Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Testing papers for transparency


transparency tests Judith Hoffman
Transparency tests. The tests are laid on a piece of black and a piece of white paper. Each is coated with Golden mat medium front and back up to about the halfway point. The papers are: 1. An unknown paper recommended, but discontinued. I have a stack. 2. Calligraphy paper. 3. Abaca from Talas. 4. Wet strength tissue. 5. Architect's tracing paper (Dick Blick calls it Canary Sketching and Tracing.) 6. White Kozo from Hiromi. 7. An old pad of forms used for dispatching or tracing trains. 8. Colors of the Rainbow tissue paper. (the color is Kraft) Drawings on #1 thru 6 are with .005 micron black. #7 and 8 are with 01 Microns. The image will enlarge.

 I like to layer papers when I collage, I want the papers to be somewhat transparent or translucent. My drawings are often done on architect's tracing paper.  I coat it with Golden mat medium to make sure the ink doesn't smear in the collage process. Then I collage the drawing to the substrate. The mat medium does help to make the papers translucent. 


Transparency test on color of the rainbow paper by Judith Hoffman
Transparency test. Colors of the rainbow tissue paper in soft ivory. The figure was drawn on the paper, coated with mat medium, cut out and collaged to eco-dyed paper. The soft ivory pretty closely matches the substrate paper. The brand Colors of the Rainbow is archival and comes in many colors. The paper is not strong when wet.

I have been testing papers lately, looking for other fairly transparent papers in tones I like. I tested all the likely looking papers I could find in my studio. After drawing on each sample I coated it front and back with the mat medium. Below are some drawings and collages I did to further test some of the papers I liked.

Transparency test on old pad of train routing paper.
Old train dispatch or routing paper with drawing. Coated with  mat medium, cut out and collaged to eco-dyed substrate. I don't really know how to describe this pad. It's clearly associated with trains. I would love to find more, but I assume it's not archival. 

transparency test on Abaca paper with drawing coated with mat medium  by Judith Hoffman
The figure was drawn on Abaca paper from Talas. I believe it's 9 gsm. This is the thinnest paper I tested. It works very well, although it's a little hard to drawn on. It's also my favorite for having the paper disappear. I think it would be beautiful for mark making.

All these tests were inspired by Sally Hirst. She has a blog post here about making papers transparent. And a YouTube video here. Her process is different from mine - she spritzes her papers before coating with medium. And she uses a different medium. Sally does test an even thinner Abaca which has to be ordered from Etsy. I found that too thin to draw on, but it would be great for mark making.

Saturday, February 10, 2024

A dream about a drawing class.

Sketch of me in a dream by Judith Hoffman
Quick sketch of me in the dream, done right after writing the dream down in the dark. I was lying down in bed.
 
I sign up for a drawing class. The first day I'm a minute late. The instructor has locked the back door to the room so I have to go in the front one. He makes a comment because I'm late. I am embarrassed.  The second class I'm in the bathroom when the bell rings. I have already gone in and left my purse on a desk. But when I go back there is a woman - middle aged, white hair - writing formulas on the blackboard. The teacher is working on some papers and doesn't look up. So I sneak in and go to stand in the back, in the doorway of a closet, trying to not be seen. I'm hoping to get to my seat during a break. A few other people come to stand in the back too. A guy with sandy short hair starts talking to me. He says something about my dog Toby. Part of the time I can't understand him.  I ask him to repeat but still can't make sense of what he is saying. Toby is his dog, a rescue who took a liking to me at another time. I wonder if the woman at the blackboard is writing fire extinguisher formulas. Over time she covers a blackboard that has 3 big panels and extends all the way across the front of the room. The class is silent and taking notes. When will we draw? I don't have a drawing pad. Can I find Jim and get some money to buy a pad? I can't find my glasses so I have to wear the red weak ones. They look like red goggles. I feel very self conscious. I wake. 

 

Friday, January 19, 2024

A Krampus Mask you can download and make yourself

Krampus mask by Judith Hoffman

For Christmas cards last year - in 2023 - I made a Krampus Mask. You can go here, download a pdf, and make your own mask. If you don't know who Krampus is  - He used to be Santa Claus's sidekick. Maybe a balancing of good and evil? He seems to have been part of pre-Christian Northern European customs. I believe he was called Knecht Ruprecht in parts of Germany. There was a fad for Greetings from Krampus postcards for awhile - and now there are modern, very creepy versions. Check wikipedia for more info.

Mock-up and sketches for Krampus mask
The mock-up Krampus masks and sketches.

I started with several mock-ups and a quick sketch - trying to get the eyes in the right place and correct proportions. The sketch ended up looking sad rather than scary, so I took it into Procreate on my iPad and made some alterations.

sketch for Krampus mask by Judith Hoffman
After altering he may be a bit more scary, or angry. I'm not fond of creepy.

Then I added color by layering the sketch on a red gelli plate print - again in Procreate. The final step was to add some white hatching so there was more dimension. This one was much easier to cut out and assemble than last year's Green Man.

Enjoy your new identity. I hope you all had a great holiday. 

Krampus taking a selfie

Friday, January 06, 2023

Is there one correct way to do blind contour drawing?

A piece of tracing paper with blind contour drawings. These sketches go into a box to possibly be used in collage later. None are considered finished at this point. They will be torn away from the main sheet and used individually. It's a low pressure way to work.

There are a number of ways that artists do blind contour drawings. In general the purpose is to strengthen observational and drawing skills. Most artists don't consider the final drawings to be a finished, presentable product. I find it a very useful way to generate sketches that are quirky. I consider some of them finished drawings that may end up in my collages. It's also a way for me to break away from my inclination to draw realistically, which drives me nuts.
Blind contour drawing on collaged background by Judith Hoffman
Blind contour drawing on collaged background, 5 x 7 inches.

 I think this is the method that most art teachers use: 
(This would likely be using a large sheet of paper.) 
  • Position yourself so you can see the subject, but not your paper. 
  • Fix your eye on an edge in the subject. 
  • Draw a continuous line on your paper, don't look at the drawing. Slowly follow the edge or contour with your eyes and the tool. 
  • Imagine that the drawing tool is touching the subject. 
  • Sometimes a timer is set. 

Blind contour drawing on collaged background by Judith Hoffman
Blind contour drawing on a collaged background. 5 x 7 inches

There is no reason why you have to follow these “rules.”

My favorite method is to draw fairly fast. My drawing are small, between 3 and 6 inches high. They usually take about two minutes for the blind contour drawing. I often draw an area - an eye and the nose for example - and then lift my pen and start the second eye somewhere else. This can create interesting disjunctions. If I have done five or six drawings without looking at the paper when I lift the pen, and I don’t like any of them, then I would probably look at the paper to move my pen. I don't try to get it in the perfect spot, just in the ballpark. If I’m not looking, eye glasses can be split into pieces that may not look good so I usually draw them all in one line. After I have five to ten quick drawings, I add hatching to my favorites while looking at the subject and the drawing. I always feel free to enhance areas I like - like the eyes. Hatching in general adds volume and character. It also sometimes adds to the oddness of the drawing.
On left - blind contour drawing, on right the drawing has hatching added.
Blind contour drawing done on iPad with Procreate. I lost track of the eyes so there is an extra. Another layer was used to add hatching while looking at the photo.

A group of blind contour drawings by Judith Hoffman all from the same photo.
This is a two page spread from my sketchbook. The sketches were all done from the same photo. With eyes closed, I drew one face, opened my eyes and started the next one nearby. The hatching was added with my eyes open.

Possible variations: 
  • Use non-dominant hand. 
  • Or switch hands mid-drawing. 
  • Lift the drawing tool, don’t look at the paper to place it again. 
  • Or lift the tool, look at my paper to place it again but immediately look away. 
  • Draw fast. 
  • Draw very slow. 
  • Make hatching or scribbling marks as I do the blind part of the drawing. They have a different quality than the more deliberate ones I usually make while looking.
Feel-draw sketch, hatching added in ears, around nose and mouth while looking.

Another closely related drawing method is what I call the feel-draw. I saw this in a drawing technique book, but can't find it now. I feel my face and draw what I feel. Ups and downs, bumps, etc. It's another way to get an interesting drawing with distortions. The variations apply here too. I like the effect of doing some blind hatching or scribbling to mark the lower areas like ear holes. So far these haven't made it into collages, they seem too weird. But as I say that I realize I need to use them.

Hand drawing using blind contour method.
Hands can be very interesting using blind contour methods.



Working in Procreate on my iPad, I have a black layer behind the transparent layer I'm drawing on.

When drawing on an ipad, I put a layer under the layer I'm drawing on that is the same color as my drawing tool. When I am drawing with a black pen, I draw on the top transparent layer. There is a layer below that is also black. That black layer won't be turned off until the blind part of the drawing is complete. I sometimes use a third layer to add the hatching.


Blind contour drawings on tracing paper by Judith Hoffman
Another group of drawings on tracing paper. I probably won't use most of these. I only like one right now.



Wednesday, January 04, 2023

You can download and make this Green Man mask

 

Three people wearing Green Man mask by Judith Hoffman
Green Man mask Christmas card. You can download the pdf and make your own.

This was my Solstice/Christmas/New Years card this year. I still haven't mailed them all out. But here it is - you can download it from my website and make your own. There are instructions on the web page. It turns out the mask looks good either way. Turned over it covers your mouth and chin. It's a very effective disguise.

Thursday, October 06, 2022

Are you curious about critique groups?

Run-Run collage from artists book by Judith Hoffman
A page from my recent in-progress book, running figures that needed faces.

Years ago when I mentioned critique groups to a friend she said “oh, no! I’m not interested in brutal criticism.” But that’s not what I’m talking about. In the groups I have been in people make suggestions, give feedback and say what they like. They don't attack. A critique is a way to hear what other people see in your work. After working on something for weeks or months, I can’t see it clearly any more. I often come to dislike whatever it is and I only see the flaws. If my critique group likes something I don’t, I reconsider. If they think something isn’t right, I also reconsider. I don’t feel bound to go with their ideas but many of their suggestions are useful. 

Here are some examples of suggestions and benefits: 

1. Don observes that most of my stuff is wonky (in a good way). I loved that and try to get that to happen now. I'm actually not sure I do, but it's a goal.


2. I have a few silhouettes in my most recent book. One has a face, the others do not. Linda (instagram) says “put a face on it.” I try it with tracing paper and think it’s a great idea. So I add faces. 


3. Rae (Etsy) says I have a sense of humor in my books. I think I do, but don't expect others to get it. So I’m delighted.


4. Karen (Instagram) likes my "borders - not borders." These kinds of comments are helpful. I feel a lot of doubt about many things. And thinking of them as bordering on borders is helpfu. I can break more rules, even if they are rules I made for myself.


5. I was writing layers of text on book pages - several sentences on top of each other. L. suggested I blow them up and use them as collage material. I tried this but it didn't work. They look too fuzzy to me.


6. There have also been practical suggestions, sealing drawings with shellac is one I loved.


7. I am fascinated by the creative process. Not the art mumbo-jumbo about Post Modern blah-blah, but how people think, what they struggle with and what comes easily. I get to see this in the group.


8. The meetings are a mini-deadline for me. I want to have some kind of progress to show so I put in a little extra effort when I can. We also have good conversations about creativity and life in general. At the end of our meetings I feel inspired.


There are lots more examples, these just spring to mind.


Sometimes people have suggestions that don’t work out, or that don’t appeal to me. They understand if I don’t take their advice. They may not take my advice, I understand that too. I do the same thing with Jim. We offer each other advice about our projects but it’s fine to ignore it. I also get feedback from a few friends. These trusted eyes are very helpful. It’s important to me that the people I show my work-in-progress know me and know more or less where I want to go with the project. They are people I know and like and trust to be thoughtful in their comments. I like their projects and how they think. If I'm going to open myself up for criticism, some kind of connection is important to me. It's very hard to find that. Covid ruined some of my good feedback. Hopefully that will eventually not be an issue.


Do you have a good source of critique and feedback? Does it work for you?


On the blog notifications - I made a mistake. Apparently if you were signed up for notifications before Blogger changed their widgets, you will still be notified. I didn't read the email from Blogger very carefully. Some of you are getting two notifications. Feel free to tell me to stop emailing you at judithDOTzDOThoffmanATgmailDOTcom. 




Sunday, August 07, 2022

A new kind of dip pen

Kakimori dip pen test. I dipped the nib twice to get all these doodles. That's a lot of ink!

 Recently I saw a post on Jane Blundell's blog about a new dip pen. Of course I had to buy one. It came this week and I have played with it a bit. I do like it. I would say it's equivalent to a US medium. In the detail photo you can see the tip is not sharp. There is a stainless steel version that is supposed to be slightly finer. One of its strong points is the amount of ink it holds. I used sumi ink for my test. It seemed to cake up in the grooves after a few dips. Maybe my technique wasn't good. It was very easy to clean with a soft toothbrush. Later I tried Golden hi-flow acrylic. That worked well. Either could be diluted a bit with water. 

Isn't that interesting! A completely new design. There are parallel grooves all around the barrel to hold the ink. 

I paid around $35. at Wet Paint, but ordered some other stuff, so didn't pay shipping. Prices in the US are going up. The best price might be ordering from Japan with some friends, it seems the price is better from Kakimori. They also have nice nib holders, but to save a bit I think a good nib holder would be the Tachikawa. They are pretty easy to find. And they have a plastic cap that protects the nib. It's what I'm using.