I began the drawings and woodblock carvings while completing a residency at the Wildacres Retreat near Little Switzerland, NC. It is a beautiful facility in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The time away from home allowed me to focus on exploring the surroundings, gathering and documenting botanicals, completing a suite of drawings and subsequent carvings. Here, the drawings have been transferred to blocks and are ready for carving.
My workspace in Laurel Cabin; what a beautiful view!
Eight of the ten blocks I carved while at Wildacres. I used Shina plywood purchased from McClain’s Printmaking Supplies. It is a bit softer than standard plywood and much nicer to carve.
Drawings of botanicals, woodblock carvings, and text set in metal type were all incorporated into an accordion fold book titled I Walk With PLANTS. This was my submission to this year’s The Illustrated Accordion open book exhibit hosted by the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was a rewarding endeavor; though challenging and tedious at times.
I stayed in this wonderful cabin during the residency. It was a 20 minute walk from the lodge and dining hall. I walked to all of my meals. This proved to be a great time to observe the surrounding woods and gather imagery for the project.
Simple line drawings are traced, taped to the wood blocks and transferred using a bone folder.
Carving a block. These were the first wood blocks I had carved. My experience carving linoleum blocks proved beneficial. I bought a set of carving knives specifically for wood. They are Power Grip cutters. These knives worked well. However, I plan on purchasing better quality cutting tools should I carve additional woodblocks in the future. These were great for learning the basics of carving on wood.
I had carved ten blocks. I was tired, sore, and yet full of gratitude for this time to focus and work.
It was now time to return home and complete the project - printing a suite of prints and making an artist book about this time in the mountains.