Occasionally, I will come across a long-ago design project of my own that gives me pause. This usually translates to: "Could I have made that project any more complex for myself?" And then this: "Could it really be 20 years ago (or something similarly surprising) that I did that?" Last week when I pulled out a file containing all the workups for my 1992 Christmas card, I had these exact thoughts.

What many colleagues and clients do not know is that I am a printmaker at heart. Having studied printmaking at the UW for 3 of my 4 years in art school there, I will always be drawn to the medium. Further, I began to be a printmaker when in elementary school. How? With potato prints.

When designing a multiple-layered piece of artwork, one must consider these factors:

~what printing techniques will be used to apply the designs

~what paper or papers will be used to carry the image

~what order of printing will yield the desired visual effects as the layers build on top of one another

 

Because printmaking requires significant, technical design forethought, and it involves creating indirect works of art (i.e., the artist does not directly apply the ink to the matrix), it is not the universal favorite means of artmaking for artists. Traditionally, fine printmaking (as opposed to commercial printing) has been considered secondary to the art of painting on
canvas or wood panels (early Renaissance). Nonetheless, over the centuries, many reknowned artists have created etchings, lithographs, serigraphs (silkscreen) and woodblock prints in addition to their direct painting on canvas or wood.

 

 

Making multiple artworks has always given me a lot of satisfaction. I like the technical process of designing for multiples. Christmas cards are the perfect size for trying various printmaking techniques. The Gocco printer is a device that is a cross between a rubber stamp and a silkscreen, giving it unprecedented potential as a small "printing press" primarily for hobbyists but used also by fine artists. It was a sad day when the Japanese manufacturer decided to no longer market it in the U.S. One can still find the supplies, but the costs for these are now prohibitive for previously frequent users like myself.

After I printed the line drawing layer over the color and the gold-painted paper, I printed the text and border directly onto the cream cardstock. Below you see the guidelines I drew to create a border and a place to carry the excerpt from O Holy Night and a personal message from my family. Once these were printed, I cut apart the four-up images and tipped them onto the printed cards. Messages were handwritten on the backs of the cards. Simple as pie, right?!

 

What happened?? I haven't posted since November 11. Must have been the holidays or something...Happy New Year to you! May it be healthy and prosperous.

While bustling about with festive activities and family gatherings in our home, I also had some assignments to complete. One was a Valentine card design that entailed a false start before I landed on the style that fit. Because we will be celebrating Valentine's Day in about a month, this seems like a good time to put forth a few of the composite roughs I created during the first stage of designing:

       

The design specifications for this card were that the heart motif and the band motif were to be flocked in red with gold foil stamping on them. To achieve this mock-up effect, I employed PhotoShop to convert the black and white ornamentation to the color gold in order to emulate gold foil. Each band was created to coordinate with the designs within the hearts. The final design chosen was significantly different than any of these! I'll post it later on this year, as it will be a Valentine for 2013.

It's springtime, and a baby is soon to be born. Not just any baby. My first grandchild! What a fine time to host a shower, design a set of cards, and use a favorite theme of my family's: birds, eggs and chicks. The watched-egg version of the illustration on the shower invitation is followed by the hatchling rendition for the thank you card. I hand lettered each "thank you" on the cards after working out a casual printed style to complement the line drawing of the illustration. By the way: She's a Girl!

With Valentine's Day being the next "greeting card holiday," I thought it fitting to feature a few of my past renderings of the iconic heart symbol as they appear on cards I have designed in tandem with art directors. Below the line-up of valentines are other published cards. Please contact me if you are interested in my illustration and calligraphy services for your company. To view another archived collection of my cards, click here. To view a larger version of the collection below, click on the image.