printmaking // week33

no matter how hard i try, seems like i never become a daily blogger! photos piling up in my folders, waiting to be posted, getting old and out of date before time. so, here are some of the pics i took last week while working on new prints in the studio. i wanted to make a new edition of bird prints. except some single prints, all of last years edition sold out. for all the blossom and birds print i have used my big cherry blossom block as a background so far, but i plan to do "bigger" things and projects with it and don't want to spoil it in mini formats. it's my favourite print block, also my biggest one ( see a wall size deco on my flickr )

SO, inspired by a beautiful old japanese brush painting, i made this linocut of a plum blossom twig above. my favourite bird needs a comfy place to rest...



here's the first layer, printed with a light blue on chinese book pages (interestingly from a chinese travel guide to germany!)

then i printed over it again with the plum blossom twig, this time in a transparent, but strong florentian red which gives the whole thing a little more depth.


i don't know how you call this traditional japanese "instrument" for printing. its a strong cardboard covered with banana leaf and is perfect for use when printing fine lined blocks, because you can accentuate pressure and press very gentle.


here's a sneak peek of the little titmouse, the most exciting moment, how did the print come out? are the colors, position, paper right? make up your own mind....



soon to be listed in the shops......

happy weekend, all of you :D

why's da sky blue? - miniprint

last week i worked on new stamps and print plates and ruined quiet a few. somehow my hand was not as steady as it should be and the easiest things went wrong. at least, the last and most important stamp i made, late at night, cut very carefully, almost like a linocut, the little birdie above, came out just the way i wanted, even a little better! yay! i tried to give the lines a more calligraphic look, more edgy. they remind me a bit of comic style lines, like in a marvel comic..
anyway, i then used it as planned for a new edition of miniprints, made another stamp for the lettering and colored the little bird by hand with thinned ink- and here it is:


just asking! suggestions, anyone? ;)

new in the shop!!

oi, times are busy! last week my little cousins anne and frederic came for a 5-day-visit, so i did not find to work on anything, even though i urgently should have, but - we had so much holiday fun with the kids, will post later about it... but NOW - here's something new for the shops:

i felt like the 'love is all you need' - postcard could need a little facelift, so i carved a new text stamp and altered the design a little. the lovebird now rests on a delicate twig, ready for take-off....what do you think?!



and here's the little BE birdie again, saying 'tschilp!'out loud (which equals 'chirp!' in german words) on a brandnew series of moleskines. theres also a different color version available, soon to be listed...

but right now, i have to go out in the heavy pouring rain ( i wonder where this comes from so suddenly) to get paper supplies from the shop on the other end of town. pffff. great time to go and buy and transport delicate japanese papers through that humid mess. for real, it did not stop raining for the last 40 hours or so, and the water is not just dripping, it's pouring!! monsoon in stuttgart! sucks. on the other hand, good reason to stay inside, at the homework desk, sip on green plum blossom tea and work quietly on new prints and papers. so i don't feel too bad about not going to the studio and not printing the missing numbers of the comission print edition. (which, by the way, i have submitted a week ago and which was very well received. yay!!!!)

have a lovely (and dry) day!

Casa Guapa de Tamuziga /Essaouira, Maroc

Here's something special I want to share with you: A friend of mine, the sweet Nadine, who I met some years ago at the place where I have my studio, has told me many times before about the house she has bought in Essaouira, Maroc, and which she was rebuilding with lots of efforts into a guest house. She has a website now and I was amazed to see what a beauty she created! The Casa Guapa de Tamuziga (which is the old name of Essaouira) is a real treasure, wonderful, individually decorated appartements, with lots of care and love for details, maroccan styles, colours, tiles, furniture.... a gorgeous terrace, where's also a small appartement to rent and an artist studio in the basement to come, where her boyfriend Tibari shows his crafts and art. So if you are ever looking for a super charming, affordable, familiar and really special place with the best service by lovely Nadine (she's an angel, for real!) to spend your holidays in Maroc, this would be my first choice.