alumni printmaking night enthusiasm!

I graduated from Montserrat College of Art a whopping four years ago and though I loved my time there, I hadn't been back much since. That was the case until I was invited to attend the new best thing in my life... alumni printmaking studio night! Every Tuesday evening, I get to go back to one of my old favorite places and make some art with my friends!

One thing I wasn't expecting is that I couldn't really remember how to do different print methods or where to find supplies. Four years is a long time to try to recall which solvent cleans what ink and how much pressure does it take to make a nice clean monoprint.

I was very lucky that the coordinator is my friend Chris who is super knowledgeable and a patient teacher and that Chelsea wanted to complete her etching/aquatint project and needed him to show her the steps. I tagged along while he showed her and I got to learn a new process! Next week I'll be ready with my own plate to etch. I think it will be a hedgehog!

I can't wait until next Tuesday!

The above photos were my way of taking notes. If you visit my Flickr, you can get a better description of what is going on in each picture. Also, if you were wondering what kind of creature is etched in Chelsea's plate, it is an aardwolf and they are neat. Here is a video of an aardwolf eating a bowl of termites.

Montfest

I just got back from my college's alumni festival (aka Montfest) where I was selling my Argyle Whale wares with Justin. Justin was bored to tears while manning my table but I had a nice time socializing with my classmates and attending a lecture called "artist as a small business".

I got myself all worked up the night before Montfest and ended up with little sleep. I left so much to the last minute with my display. It's embarrassing to admit, but I was also afraid of seeing people I hadn't seen in a long time and especially intimidated that my old professors would be seeing my new things. My designs now are so different from the type of art I was making back in school that I feared being criticized for becoming too commercial. Y'know, I used to make installations and now I draw bunnies wearing scarves.

Of course, nobody was tacky enough to criticize my wares or comment on my belly fat and most people seemed genuinely tickled by my new work. I left with a pocketful of cash, some dates with friends and a free brownie. Yes!