kellyu

Hello, I’m Kelly Urquhart and I am a junior working towards a BA in art. I don’t really know what direction I want to go in or what I am going to do with my degree, but I do know that I love art so majoring in art just made the most sense to me. I don’t have experience using a variety of different mediums. I have basically focused on drawing and dabbled in a little painting. Printmaking is a completely new medium for me. Before the first day of class I didn’t really know what printmaking entailed or how prints were even made. I have very limited experience working with wood and carving. For my first project I would like to challenge myself with this new medium but I would also like to leave enough room for mistakes that I won’t become frustrated while I am learning to manipulate the wood.
To start this project I searched through different examples of prints to get an idea of what the different styles and effects are that can be used in wood block prints. The images that I found were the most interesting were ones that were just strait black and white. The harsh contrast was very striking and yet also very simple and clean cut. With my first print I would like to use the same contrast of just strait black and white.
I am a big fan of having a visual reference to help me develop my work. I like to have an accurate picture of an idea to base my drawing off of so that I am free to manipulate and expand upon it. I am free to add my imagination to the image without losing the original idea of what the image is supposed to represent.
Lately I have begun use photographs that I have taken while being with my family or friends. Pictures of good times and things I enjoy looking back on and remembering. I like having a prior connection with the drawing. Not only am I creating an interesting image for other people to look at but I’m also creating a new way for me to look at my memories. It is also nice to have created the original image that the drawing is based off because the entire piece feels like it was created completely by me.
I think it would be interesting to play with using thickness of line and different patterns to create depth and different textures. I plan on using different patterns of lines and spacing to create different effects through out the print. I would like to leave the purpose of the line fairly loose. My hope is that by doing this I will disguise a lot of my mistakes because the intended line didn’t have real intention in the first place.
The unorganized and unstructured line will also soften up the tone of the print. It will serve as a good buffer to the harsh contrast of the black and white. I want it to keep the print playful and interesting to look at. I would also like to play with creating different textures in the print. I plan on doing this by using a combination of curvy, flowing lines to create a soft texture. In other areas I will use more harsh jagged lines to create a rough texture. I am going to try to exaggerate the textures that are already seen in the original photograph.
After completing this print I would like to approach the next print by expanding upon the skills that I will have learned from doing this first print. With each print that I do in this class I want to build upon what I learned with the last print. With each new one I hope to be able to take my creativity farther as I learn more about the foundations of printmaking.