i think in high school and just after i worked on a few linoleum block prints.  i might have even done a wood block or two but they have disappeared over the years.   i always think of linoleum as more graphic due to cutting techniques.   ‘lotus tiki’ was designed in my graphic style.  i was working on a tattoo design for my daughter and was teaching her how to do block printing so the design is based on her tat and her hawaiian wedding.   i printed the block on 3 different papers and clay.  when i was done with printing i set it on rolled out clay and made an impression.  i then fired the piece in the kiln and glazed it.  the clay work hangs on her wall.  we did the same with her work she created.

with ‘walkabout’ my goal was to give more character to the gorillas face in contrast to more graphic work in the background.

although the gorillas body is a large black shape the line work is much more like a sketch than a graphic design.  the plan is to do a series walkabouts with all the great apes.  i definitely have reference material and currently i am craving a walkabout so it would be appropriate to start working on.  currently there’s a large variety of surfaces for block printing out there  ... so some experimenting on smaller works is first.

my goal with ‘humming’ was to capture the movement of the hummingbirds outside my studio door.   i added some flowers and leaves in the mix to ground them.  ‘humming’ and  ‘walkabout’ are among my favorites to date.  the solid ink can lend itself to being too polished for me but there are small flaws in the cutting and even in the print process that i . . . myself embrace.