I probably shouldn't have, but I sat down last night and finished up the print I've been working on. Three things bother me about the print, and I blame myself for being distracted and not focusing on what I was doing.
I dislike the forground portion of the water. I started there, and wished I had left it alone until later - until I figured out what was going on with this image. I would have done it differently. As it is, the dark blue does well enough to hold it together.
I'm very unhappy about the sky. I started it while thinking about lots of other things, and it wasn't until I was half way accross when I realized what a mess I was making of it. I carved in some impromptu "clouds", which I think saved the whole thing from going down the dumper, but I wish I had taken more of a bit of time to really look at what I was doing.
I'm also concerned that the fisherman is getting lost - but then in a print like this, it's busy-ness is part of it's "charm" (for lack of a better word...): I like how things like the barn, silos and such get wrapped up and hidden in the image, and only upon close examination are revealed...
Live and learn - the nice thing I can take all of this into consideration with the next print I print from this block. Overall I'm pretty happy with it.
John,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I came across your blog (found your art through the Art Creel site). I've really enjoyed your artwork and your writing - it's great to get into the psyche of the artist behind the work. I've dabbled in woodblock carving, and have an inkling for the type of work you put into your creations.
I'm glad I spent a couple of minutes really looking at the picture for this one before reading your thoughts. I also liked the silos and barn tucked into the picture. The sky didn't leap out as a concern of mine. But I did have trouble finding the angler (it was the net on the back that finally clued me in).
Anyhow, keep up the great work!