one is from 1939 the year war broke out.
Finnish designer Tapio Wirkkala (b. 1915 -1985) worked as a graphic designer and sculpter and was also an industrialised designer. His organic vase designs look like sculpture. His hand blown vase with flared rim, called ‘Kanterelli’ was made for Littala who produced various models of these vases from 1947 – 1960. These small bowls, silver plate over brass with incised design are by Wirkkala.
Well I still don’t know where Helsinki came from, BUT I didn’t duck it and I didn’t flinch, lol!
The finished pages 13 and 14, which proved the most difficult to do. I wonder what lies ahead……..
Media used: ink, watercolour, paper, rubber stamp
Altered art book page 13 A deadly reminder’
Posted in ART, MY ALTERED ART BOOK PAGES with tags altered book, ancient wonder, card, death, egyptians, fabric, gemstone, handmade paper, ink, mausoleum, memento mori, organza ribbon, silk flower, skulls, taj mahal, valley of kings on January 13, 2009 by echostains
page-13-altered book
The chosen words are: –
‘He listened to his father breathing’
‘And made plans for that lonliness’
The Egytians made plans for their death. They left nothing to chance. Sometimes a whole lifetime was dedicated to their own rememberence: Egypt is full of these reminders.
- page13-skeleton detail
Memento Mori: this means ‘Remember you will die’ or ‘Be mindful of death‘. The symbols associated with this reminder of mortality are skulls, clocks, hourglasses, flowers. Sometimes wine, books, musical instruments. served as ‘vanities’, a reminder of worldly pleasures.
‘and made plans for that loneliness’
What does this mean though? Does it mean coming to terms with eventual death? It could mean a physical reminder that lives on when we are no more. Surely we live on in the hearts of people who love us? Why would we need a tangible reminder?
Sometimes a place or a memorial can act as a focus. Like a gravestone, a grave, somewhere we can feel close to the person, as well as a written reminder for others, that our loved ones existed: a way of them living forever: enjoying everlasting life. On a large scale, the Taj Mahal, India reminds the world of the undying love of Shahjahan and his beautiful queen Mumtaz.
- taj mahal
One of the Ancient Wonders of the Old World was The Mausoleum of Helicarnassus, Bodrum Turkey. It started out as a memorial for the Persian King Mausolus, by his wife/sister Artimisia. But when she died, became a mixture of all different styles as artist continued with their own ideas.
- mausoleum-bodrum-halicarnassus turkey
Media used; ink, card, gem stone, silk flower, fabric,organza ribbon (wings) and handmade paper stamped with vercemark and chalked.
to be continued……
Altered art book: page 12 By the light of the Silvery Moon furtively
Posted in ART, MY ALTERED ART BOOK PAGES with tags ALTERED ART, altered boo, childhood memories, counting money, fears, french coffee tin, ink, lucky charm, media, nostalgia, oooh la la, pastel, ribbon, santa, siler money, siler moon, silver card, silvery moon, suerstition, superstition, wishes on January 7, 2009 by echostainsMy scanner is now out of action. It was playing up the other day, now it’s completely packed in. I have had to take a photo of these pages, with not much success. but anyway …….
Page 12, the words chosen were: –
‘He hid his own fears and wishes and only took them out in private under the eye of the moon.’
A childhood memory flashed up. I was counting money and the moon was shining though the window. I saved my pocket money up in an old French coffee bean tin. It was blue and white striped. There was something about this tin that was exotic and ooh la la. I hid the tin away, only taking it out when the moon was full. I had heard that if you turned your silver over when it was a new moon, your money would increase!
This is wrapped up in superstition and also fear. It is the compulsive feeling that if you DON’T do something, something bad will happen. Being told that Santa won’t come unless you go to sleep…then not being to be able to get to sleep because you are too excited, then panicking!!
Although not very clear, the moon I made is actually silver. A coffee tin hangs from it, followed by a small silver charm of a handbag.
Media used: ink, oil pastel, silver card, photocopies, ribbon, charm
Altered art book: page 11 Walk a life in my shoes
Posted in ART, MY ALTERED ART BOOK PAGES with tags ALTERED ART, altered book, art and shoes, childhood memorabilia, ink, mock snakeskin, nostalgia, paper, personal sphere, reincarnation, role reversal, shoes, watercolour, wax crayon on January 4, 2009 by echostainsThe words I picked out were; –
‘They walked through their childhood’
The idea of walking through childhood is of course associated with memories: nostalgia for what has been. My immediate thought was childhood toys, until the shoes hit me that is. How many pairs of shoes do we go through in life I wonder? What about past lives? all those shoes! One CANNOT have enough shoes…… or enough lives?
I scribbled these hastily on a prepared white background. The idea of walking in different shoes puts me in mind of Reincarnation, doing unto others as they would do to us, role reversal and of course following in our Forefathers footsteps. Is there a purpose? is there a pattern? or is life just a repetition of what has gone before? (in our personal sphere)
I have quite a few artists in mind, associated with this page, but they will have to wait until tomorrow.
Media used; ink,wax crayon, watercolour paint, print, mock snakeskin paper