Inner CalicoSize: 8.5in x 11in (30cm x 23cm)
Medium: Linoleum Carving Block Print September 2019 "Inner Calico" was inspired by the pattern and decoration art movement, the ancient Egyptians and by American artist Dean Russo. I wanted to represent the innate personality of the cat through the variation of patterns and repetition. The title refers to a type of cat with several different colors shown in its fur, but the beauty and eccentric colors show through in the cats personality as well. |
Planning
Inspiration
My largest inspiration was the ancient Egyptians. They worshiped cats; treated them with the utmost respect and care. They were considered very useful for catching poisonous snakes and rodents, which at the time one diseased rodent could infect a crop field and prove fatal to the community. I was also greatly influenced by the pattern and decoration art movement that became popular in the mid 1970s and 80s. I came across an amazing artist by the name of Dean Russo. He incorporated patterns into his love for animal, creating some amazing works of art. He believes that the eyes are the most important part of the piece, as they draw the viewer in. I wanted to make they eyes stand out as well to try to bring more attention to the animal hidden in the pattern. I also wanted to represent the unique personality of a cat, often displaying affection followed by hatred or the want to suddenly be alone.
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Symbolism/meaning
Religion was very prominent in ancient Egypt. They had symbols with unique, sometimes religious, meanings that were used to represent different things. For example, the Eye of Horus represented protection or power. I decided to incorporate the Egyptian Ankh, that resembles a looped cross, into my block print because it represents life. The theory behind cats is that they have 9 lives. This idea surfaced from William Shakespeare, however, it was also brought up in an ancient proverb that reads, "For three he plays, for three he strays and for the last three he stays." The Egyptians also loved to incorporate simple pattern, repetition and decoration into their buildings, attire, and art. They usually used simple patterns with a lot of reds and yellows. Intricate patterns were rarely used, but sometimes two different types or shapes of pattern were incorporated together. For example, some patterns would have a checkerboard-type pattern with some other shape inside every other square.
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planning/experimentation
Printing/Carving Process/Experimentation
Carving
After completing my final sketch, I darkened the lead to ensure it would transfer well. I then turned the paper drawing side down onto the piece of linoleum. I used a #2 pencil to color in the entire back of the paper, revealing the lead drawing on the linoleum. That was then my reference for carving. When I carved the piece, I only used one type of carving tool. It had a very small tip and was shaped like a "V". I just found that this shape tool worked very well for me so I stuck with it. I did experiment with the carving tool before going straight into detail. I started carving the lines into a larger open area of my block print to try to get a feel of the tool and the difficulty/resistance of carving. I found that the lead rubbed off as well if it was touched too often in one spot, so after I had carved the top portion, the lead toward the bottom had depleted, and needed to be re-drawn. |
Printing
When it came to printing, I only found I had to make two prints. They were created by rolling water-based printing ink onto every inch of the linoleum carving, making sure to cover it fully and evenly. A bamboo baren was used to then spread the paper across the inked carving and to properly transfer the ink onto the paper. I thought that the first print I created was a good representation of my carving, however, I wanted to reduce the amount of static that the print ended up with, so I made sure I carved those parts out deeper, so they wouldn’t transfer. My second and final print came out as I anticipated. There was very little static in the piece, and it showed great contrast between positive and negative space. Throughout this process, I made sure to take written notes of what I found to be easy, hard, successful, and what tool I worked best with, in the event I would create another block print in the future (shown above). |
Compare/Contrast
Similarities
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Reflection
My initial intention was to have the cats' eyes be accentuated and to be emphasized apart from the rest of the piece, to show a sense of power and captivation. I also wanted to represent the vast personality of a cat by showing the frantic repetition of pattern, as cats can often show this in personality. Lastly, I wanted to be able to represent the theory behind a cats 9 lives, shown in the Egyptian Ankh symbol, signifying life. I do think this was achieved, as the eyes of the cat were relative to the surrounding patterns, however they still seemed to be the first thing the viewer noticed. Because the heavy outlines of the eyes were left un-carved, when printed, they were left black as positive space, creating a bolder appearance in contrast to the surroundings. I also made sure to include that Ankh symbol, representing life, and included the many patterns in the background.
ACT Responses
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon your artwork...
Dean Russo accentuated the eyes in his pieces to make the animal stand out from the pattern and the eyes in my piece are accentuated by bold lines and detail, breaking it from the pattern.
What is the overall Point of view the author (from research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The authors of my research gave a light overview of Dean Russo's artistic intention, but not an in depth reference to meaning or method of his artworks.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
The pattern and decoration movement was a short art movement that was in a way forgotten about due to it being so short and rather unpopular.
What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
My central idea was to make something with a part that stands out or is different from the rest.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
After researching Ancient Egypt, I could see how important to the culture and health of the community cats were.
Dean Russo accentuated the eyes in his pieces to make the animal stand out from the pattern and the eyes in my piece are accentuated by bold lines and detail, breaking it from the pattern.
What is the overall Point of view the author (from research) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The authors of my research gave a light overview of Dean Russo's artistic intention, but not an in depth reference to meaning or method of his artworks.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
The pattern and decoration movement was a short art movement that was in a way forgotten about due to it being so short and rather unpopular.
What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
My central idea was to make something with a part that stands out or is different from the rest.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
After researching Ancient Egypt, I could see how important to the culture and health of the community cats were.
sources
Images
Egyptian Ankh. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.istockphoto.com/illustrations/ankh
Egyptian Ornamental Pattern. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/405886985147145862/
Eye of Horus. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Horus
Russo, D. (n.d.). Painting, Prints. Retrieved from https://fineartamerica.com/featured/maya-dean-russo.html
Vintage Egyptian Pattern. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.redbubble.com/people/fineearth/works/30897877-egyptian-patterns-vintage-design?p=ipad-case
Websites
Beyer, Catherine. “What Do Ancient and Modern Egyptian Symbols Mean?” Learn Religions, Learn Religions, 4 Nov. 2018, https://www.learnreligions.com/egyptian-symbol-gallery-4122787.
“Dean Russo.” Brooklyn Arts Council, http://www.brooklynartscouncil.org/artists/17140.
“Do Cats Really Have Nine Lives?” Wonderopolis, 2014, https://www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-cats-really-have-nine-lives.
Mark, Joshua J. “Ancient Egyptian Symbols.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 19 Sept. 2019, https://www.ancient.eu/article/1011/ancient-egyptian-symbols/.
Egyptian Ankh. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.istockphoto.com/illustrations/ankh
Egyptian Ornamental Pattern. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/405886985147145862/
Eye of Horus. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Horus
Russo, D. (n.d.). Painting, Prints. Retrieved from https://fineartamerica.com/featured/maya-dean-russo.html
Vintage Egyptian Pattern. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.redbubble.com/people/fineearth/works/30897877-egyptian-patterns-vintage-design?p=ipad-case
Websites
Beyer, Catherine. “What Do Ancient and Modern Egyptian Symbols Mean?” Learn Religions, Learn Religions, 4 Nov. 2018, https://www.learnreligions.com/egyptian-symbol-gallery-4122787.
“Dean Russo.” Brooklyn Arts Council, http://www.brooklynartscouncil.org/artists/17140.
“Do Cats Really Have Nine Lives?” Wonderopolis, 2014, https://www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-cats-really-have-nine-lives.
Mark, Joshua J. “Ancient Egyptian Symbols.” Ancient History Encyclopedia, Ancient History Encyclopedia, 19 Sept. 2019, https://www.ancient.eu/article/1011/ancient-egyptian-symbols/.