Fern Monotypes

"Fern Botanicals"

I love ferns!
I have a huge plant at work and have wanted to experiment with some of its' large leaves.
I'm really happy with the results.

Etching

"Sitting Buddha"
Etching

Here's my latest etching. It was created on a zinc plate.
First I created colored monotype backgrounds, then ran the etching over top.
He is inspired from the Great Buddha statue in Kamakura, Japan.
He is 13 meters tall and weighs 93 tons.
I'd love to see it in person someday!

Black and White Monotypes

Here are some monotypes I made last night.
The red tint resulted from leftover ink that someone must have used on the materials previously.
It was unexpected, but I liked the way it came out.

More Leaf Monotypes...

I'm having a bit of a leaf obsession lately.
The fall colors are just now turning.
I'm collecting leaves while I still can for projects in the winter.

"Leaf Shine 2"
Monotype

"Leaf Shine 1"

Monotype

Canna Leaf Monotype

Canna
(click image to see detail)

My instructor brought in a very large Canna Leaf from her garden for me to make a monotype with. These prints are 22 x 28 inches. I had to use a full sheet of paper. It was my first time doing so. I had to have other class members help me align the paper to the plate.

At first I didn't want to use the leaf, in fear of making a mistake. In the end I'm really glad I did. It came out so nice. We ran the leaf through the press twice so the juices wouldn't ruin the prints. I ran the first print on newsprint. Then peeled off the leaf leaving the first initial ink on the plate. I really like this method. I love how you see the veins in the leaf. Overall I got three prints from the leaf. With the amount of ink I used, I could have got 5 prints.

I did run into one problem, the paper warped slightly. I'm not sure how to prevent this when drying my prints. It happens often. I place them on a flat surface, yet they warp upward.