Sketchbook pages...

Inbetween printing and working on a commission I have been working away in my sketchbooks squirreling away ideas and inspiration for later projects. Sometimes pages are just recordings of little things that have caught my attention - like the daffodils flowering during the first week of January! I'm pretty sure that hasn't happened before but we have had a very mild winter so far. A walk on the beach at Southbourne was very fruitful for ideas. The light was very dramatic as heavy showers started to roll in and the energetic tides were throwing up all sorts of treasures like these mermaid purses (a much more romantic name than fish egg case) some were smooth as silk others furry like animal skin in colours ranging from black to pale olive. Anyway here are a couple of pages...

Mermaid Purses sketchbook page ©2016Lisa Le Quelenec

Daffodils for New Year!  sketchbook page ©2016Lisa Le Quelenec

Ammonite etching - three artist proofs

A very happy new year to you. I'm not sure where December went but it did and very fast!

Ammonites  3 etching proofs (centre one with prepainted tissue paper chine colle)   plate size 6x8cm ©2016Lisa Le Quelenec

The above are my very modest beginnings to the new year. Three little etchings, the first proofs from a small zinc etching plate. Ammonites fascinate me and felt like a natural progression after working with chambered nautilus' - maybe spirals are becoming a new theme for me. I certainly enjoy the challenge of drawing them. Being a stone's throw away from the Jurassic coast I am certainly in the right area. The starting point for this plate was a half inch sized ammonite found at Lyme Regis, the whole perfect form lay waiting to be picked up, perfectly intact after a mind-blowing 240 - 65 million years ago.

All three are available in my Etsy store.

Shining star

A last post before the big day is upon us. I'd like to say a big thank you to everyone for all your comments and support throughout the year it means so much to know that people take the time to visit this little spot on the internet.

Star sketch ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

To all those who celebrate a very happy holidays and to everyone a very happy, healthy and peaceful 2016.

May the stars shine bright for you.

Best wishes.

Low tide experiments with inking drypoints

Low Tide   drypoint 3.5x15.8cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

I had a tiny snippet of perspex left over from cutting down another plate and not being one to waste anything I thought I would use it for an experiment. I have come to the conclusion that the skill in printmaking very much lies in the skill of inking up the plate. It's quite a thing to learn - how much ink to apply, how much to wipe off, where to polish and where not to, colours behave very differently to the paint that I am used to and the consistency is a million miles away from acrylic and watercolour - beautiful sticky stuff that it is...

I digress, this little piece of acrylic with a simple design scratched in has been a test piece to practise with. The print on the right has some added marks in the plate where I wanted to add a little more tone but I am finding it interesting to see how the plate develops each time I print it and get braver and more experimental with the inking. These have been done over a series of a few weeks and as I have the time and inclination I will print a few more.

Feather studies and drypoint experiments

Feather I   proof drypoint   15x8cm ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Feathers I is a drypoint made using an aluminum plate. In the grey version I used a roller to get a very thin layer of ink as a background after wiping the plate and then added more ink and took away more ink with a brush in areas of the feather. This was the first time that I had tried this technique and I rather liked the subtle effect. In the sepia version below I tried to vary the amount of ink along the feather to get a greater variation in tone just by wiping alone.

Feather I   proof drypoint   15x8cm ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Feather sketches pencil a4 ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Feather sketches pencil a4 ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

The drypoint below was made using a perspex plate which I printed onto handmade paper that had leaves within it. As the paper was so fine I didn't soak the paper this meant that the paper wasn't supple enough to get a good stand alone print from the burr as it went through the press, especially where the the thicker bits of leaves were. However it was enough to use as a base for a mixed media piece and a worthwhile experiment. It's certainly giving me food for thought and sparking some new ideas for the future.

Feathers  drypoint and mixed media on handmade paper   15x20cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Heavy weather in drypoint

Heavy Weather   drypoint 7.5x7.5cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

We have been having a lot of heavy weather just lately mixed up with plain grey skies so the half hour break of blue sky and sunshine today was most welcome. As I type we are back to plain old grey....

A passing shower - drypoint and collagraph combination print

A Passing Shower I    collagraph with drypoint   12.5x12.5cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

A Passing Shower II    collagraph with drypoint   12.5x12.5cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

A Passing Shower III    collagraph with drypoint   12.5x12.5cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

I've been experimenting with combining the two techniques using mountboard as a base for the plate. The land areas are a mixture of acrylic mediums and peeling back layers of the mountboard to reveal the texture. In the sky I used the etching tool to score lines. It is very satisfying to explore variations in mood and atmosphere by varying the inking of the plate. I can see so many avenues to explore.

Storm at sea - prints using dry point and collagraph in combination

                                                     
                                                                                                          

Storm at Sea 2/5  combination print 14x14cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

These three prints are part of an experiment to combine two techniques. Using a perspex plate I used the drypoint needle to scratch the sea and the pebbles on the beach. In the sky area I used an acrylic fibers medium to create the stormy clouds. I didn't notice at first as each time I was also trying out a different style of inking up the plate but each time that I inked up for another print a little of the acrylic medium was detaching from the plate and the sky area was slowly disintegrating. In a way each of these is a monoprint as the plate was different for each impression. I really like the idea of the plate changing during the process like the clouds changing during the storm and the storm gradually dissipating - serendipitous printmaking.

Storm at Sea 3/5  combination print 14x14cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Storm at Sea 4/5  combination print 14x14cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Gulls and waves

Solo   dry point  8x7.5cm   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Another small drypoint made on a perspex plate. As an experiment I started to draw into one of the prints. I think the vignette idea is still trying to work its way out of my head because I felt like the sea needed to break the confines of the plate.

Into the Wind   10x10cm drypoint and mixed media   ©2015Lisa Le Quelenec

Both versions are available at my Etsy shop Seasidestudiosuk.

Lucky me!

Acorns sketchbook page ©2015LisaLeQuelenec

Look at the lovely gift my boys brought me back from a trip out to the park. The photograph doesn't do the gorgeous soft lime green of the acorns justice. I couldn't wait to get my sketchbook out to explore the shapes. It seems Prince Twinkle Toes has a good eye for treasure.

Acorns   watercolour sketch approx 10x14cm ©2015LisaLeQuelenec