Rather than produce one WOODBLOCK and print one large piece I had to take into consideration the printing press size which I am restricted in regards of printing and carving the block. I decided to construct and build a new printing bed for the press which I have never done before and instead of producing one print I produced a triptych series in the form of a panoramic piece.The image consists of 3 different perspective views showing how I visualize SAUL church trying to maintain the characteristics of the building itself as well as give it a religious or iconic feel as I see it without being too dramatic using woodcut techniques .
You can view the the original prints on the link provided and they are available to purchase both as a large print and as individual prints . Carved in Birch, Sepia on Chinese Paper, 25cmx80cm. Woodcut and Linocut Prints
Linocut commission
I was contacted by someone who was born in N.Ireland but now resides and lives in Long Island , New York, USA. They used to live in a small cottage which is located on the small clifftops of Ballyhornan spending their days growing up on the east coast shores in N.Ireland.
When I was asked to try and create a linocut of this cottage and after visiting the coast where it was located I was stumped as to how can I produce something in order to capture the surroundings as well as the essence of the location.I took a series of sketches and compiled photographs creating a collage of images with the house being the main centre piece. Once more this is the first time I have ever done this using this method so everytime I think I know something there is to know about Printing or Painting I always find I learn something with each new project.
Woodcut Commissions
Some prints just freshly squeezed from the printing press.First time carving in pine as an experimental medium searching for choice of woods that might be suitable for carving .
In this case I used Grade-A Pine which is usually used in cabinet or furniture making .Grade-A pine is a soft wood but its important to avoid wood knots which make it imossible to carve therefore disrupting a print unless you can incorporate it into the image.In this case the woodblock only lasted a few runs through the pressure of the press due to different levels off the pine sinking.
Even though it only sank into each other by a fraction of a millimetre creating multiple plains it effects the final outcome of a print drastically so can put days if not weeks of work put to waste.I now use Birch for my woodcuts and sometimes Japanese plywood.