Paw Prints

2004-07-11 Gessoed ATC cards with liquitex gesso & liquitex gesso tinted with golden carbon black.

2004-07-12 Mixed up a palete of golden regular gel medium and golden liquid acrylics. My cerulean blue mix incorporates zinc white, a heavy body acrylic, and the white definitely lends a great deal of opacity to the paint. Otherwise, the paints were very translucent. I did use metallic gold and stainless steel.

My inital desire was to create a time sequence running across the strip of the four cards, a “sea” scape going from calm to turbulent to calm. I wanted to catch an erotic energy of the red and blue mixing. I chose red for the “sea” as the standard color of passion, as a fluid, blood.

The lack of opacity in the paints changed how i dealt with the horizon. I think i will retry with more opaque paints (how? increase the pigment load in the gel? add more zinc?)

I don’t think this image benefits from the black ground — i should do starscapes on the remaining four black gesso ATC — and gesso up some more ATC!

JEB-ATC2004.03.01-04 On black gesso
JEB-ATC2004.03.05-08 On white gesso

The background of all the images is soft pastels rubbed into the calligraphy paper. It’s a fairly common brand of paper but i’ve lost the cover.

The colored inks are the “French School” gouache applied with C-5 Speedball nib. The large text is Higgin’s non-waterproof black ink with a C-2 nib, highlit with Winsor & Newton ink in gold (C-5).

I’ve done a little research into the words depicted, and have some notes about Carolingian manuscripts.

The individual editions:

JEB-ATC2003.03.01: W is for Word
2003/10/25
The monk is inspired by an illumination of “Primat writing his book.” X made the suggestion i add another layer to the design. I like it, but i’m not sure it works post-calligraphy. The other three words from today have more intensely colored backgrounds; I don’t think they need another design element as much.

Word and the next four have the different spellings and related words from older and other Germanic languages and a few proto-Germanic roots in different shades off gouache.

JEB-ATC2003.03.02: W is for Wise
2003/10/25
(not scanned)

JEB-ATC2003.03.03: W is for Wisdom
2003/10/25

JEB-ATC2003.03.04: W is for Wit
2003/10/25

JEB-ATC2003.03.05: W is for Wax
2003/11/15
weaxan: to grow
The border is meant to imply spring leaves. I put in the moon’s change reading right to left instead of left to right (as one reads). This flaw annoys me. The purple illuminated letter is inspired by the last research i did. Apparently, one of the Carolingian schools made much use of regal purple and gold. Poking around descriptions of manuscripts i ran acroos descriptions of miniatures pained on purple paper.

JEB-ATC2003.03.06: W is for Wane
2003/11/15
wanian: to decrease
The border is meant to imply autumn leaves. See JEB-ATC2003.03.05 for more notes.

JEB-ATC2003.03.07: W is for Waggle (For Tolkein)
2003/11/15
Different spellings and related words from older and other Germanic languages in vermillion gouache.

JEB-ATC2003.03.08: Warp Meets Weft
2003/11/15

JEB-ATC2003.03.09: W is for Weave
2003/11/15

JEB-ATC2003.03.10: Wave & Weave
2003/11/15
“whether water, thread, or ink, side to side, up or down”
The motion of writing W reminds me of waves and weaving.

(Click for the series album)

California Recall Election 2003: I’m a registered Democrat and permanent absentee voter. I voted my ballot on 2003/09/12 even though the official election date is 2003/10/07. (I will actually be out of the state this time around.) The mail urging me to vote NO on the recall had just begun arriving. This year, instead of recycling all the paper, i thought i’d try collaging them. I hope it brings folks some amusement.

Update, 2003/10/19: I was out of town during the election. With the outcome known , i do not feel a need to make any more. This edition is closed.

JEB-ATC2003.08.01: If you make a mistake
2003/09/..
[To Eliza 2003/10/19]

JEB-ATC2003.08.02: The Most Votes
2003/09/..
[To Eliza 2003/10/19]

JEB-ATC2003.08.03: Look at Both Sides
2003/09/27

JEB-ATC2003.08.04: For California
2003/09/27
(Back is upside down. Whoops!)

JEB-ATC2003.08.05: Spoiled Ballot
2003/09/27

JEB-ATC2003.08.06: 135 Candidates

(Click for the series album)

Hans Küng’s Does God Exist, Experiments in Altered Books

The Edition

JEB-ATC2003.07.02 : Dare To Reason
2003/09/..
Golden Acrylic medium over the text, then with frisket masking of the text circled in Higgins Waterproof Caligraphy ink, soft pastels. Page 351 of the text, from a section on “Strauss’s Philistine Optimisim.” The selected text ( / a line break in the bubble; … words omitted by the bubble; | a new bubble):
morality is as easy/as “a creature of nature” | he / shared / himself | the same / stronger / And / simply / natural / new /venture | dare / to / reason | suitable especially / paradox | to him / all is said and done

JEB-ATC2003.07.03 : Our Answer
2003/09/27
Text selected with sharpie, French School Gouache. Right hand side of page 350 of the text, from a section on “Strauss’s Philistine Optimisim.” The selected text:
our answer | is | hope | life | and | more

(Click for the series album)

On the Gulf Coast of Florida:

Sent Old2003.03.02 to Aunt Judy as a card
2003/09/14
mounted on cardstock with photo corners. No alteration, no notes or identifiers.

(Click for the series album)

I have countless photos of our three Grey Cats, often doing the same thing as in a photo from three, five, seven years ago. (The digital camera is just making this even more the case.) I had taken a number of photos out of my archive boxes some time ago, so i don’t have the metadata for these images at hand. I’ll just keep this series open and add the Grey Cat inspired photo cards to the series until next year.

JEB-ATC2003.06.01: Cat Weave for HeyMaggie
2003/08/23
She had posted about paper weaving to ATC-hub just after i experimented with it. After looking around on her site, i thought i’d try weaving a cat for her.
Mounted with Mod Podge directly on the card stock. The photo is from the Philly era; Grey Brother on my desk.

JEB-ATC2003.06.02: Cat Weave
2003/08/23
Trying again. Another Philly era photo, but of Grey Beard. On this one i made sure all the ends were well taped and then i used Avery Permanent Glue Stic to mount it to the Flax paper sample, which was Avery mounted to the card stock. The cats all look far more golden hued than grey in the incandescent light.

JEB-ATC2003.06.03: Bright Idea
2003/08/23
Grey Brother, Philadelphia, on desk under lamp
(multiple copies of this photo exist)

JEB-ATC2003.06.04: Super Nap
2003/08/23
Grey Brother, Philadelphia

JEB-ATC2003.06.05: Playtime
2003/09/13
Grey Brother
Flax papers on cardstock with Avery Permanent Glue Stic. Photo segments with Mod Podge. The tail is actually from Grey Beard! More Philly-era cats on desk.

JEB-ATC2003.06.06: Sunrise
2003/09/13
Grey Brother, Philadelphia
(photo with star filter; several versions of this photo exist — different camera settings)

(Click for the series album)

Hans Küng’s Does God Exist, Experiments in Altered Books

The binding of this 1981 “Fine Vintage Books Edition” has come almost completely off, and the pages are very yellowed. A number of pages are fairly torn, as well. Instead of recycling, it will become my first altered book. (Or collection of altered book pages….) [Frisket question at Nness]

The Edition

JEB-ATC2003.07.01 : Old and New
2003/09/05
Frisket masking of the text circled in Higgins Waterproof Caligraphy ink, soft pastels. Page 347 of the text, from a section on “Darwin’s evolutionary thinking.” The selected text ( / a line break in the bubble; … words omitted by the bubble; | a new bubble):

man/the animal | old … faith | new … understanding | new understanding | old … faith | old faith | old faith | deeper understanding of God | deeper understanding of creation | deeper understanding