Printing: 5 hours
Drawing: 8 hours
Working on postcard: 1 hour
Writing: 1 hour
This week I continued drawing on the print I was working on last week. I'm still not quite happy with it. I'm wondering if I should tone down the red-orange color on the left wall. I love the color, but I'm not sure it's working for this image. I've also realized that this is the first print I've done where the floor is not visible, hence the ceiling takes up a large portion of the composition. I think that might be part of my problem with this image because it doesn't feel as grounded as some of my other prints. So, let me know your thoughts about the color, composition, and any ideas about how I might be able to make this image work better.
I did another print this week, but I haven't assembled it yet. It's based off of the second drawing in last week's post. I also continued with more pastel drawings, and I'd like to print some of these images next week.
I did a little more writing this week, but I still haven't really figured out how I'm going to display the writing in the show. I'm still thinking of putting it into a book and possibly including the grayscale pastel drawings with the poetry, but I haven't decided much else. What are your thoughts about the book format? If I go that route, do you think the book should be handmade or professionally printed? Or should I display the poems and drawings on the wall, somewhat separate from the large prints? I like the idea of a book because it would be intimate and tactile, but on the other hand, I don't have much confidence in my typography/graphic design skills. So really, anything involving visible text scares me, and I could use lots of input. Also, if you have any comments on my writing, please let me know. I seriously won't be offended.
Your heat,
like velvet,
brushing against
my skin.
Your heat,
so softly
blowing
up from the vent.
Your heat,
a gentle tickle,
my knees
bent over top.
Your heat,
so smooth,
but short
and evasive.
Your heat,
my vice
on early winter
mornings.
Your heat,
mine to capture
beneath
pajama shirts.
Your heat,
the moment,
each morning
I remember.
Your heat,
I felt, as light
dripped down
the stairs.
Your heat,
so quiet,
a whisper
in my ear.
Your heat,
contrasting,
my icy
fingertips.
Your heat,
internal,
the space
I go the most.
Your heat,
still blowing,
if only a
memory.
Chrissy,
ReplyDeleteon the new print, i think it is the yellow on the ceiling that is the problem. block it out with your finger and look at the image and see how it comes together more. the two yellow shapes in combination form an abstract design that seems to contradict the architecture. i think that is you change the color of that shape the yellow and pink in the wall will make more sense.
if you want to do a book and are not confident about doing it, i'm sure that seth will be able to help you with the type and the design. it can be very simple.
the new pastels look great.
janie
i think you can request
Your prints are so awesome they hurt to look at. Seriously, I love all of them. These new ones from different angles where the floor isn't visible are really interesting... they make me feel that sense of childhood and being small in a big room. Really great! I see what you mean about something being off in the image with the red-orange color. The color itself doesn't really bother me, though. It might be the angle of the light cast on the ceiling. Something about the way those shapes of color interact on the ceiling feels off, but I can't quite put my finger on it... sorry that's not more helpful!!
ReplyDeleteI really like this latest poem about the heat. I think I would take out the line in the second stanza where you say the heat is coming from a vent, because that kind of takes away the mystery of what the heat is and where it's coming from. Since these are going to be shown in some form with your prints, I don't think you have to explicitly mention what in the house you're talking about. Other than that I think it's a really solid poem!
Awesome work as always!! :)
If you have any interest at looking through poetry books for typography ideas, feel free to ask me, as I have a few that might prove useful. :) (I also have 'The Elements of Typographic Style' by Robert Bringhurst, which I've found really helpful during graphic design/typography projects. Again, you're welcome to borrow it.)
ReplyDeleteOf course, I agree that your prints are awesome. I kind of like that your newest isn't "grounded," because I've always been interested in how your piece could progress from print to print. You have a few prints that look very structured and "balanced," but I really enjoy the prints where something about the scene has been abstracted. Maybe there could be even -more- prints that feel "less grounded" than your previous efforts. If you had several prints that weren't grounded, then perhaps you could build a sort of linear progression in your installation—the scenes farthest left could look normal, while the scenes farthest right could look more abstract. (Just an idea, of course.)
Loving the poetry, as usual.
I like the idea of combining the text and the grayscale images in a book! That sounds really exciting. What about stitching the poems into pages? I really like the example you made in earlier crits.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Janie about the image above- it's entirely different when you block out the yellow in the top right corner- I think that's overwhelming the balance.
The poem: it's got some really strong imagery. I don't know if you need the "your heat" line repeated as many times as you do- as the reader, we'll start filling that in after you say it once or twice. But I also agree with Janie that you should have sweetland look at the poems, or a poet? Or a writing instructor you know? The writing tutor we got last year had her MFA in poetry... maybe we're getting the same person? Let's try and get these poems into the hands of a poet so you can get some meaningful feedback--
Amanda