A cat may look at a King – monotype print

a cat may look at a king

This was initially pure abstract. I had added the turquoise and blue shapes over the dark red and yellow, but felt it was missing something. At that stage the turquoise and blue were at the bottom. I added the yellow in two blocks then merged them. I still wasn’t happy with the outcome. Then I tried my usual strategy of rotating the print. I did this in stages –  through 90° then through 180°. At this point the amorphous yellow blob suddenly took shape and the print fell together. The title comes from an English proverb.

The print is also a good example of my normal manner of working. I work intuitively in a process that builds up the layers incrementally. Each new layer responds to what has been created by previous layers. This means that my prints take several sessions to become complete.

I often start with an unplanned assemblage of colours created by cleaning up the residue on the plate. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a harmonious image. Often, knowing when to stop is the most difficult stage. It usually takes me a couple of weeks after the last layer is added before I’m sure a given print is complete.

The print is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made a series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience, and yet others are pure abstract without external references beyond the broad ideas of harmony and balance.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.

A matter of detail – abstract monotype print exploring harmony and balance

a matter of detail - abstract print exploringharmony and balance

I’m not sure where the title A matter of Detail comes from. The print has no meaning beyond looking for harmony and balance in the relationships of the shapes and colours used. I’m guessing the title came to mind because of something I was reading or listening to at the time. It seems there is a book with this name, although I haven’t read it. Intriguingly however, there is a blog post by the author called The Masonry of Graffiti and Symbols, which sounds exactly the sort of thing that would interest me!

As an abstract image it is a good example of my normal manner of working. None of these prints are made in a single session. I work intuitively in a process that builds up the layers incrementally. Each new layer is a response to what has been created by previous layers. I often start with an unplanned assemblage of colours created by cleaning up the residue on the plate. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a harmonious image. Often, knowing when to stop is the most difficult stage. It may take a couple of weeks after the last layer is added before I know for sure that I’m finished.

The print is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made a series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience, and yet others are pure abstract without external references beyond the broad ideas of harmony and balance.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.

Curve of the earth – abstract monotype print

Curve of the earth

Curve of the earth shares the same basic structures as Sunrise on Mercury (also in the shop), so was probably made around the same time. I can’t be entirely sure because these prints are not made in a single session. I work intuitively in a process that builds up the layers incrementally. Each new layer is a response to what has been created by previous layers. Often, knowing when to stop is the most difficult stage. It may take a couple of weeks after the last layer is added before I know for sure that I’m finished.

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made a series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience such as the ideas in this piece, and yet others are pure abstract without external references.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.

Carnival by the sea – abstract monotype print

Carnival

Carnival by the sea, was probably completed around the same time as Forbert (also in the shop). It has the same sweeping serpentine shape coupled with more characteristic mark making like the barred blocks of colour. I say probably because these prints are not made in a single session. I add layers all the time, in an intuitive process that responds to the outcomes from previous additions. Knowing when to stop is sometimes harder than knowing how to start when I’m working this way, and it may take a couple of weeks after the last layer is added before I know I’m finished.

I think the title of this one comes mainly from the bright colours combined with the blue next to the serpentine shape suggesting a coastline.

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made a series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many draw their inspiration from real places, some while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience such as the idea of a carnival by the sea in this piece, and others are pure abstract without external references.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.

They’ve changed the moon – mid-century style abstract monotype print

mid-century abstract

They’ve changed the moon came, like Kimono (also in the shop)  from experiments with a limited palette and more defined shapes, rather than the multiple layering which is my normal approach. This one doesn’t have quite the clean uncluttered look of Kimono, although it still seems to me to be in that same so-called ‘mid-century’ abstract style.  To be honest, I’m not entirely sure that what I understand by the term is the standard definition. To me, it recalls the Festival of Britain in 1951 and designers like Robin and Lucienne Day.  The Wikipedia definition seems however to be rather different and heavily US biased.

The title is a paraphrase of a song by – “They’ve moved the Moon.”

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made large series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience such as the being under the sea and some are pure abstract without external references, such as this ‘mid-century’ abstract print image and others like it.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.

Kimono – abstract monotype print

mid-century style gel print

Kimono came about from experiments with a limited palette and more defined shapes, rather than the multiple layering which is my normal approach. I wasn’t aiming for the so-called ‘mid-century’ look, although that is how it appears to be seen. To be honest, I’m not entirely sure that what I understand by the term is the standard definition. To me, it recalls the Festival of Britain in 1951 and designers like Robin and Lucienne Day.  The Wikipedia definition seems however to be rather different and heavily US biased. Whatever the style is called I like this particular print, which is one of several with the same ‘mid-century’ feel.

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made large series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience such as the being under the sea and some are pure abstract without external references, such as this ‘mid-century’ image and others like it.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.+

Diving for Rubies – monotype print

Diving for rubies - under the sea -monotype print with underwater feel

Diving for Rubies is from the same print session as Deep Dive, another monotype gel print in the Lockdown 2020 series. It has the same deep blue, the same sense of being under the sea. Rubies of course are mined, not brought up from the sea bottom, so perhaps this is also a science fiction image. After all, who knows what will be found once we venture onto other planets around other stars? Not in my lifetime though…

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made large series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others are pure abstract and some, while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience such as the being under the sea.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.+

Deep Dive – monotype print

gel print with underwater theme

Deep Dive is another from my Lockdown 2020 series of gel prints. The title comes from the deep blue of the background which made me think of being deep underwater. The other patches and strips of colour then became seaweed and underwater plants. I’ve made prints with this sort of feel before, both digital and physical. The first one I think took its theme from Octopus’s Garden by the Beatles.

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made large series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many draw their inspiration from real places, others are pure abstract and some, while still abstract, have a link back to the world of experience such as the underwater theme here.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.+

Sunrise on Mercury – monotype print

Sunrise on Mercury

Sunrise on Mercury gets its title from that intense yellow and red patch next to the curved blue shape. I don’t know what a sunrise on Mercury would look like, but I’m guessing it would be intense and this fictional landscape is an attempt to picture it. The planet turns up a lot in Science Fiction, often in stories set in the Terminator, the narrow band between the day side and the night side. It was thought that Mercury always turned the same face to the Sun. It is now known however that it rotates on its axis three times for every two rotations around the Sun. I’ve also made reference to it in one of my own prints, Mercury Beach.

The print was made by gel printing with acrylic paints on paper and is about 30 cm square. It is unmounted and unframed, although if you wish I can mount it on a cradled wooden panel, with black painted edges ready to hang on your wall.

During lockdown, I have made large series of  similar colourful abstract monotype prints. They represent a new direction for my work, one I intend to continue to explore for a good while yet. I am very drawn to the way in which abstract, almost accidental layers of colour can be transformed into a coherent structured artwork. Many of them are fictional landscapes like this one, while others draw their inspiration from real places.

What is a gel print?

Monotype prints in general are made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. This surface, sometimes called the matrix, was historically a copper etching plate. In contemporary work other materials are often used, such as acrylic sheet. The image on the matrix is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together. This usually requires a print press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create light areas in a field of opaque colour. This is then pressed together with a sheet of paper to make the print.

The specific process I used for this print was gel printing (or Gelli but this is a trademark). The matrix in this case is a soft synthetic gel. I apply the paint to the gel sheet with rollers or brushes. The area to which the paint is applied can be controlled by masks and stencils. The rolled out paints can also be drawn into or textured in various ways. This process is repeated until I’m happy with the image.

Some of my prints made this way have over 20 separate full or partial layers. The nature of the process allows for both intense bright colours and  subtle variations in colour as well as tangible physical texture.+