The last phase involved carving details into the images on the plates, which up until this point had been silhouettes (which I love the look of and will do more in the future). After the final carving, I reassembled the blocks in order and printed it.
Cutting the plates to 6" by 8" with the use of a table saw took off an eighth of an inch from all sides. Butted together, the design was slightly distorted. So for the next print, I spaced them to compensate for this.
For this next print, I randomly placed the plates down on the press bed.
And for the final print, I chose to print it in alternating colors.
I loved this project! My professor was unsure of my project all semester because there were many challenges along the way. In the end he said that he was quite impressed with what I had done!
Lessons I have learned:
1. If I want to print a large carved piece, I should use linoleum instead.
2. Carving tools must be kept sharp. I had so much trouble carving in Phase III because I was using dull tools. We tried to sharpen them, but I think it was too late!
3. Masonite isn't absorbent so at times it was difficult to roll the ink on the plate. I had some problems with the various inks, but I don't believe I figured out exactly what the causes were.
I have ordered some linoleum blocks and several types of linoleum and woodcarving tools, as well as a sharpening stone from Dick Blick. The order should be arriving this week. I look forward to using the blocks from this project incorporated with future designs.
Susan, there is an art to sharpening tools, and to be realistic, the learning curve is steep. Do yourself a favor and get some fine grade emery cloth. If you use that often, you can keep your tools razor sharp. And no more than you're carving, it's likely you'd never have to use a stone.
ReplyDeleteGin