I've recently rediscovered the delights of linocuts. So this year I've decided to have a go at printing the family Christmas card instead of using the photocopier. I knew I wanted to do a bird, but was having problems making it in the style of my previous designs. Most things come with trial and error, so when my inspiration finally came I sketched my design with a pencil straight onto the lino's surface and began to cut. I printed the result onto bright card using a two colour ink fade then hung them up to dry. This took about 2 days, after which I cut, scored and folded each one. Finally, I tucked my message into a slit in the beak.
Looking at the birds together I think I'm most pleased with the variation and folksy look of them.
For those of you who are interested in linocutting, I used a relatively new material which comes from Japan. It doesn't bow like lino, it's easy to cut and it takes the ink exceptionally well. I found it at Intaglio.
Season's greetings to you all!
I've been linocutting. I haven't looked too hard at what others have done before me as I wanted this to go its own way and not be influenced by any particular technique. I am now quickly learning what is possible and what is not. The simpler the design, the better, what has been done can't be undone, and it's pretty messy!
