As the Crow Flys

This is only going to be a real short post but it's one I thought would be nice to write; it's a little tale of the short phase I had around Christmas that evolved long drives, drawing tall spindly trees and... crows. They're fascinating aren't they? So mysterious and sinister yet beautiful. Anyway I loved drawing them in a sort of rushed, sketchy style with a scratchy dip pen.

                                  

Terrible photo eeek! This photo is an example of some of the ones I took around Christmas of the crows.

                                  

Using inks and watercolours in as many different and experimental ways as possible, I was able to recreate the tree from the photo.         

Pardon the abnormal and slightly out of proportion girl thingy, it was a Saturday evening experiment that turned mad.

A few days later I was delighted to finally visit Curwen Studio in Linton for a session of Drypoint Etching - a wonderful gift from my folks and one I would definitely recommend to anyone interested in printmaking! Whilst there I used this sketch for a drypoint print. The presses we used printed a treat, something for me to think about in the future. 

                                   

There were so many techniques I could use, my favourite being masking table and sandpaper. 

A few days later I started to wonder if I could use masking tape and other textures to create an image, a process known as collograph. I used a number of cards and papers to build up my image ad then coated the whole thing in varnish to seal it.

                                         

There were so many different ways of applying the ink to create different effects. With this form of printing, EVERYTHING is unpredictable, you've just got to go with it. This is what I got: 

                                          

I got a few good prints from it but nothing compared to the quality I could have gotten with an etching press at Curwen. There is so much that this form of printmaking has to offer and I can't wait to explore it but for now I'm just going to sit and sketch a few design for some wood engravings.

Have a nice summer.

Will Baker Illustrator