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| detail, three layers - plenty of transparent base |
Focus (February, 2011) is a collaboration between Gaelle Baudot and Jen Coon. Gaelle is a biologist who just finished a 2-year residency in Research Triangle Park. Her native country is France. Jen (author of this blog) participated in the Bain Project, which is where she met Gaelle.
The idea for collaborating came last January, when the two were discussing a book Jen had made with Wendy Call (Penland, January 2010, see Glimpse of a Marathon).
Gaelle had written a poetic text, reproduced in full on the broadside, and was looking for a way to commemorate her American adventure, which included a cross-country road trip and living in downtown Durham. They chose the broadside format for its unique history as artful documentary with longstanding musical, political and literary associations.
Gaelle had written a poetic text, reproduced in full on the broadside, and was looking for a way to commemorate her American adventure, which included a cross-country road trip and living in downtown Durham. They chose the broadside format for its unique history as artful documentary with longstanding musical, political and literary associations.
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| detail - too bad you can't see the embossment! |
The project extended over eight months, and brought a myriad of interpretive and technical challenges. Even with Jen's 26 years of experience as a printmaker and Gaelle's creative problem-solving skills, arriving at the final design and printing the edition was a harrowing test of determination -- but the results are worth it!
About the sequence and media: The first (black) layer is a lithograph. Gaelle designed the composition on the computer, which was then enlarged with a photocopier and finally hand-transferred to the plate.
The second and third layers (green and blue) are woodcuts. Jen sculpted the plywood surfaces with gouges, bits of metal and wire, also using an etching press and orbital sander. Letterpress, the final layer, was designed and hand-printed by Horse and Buggy Press.
The full image is in the sidebar; a jpeg is available. Prints may be viewed by appointment at Blam! studio in Raleigh (jjacoon@hotmail.com) and are available for purchase on this website.
Hand-printed on Legion Bamboo paper, it measures 24 ¾ high x 16-1/2 inches wide.
An English translation of the poem is available by request!
Hand-printed on Legion Bamboo paper, it measures 24 ¾ high x 16-1/2 inches wide.
An English translation of the poem is available by request!
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| detail. woodblock |
