Today's postings

  1. [Baren 39133] Exchange #41 (Linda Beeman)
  2. [Baren 39134] Baren Member blogs: Update Notification (Blog Manager)
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Message 1
From: Linda Beeman
Date: Tue, 23 Jun 2009 10:26:12 GMT
Subject: [Baren 39133] Exchange #41
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I already let Joe know........I have to drop out of Exchange 41. Life and finances here in Michigan is getting rougher. Whoever is next on the list should get ready!

I am so sorry to do this. Never thought I would.



Linda Beeman

Digest Appendix

Postings made on [Baren] members' blogs
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Subject: American Bible Story - Final Print
Posted by: Annie B

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AMERICAN BIBLE STORY

Japanese woodblock (moku hanga)
Paper size: 16" x 14.75" (40.6 x 37.5 cm)
Image size: 13.75" x 11.625" (34.9 x 29.5 cm)
5 shina plywood blocks
14 hand-rubbed impressions
Paper: Nishinouchi
Edition: 21

I've been thinking for a long time about the way that present-day Americans of every political persuasion call upon "the founding fathers" to justify all sorts of theories about what America is and how Americans should behave. This quoting of early colonists has always reminded me of the practice of quoting the Bible to add legitimacy and authority to one's own ideas and feelings. Then, reading Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's narrative poem about John and Priscilla Alden, The Courtship of Miles Standish (1858), I noticed that Longfellow alluded to Bible love stories -- Ruth and Boaz, Rebecca and Isaac -- so I started to work with the idea that the early European settlers of America have become a kind of American Bible story.

The stories I included are pretty obvious -- Noah's ark, Adam and Eve, the pillar of clouds, the city on a hill. I also threw in a nod to Utamaro and his shunga prints. I had very much wanted the serpent to be saying "join or die" as it says in the original woodcut by Benjamin Franklin, but in my research I discovered that there's an artist named Justine Lai who is making extensive use of that phrase in her work. Lai is making a series of paintings that depict her having sex with each of the 44 presidents of the United States. I decided to omit the "join or die" text in my piece so as not to jump on that bandwagon.

Here's how the print looked before I added the keyblock:

PrintingDay3

And here are the color blocks as they appear after printing:


[Long item has been trimmed at this point. The full blog entry can be viewed here]

This item is taken from the blog Woodblock Dreams.
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Subject: Back Home
Posted by: Amanda

We've been home from the hospital just over a week and it's hard to believe that Afton Grace, our new little bundle of joy, is almost two weeks old already. Afton was born on June 9 and measured 8 lbs 13 ounces.
We have been keeping busy with a toddler and a newborn. Of course, I am up several times with the baby each night, so we joined Netflix and have been watching movies in bits and pieces. I definitely did not expect to have time to work on artwork during our first days home from the hospital, but I've actually gotten a bit of carving done. It's the perfect project because I can pick it up for 5 minutes and put it down quickly without too much mess to clean up. I'd probably be smarter to sleep during whatever spare time I have, but it does make me feel good to finally make progress on this block. Plus, I know that once the doctor says I can resume normal activity (like lifting and stairs--I had a c-section), my free moments will go toward laundry and other fun chores.
So, I'm almost done clearing the background from this block. Next steps will be to proof it and transfer the design to the other color blocks.

This item is taken from the blog Amanda's Art Blog.
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