The bling goes on

          Detailed below is a further trial using loose gold leaf, and the same reversible PVA. Loose gold has to be handled a little differently from the transfer gold because the slightest air current can disturb it before it has been laid, and waft it into a mangled heap. I show in the photos the tools I use, a gold knife (which is not particularly sharp on purpose), which has quite a broad blade and I sometimes use this to manoeuvre the leaf, along with the gilder's tip. That is the wide brush made (I think) from badger hair that you use to lift the leaf and position on the page. You could also use a piece of stiff paper. 

          The gilder's cushion is one I made way back, and I think I made it from a piece of binder's board and a piece of batting cut to the same size and covered with an oddment of suede leather. You hold the gold book in your left hand, bending back the front cover, and lift out the leaf with your right, and lay it on the cushion, ready to cut into suitably sized pieces. If it folds over on itself, you can often just lift it with the blade and flop it back down gently.
          One of the problems with using a coloured paper is that you can't see where you have painted the PVA, so next time I will add more red watercolour to the mix. They used to use armenian bole, a rust coloured earth pigment, to colour the gesso, but watercolour does just as well, and probably mixes better when you're using PVA.
      

  Briefly, the steps are as follows: paint the PVA where you want the gold to stick. Let it dry. Cut the gold so you have a piece the size of the area to cover. Breathe on the PVA and immediately lift and place the gold in position. Using a piece of thin silicon paper or tracing paper, place this on top of the gold and press onto the PVA with your fingers firmly. Rub gently through the paper, then use a burnisher rubbing gently at first then applying more pressure. Remove the paper and check if it has adhered by gently brushing with a small soft paintbrush. When you are sure it is completely dry you can re-burnish to a high shine. If it is patchy you can try the 'breathing, applying gold' steps again as gold will usually stick to gold. You can also re-size if it still won't stick, but be careful not to apply too much. The moisture from your breath re-activates the PVA. The gold which has not stuck to the PVA will fall away as you brush (I call these 'gold crumbs'). You will be left with a gilt letter or shape. 
        
  I save the gold crumbs for use as 'shell gold', the old name for gold paint made from real gold dust. Do your brushing over a piece of paper which has one edge folded up about two inches, then you can shake the crumbs down to the fold and into a small container. See photo of little jar. Then can be pulverized to a powder and mixed with gelatine. (I use the medical gelatine capsules bought from a pharmacy - heat gently to melt, then mix.) This makes real gold paint, which can be reactivated with water and keeps for a long time. It can also be burnshed when dry but it is never quite the same as the sheer bright look of gold leaf. 
         
Here is the result of the second experiment. The actual size of this print is 55 mm x 70 mm or about 
2 1/8" x 2 3/4" .

Bring on the Bling

          I've always loved the gleam of gold on a page. A gilded initial or a highlight of some kind brings the page to life, the reflection of light gives it a new dimension. Years ago I learned raised gilding using gesso, a mix of plaster of Paris (calcium carbonate) and various adhesives according to recipe. But to use gesso, the substrate you are working on needs to be fairly rigid otherwise the gesso can crack or split off the page. Usually raised gilding is done on vellum or a heavier paper. The weight of paper I'm using for the illustrations for this miniature book is not really rigid enough, so my thoughts turned to flat gilding with PVA. One of my calligraphy tutors from the 1980s, the kindly and talented John Shyvers, wrote an article called 'Gilding with PVA' detailing his experiments with this material, which I have since mislaid. PVA is made to many different specifications depending on the qualities required of it. The type I sometimes use is known as Reversible PVA because it can be soaked back and softened with water if need be, which is not the case with all PVA adhesives. It is a white glue that dries clear. John's article originally appeared with the typo 'Gliding with PVA' which gave us a chuckle at the time, and would probably have sent Leonardo into a flat spin.

 I tried two experiments, one using BS Glaire (the type of shellac-based size used for gilding on leather with hot tools) and the other with the reversible PVA. The BS Glaire didn't work, it soaked into the paper too much, and the gold would not adhere to it when dry. The PVA worked, and here I used two applications, but the surface is not very smooth. Flat gilding and raised gilding are different as the raised kind has a cushiony domed profile and can be made very smooth, so it can be burnished to a high gleam. The flat type has definite possibilities, and I will try some different effects, going with the medium rather than trying to emulate raised gesso gilding. In the following photo I tried flexing the page and creasing across the gilded area, and it stayed put, so I guess it's safe to use for this application.

The gold leaf can be burnished when dry. I used a haematite burnisher, which is shaped rather like a lipstick, with a flat face. For flat gilding this is easier to use than the dog-tooth shaped burnishers you can buy as it doesn't dig in. You could probably use the back of a teaspoon instead, if you don't have a burnisher. The type of gold I use is 23 ct and there are two main types, loose leaf gold and transfer gold. I think both types can be bought in single or double, the double thickness obviously being thicker than the single. For these experiments I used single transfer gold leaf. It is lightly adhered to a thin tissue backing sheet, which makes it easier to handle, you can cut it into pieces with scissors if you want to. Next time I'll try the double loose leaf, and maybe it will be good with one application, perhaps the result will look better. The gilding tools and materials, along with the gold leaf I bought about twenty five years ago so are probably more expensive now. Here is a very good and informative site to learn more about gilding

Above, front cover of gold book, open on right showing sheets of partly used transfer gold. On the right is the haematite burnisher, with its flat smooth face. You have to be careful not to touch this with your fingers as the oils from your skin will prevent it from burnishing properly. I keep it in a bubble wrap sleeve. Some time ago I bought a 'job lot' of burnishers which had obviously had a long and productive life, I show them also. I think they were used for gilding picture frames as the shapes would be good for picture frame mouldings. I don't seem to have the magic touch with pictures as they go where they want, not where I put them.
          Further to the question of gold size, I ordered some from the supplier above but forgot that acrylic polymers are sensitive to freezing. It finally arrived in the first week of January and had been frozen en route, so was completely polymerized into a block reminiscent of a latex sponge. I have decided to wait until the weather is warmer before re-ordering and will report at a later date on this.

Etruscan Light at the end of a 'Tormented' Tunnel

          So, the polymer plates arrived on the Monday before Christmas, and I prepared some paper on Tuesday evening ready for printing trials on Wednesday. The preparation consisted of cutting the trial papers to size, labelling them (very important) and layering same between sheets of damp blotting paper so that the paper picks up enough moisture to feel cold to the touch, but is not visibly wet. Leaving overnight or for a few hours gives the moisture time to even out so the sheet is uniformly damp. It will print very much better, more evenly and darker using less pressure than if printed dry. After a few prints on practice paper I printed the image 'Tormented'... onto some Torinoko Lightweight Japanese paper (from McClaines) and it printed very well. I had anticipated some difficulty with the solid black areas (the falling figure looks a little concave on the plate) but it was fine. I used a fairly hard packing, as I didn't want the image punched into the paper too hard.
          I next printed the plate of trial text in different sizes of Brioso Light onto the Griffen Mill handmade paper, and was very pleased with the result and glad I had chosen the Light version. You can never really know until you try it. I'll probably use the 17pt size on the title page as I think it rather handsome. 

  I then experimented with various Japanese papers, Akua colors and pochoir, using brayers instead of brushes. With my previous use of this method, the repetitive motion gave me severe shoulder and neck pain, and started my quest for an alternative method of obtaining colour prints, hence the foray into woodblock and wood engraving. I intended to use some small brayers and cut some Mylar stencils. I then had to break off for Christmas preparations.
          After the break, I tried out the stencils with brayers, and found that the surface of most of the Japanese papers was not sufficiently sealed (not sized enough) to take the action of the brayer and a fairly stiff ink. The fibres 'picked' with just one layer of ink. For use with a brayer (roller) the ink has to be of a stiff consistency otherwise it doesn't coat the surface of the brayer evenly and slides about on the ink palette. I tried one western paper, a Zerkall book wove in a soft white colour, which worked well, but I disliked the appearance of it next to the Griffen Mill handmade text paper. Also, the coloured inks always look better on a white paper. So where am I now?

          Some months ago, I obtained samples of a lovely range of Japanese papers, thin and translucent, in various colours. They were truly beautiful, but at the time I couldn't see how they would work with my colour woodblock ideas. A couple of days ago, during my research on sirens for one of the other images ("..softly whispering their siren song"..), I came across some pictures of ancient (BC) Etruscan vases, and light dawned. The Etruscans were the people of an ancient civilization thought to predate the Romans, and they occupied part of the area of Italy now known as Tuscany. How very appropriate, I thought. I have no idea if Leonardo actually would have seen these ancient pots, but I like to think he may have known of them. Here are some examples:
The Etruscans decorated their vases in various tan and biscuit shades with black, and sometimes dark blue and maroon. I could achieve this elegant and sophisticated look using the coloured papers. I tried the "Tormented.." plate, printing dry, and love the look, it opens up all sorts of possibilities for the other images, and will set the character for this book. It is a break-through moment for me, as I have been endlessly obsessing about the 'how' and now I can concentrate on the 'what', knowing how it will appear.


Here are the prints drying on the line (an idea I took 
from various other printmakers, including Sue Woollatt and Andy English - thanks guys). I also show some of the prints on the Bicchu torinko paper from the Japanese Paper Place in Toronto. They are handmade, and dried on wooden boards, which gives them a little texture and character.
          The prints are not quite done, as there is still another experiment I have to do, but that will be in another blog post, when the material I ordered in November finally arrives - good old UK Post Office. Well, that's quite enough excitement for this week.

To carve or not to carve, that is the question...

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of engraving a piece of hard wood or Resingrave with sharp chisels... Sorry, Will, that was a little uncalled-for. So, what are my choices?
          I could engrave blocks of Resingrave or wood, plywood or lino, and use either oil or water-based inks, and print on a press or hand-burnish with a baren. So many choices, just the one life. All of these choices are going to be just as difficult for me, bearing in mind the previous injuries to my hands and elbows, so I have to find a way to make and print the blocks that is not going to damage my puny body. The best way I can think of, which will enable me to print on the press and cut down on the carving, is to have polymer plates made up that will replicate the 'key-block' in the coloured woodcut method, and then to cut some lino blocks for the areas of colours. Lino is softer to carve than the other types of blocks. It doesn't hold the detail as well, but that's OK because the detail will be on the polymer.  I may even be able to print some of the images by the reduction method. In my internet searches I haven't come across anyone using the polymer/lino combination, but there is a first time for everything. (Have you tried it? I'd love to hear.) The difficult bit will be getting the correct registration of the lino blocks with the polymer. Well, challenges are good. I'm still not sure about the inks but that will become clear when I start to experiment.
          I re-drew "Tormented..", scanned it in and resized it to the page size of the book, ready to send the digital file to Boxcar in Syracuse. I also decided to have a test plate made with Brioso Italic Light, to try out with the handmade Griffen Mill paper. That way I won't waste too much money if my Prince of Fonts turns out to be a toad after all. The photopolymer plate process 'etches' away the plate in the white areas of the drawing leaving the black areas raised and printable. One of the good things about polymer plates is that you can cut them apart like puzzle blocks and print the parts separately, for different colours. I would really have preferred to make this key-block in the traditional way, but I do want to finish this book before my ninetieth birthday. Here is the cleaned up and re-drawn version of "Tormented by visions of flight and falling"...I have used coloured pencils on the black and white image to

show how it might look. The actual size of this image will be 70 mm high, 55 mm wide, (about two and three quarter inches high by two and one eighth inches wide),  the same size as the book pages. The plates have been processed, I'm now waiting for the US Postal Service to do their bit.

          Here comes a shameless plug for the Fine Press Book Association, our only association of its kind in North America, and possibly in the English-speaking world. (Please correct me if I'm wrong, I'd love to hear of the existence of something similar in say Australia or New Zealand.) Like all great cultural things, it is in need of support in these times of economic hardship. I know, you can't eat it or put it in your tank, but...They say a nation is judged by its culture, so let's make sure we have something left to judge us by when the dust settles. New members and donations welcome.

          The President of FPBA, Bob McCamant, wrote an article for The Caxtonian which was published in June 2008, on interviews conducted with several BC Private Presses. De Walden press is pleased to be included. Fine Press is alive and well in North America. End of shameless plug, thanks for reading, and Many Happies for the coming holiday season.             

  

"Tormented by visions of flight and falling..."

          I've been working on the first of the illustrations for 'Leonardo', and show below my initial sketch and the image I developed from it. The words that go with this are as the title above, 'Tormented by visions of flight and falling..'

          I haven't made a definite decision as to how these illustrations will be printed, and may in fact use a variety of methods, whichever is most suitable for each image. One thought is to make a 'key block' using a polymer plate for the black areas, which I can print on the press, and then cut some blocks in lino or shina plywood for the colours. As has happened on previous occasions, this illustration may not actually be used, everything stays loose until the final cut. That is also the reason I have delayed laying out the text, until I have all the elements and can decide how I want to place them. My handmade text paper is now matured so I can use it whenever I'm ready.

           One thing I have decided is that the full-page illustrations will go right to the edge of the paper, with no white margin surrounding them. This will give me a little more 'real estate' to work with. I did this with Qualicum Blue and was able to make the images more meaningful, but I've been giving it careful consideration, thinking about the way people handle miniature books as opposed to larger ones. These images will be interspersed with the text, rather than being in a separate gallery, as in QB. I'm also working on the idea of smaller page elements to go in with the text. Paper for these illustrations is still a big question mark, which will not be answered until I finally decide how they will be printed.

Alcuin Wayzgoose

          On a much firmer footing, the Alcuin Wayzgoose in Vancouver Public Library came and went, and a good time was had by all. There were some very nice new publications and it was great to see new talent and young people lovingly embracing old technology. The Friday evening presentation by Will Rueter of the Aliquando Press was one of the best ever, and our thanks go to all the hard-working Alcuin Society volunteers who made everything possible. Photos are up on Flickr here.

Aero Linen

          Although we don't really know whether Leonardo actually tried out any of his flying machine ideas, he obviously thought about the practical details of constructing the wings. In his notebooks he says:
"I find that if this instrument made with a screw be well made that is to say, made of linen of which the pores are stopped up with starch..."
          These words reminded me of my brother's childhood models of aeroplanes made from balsa wood, covered with doped tissue paper (Biggles anyone?) and also of the aero linen I used to use for bookbinding. Aero linen was the fabric originally used to cover the 'skeleton' of early planes, and was also 'doped' or painted to 'stop up the pores' as Leonardo put it. I understand that the spars forming the skeleton of the plane were bound with strips of linen and the covering of the panels was then stitched to this, and then 'doped' with a solvent based type of varnish. When dry this gave a tough light-weight membrane. Linen is one of the strongest natural fabrics available, and is used in the conservation and repair of books. 
          After a bit of research I found a supplier of this linen fabric, and may well use it for part of the book, though at the moment I have no idea exactly how.

Aero linen

It is probably quite close to the sort of thing Leonardo was thinking of, a strong, finely woven unbleached linen cloth, to which the early aviators trusted their lives. Charles Anthony Silvestri says in his comments on Eric Whitacre's blog:
          "It ocurred to me that this was a poem, not historiography, and I was free to compose out of my imagination details of setting and character. It was OK to view this Leonardo as an amalgam of images from books, movies, daydreams-a fabricated, impressionistic Leonardo who exists in an imaginary place and time. This revelation was immensely freeing to me, and I have stayed connected to that freedom."
          Similarly, I am really interested in conveying the feelings and images of Leonardo's imaginary dream, I don't wish to reproduce authentic details of fifteenth century Italian life, except in so far as they may contribute to the general picture. Using the linen as a case in point, I would use it to reference the linen that Leonardo may have had in mind, not to reproduce or replicate his drawings in wing form. It would give an idea of just how flimsy the materials were, and how much trust and faith the first aviators had to have in order to put their lives at risk. No wonder Leonardo suggested trying his first flying machine out over water...
        And on a different note, I shall be showing some of my books at the  Alcuin Vancouver Wayzgoose - printing fair - which will take place on Saturday October 24 in the Vancouver Central Library on West Georgia. See their website for further details. There will also be a presentation by William Rueter on the previous evening in Labatt Hall, SFU on West Hastings, sponsored by the ever-generous Yosef Wosk. Both events are free. To my knowledge the Wayzgoose is the only event of this kind in Western Canada, and it takes place every two years, so be sure not to miss out if you are in the area. 

Baren Hand, Woodblock Elbow.

          Yikes! What have I been doing? The injuries mentioned above are not listed as such in any medical text book, but will no doubt ring a bell with anyone who has ever tried carving a wood or lino block and printing it. I've been experimenting over the past few weeks with various forms of relief printing, using (on left) shina plywood, cherry wood top right, middle right lino, Resingrave bottom right. Along the way I found some wonderful web resources, particularly Baren Forum with informative articles and helpful comments from artists of all kinds, and notably a very open willingness to share their knowledge and experience.

          However, nothing replaces the 'hands on' experience of actually cutting the block, inking it and printing. I've learned so much, spoiled lots of blocks and came to the conclusion that I need a parallel existence for this activity alone. Not having that option, the battle goes on. Some of the tools I bought are too big for miniature work, and I'm now waiting for two 1mm and 1.5mm u-shaped chisels to fly from Japan into my mailbox. Ditto some new blocks from McClains. Sometimes there are too many choices, too much information. I am gradually narrowing it down, but it takes a while to decide how you want your images to look, and how they will fit in with the text. One method that I may decide to use goes by the alarming nick-name of 'suicide block'.

          The reduction print process, aka 'suicide' method, is a process by which the block is first carved so that the first printing reveals the paper colour in the areas you carved away, then re-carved and inked and printed, this last stage being repeated as required, till at the end there is very little wood left. It's called a suicide block because you have to print at least as many prints as you need for the edition (allowing for 'duds') because once you have recarved the block there is no going back. Mistakes at any stage are not recoverable, you would have to start over and carve a new block. There are certain advantages to this method, it can save carving several blocks and can also help with registration. But it does need careful planning and is not suitable for every type of print. Some people use a combination of reduction and multiple blocks to extend the range of colours that can be used.
          I made a very simple print with one shina plywood block to try out this process, using Akua water-based colours, a brayer (ink roller), dry paper and a baren. A baren is a disc-shaped Japanese tool covered with a bamboo leaf wrapper. It is used in a circular motion for rubbing the back of the prints to transfer ink from block to paper. You can also use the back of a spoon, but the structure of the baren is designed to give an even pressure over the whole print, imparting a more uniform appearance. I hasten to stress that this print is not for use in the book, just a practice block to try out the method and materials. I didn't have a small plywood block so used a large one, with a 'ditch' cut around the size I needed. 
          Lots more carving practice is required and thought as to how to work out the colour schemes and printing sequences, as well as the actual images. Registration on these tiny blocks is a challenge. Shown below are the tools I used to carve the block, a knife, a u-shaped chisel and a v-shaped chisel. Also shown are the disc-shaped baren, and the home-made registration jig I use to make sure the block hits the paper in the same position each time. I learned a lot from my experiments. If I intend to use this method, I'll have to print lots of extras to allow for 'uglies' at each stage.

          Tools, blocks, inks and papers come mainly from McClains and Baren Mall (found on the BarenForum site). Both these suppliers are good to deal with in my experience.

          I haven't yet decided on the paper, as it will depend a bit on the images I come up with, and on whether I stay with water-based inks or go for oil-based. I've been trying various Japanese print-making papers, being lighter in weight that their western counterparts. Some papers and inks give a more solid area of colour, others have a more grainy texture. I'm waiting for some more paper samples from another supplier, Graphic Chemical, new to me. As my experiments progess, ideas change so nothing is set in stone at this stage. I may revert to just one or two colours, and I have yet to try printing on my press. I just like to try everything before I decide. (Hint: never go shopping with me.)

          Finally, I read an interview with the author David Mitchell, (Cloud Atlas, Black Swan Green), where he describes his creative process in this way: "My books coagulate, very slowly indeed, in a gloppy primordial idea-soup"...

While in no way equating my work with his, the creative process for me is equally slow and amorphous, and inches forward a little at a time. I'm hoping by the time my new chisels and blocks arrive that my arm and hand will have repaired, and in the meantime I'll be working on sketches for the images in the book.