Block Print
Exhibition Text
Looming is a block print inspired by the illustrations done by John Tenniel in the book Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. The idea of the Cheshire Cat was adapted to symbolize anxiety. Like the Cheshire Cat in the book, anxiety can creep up on you at any time and leave behind behind reminisce of its effects, similar to how the Cheshire Cat's smile can be left behind even though the body isn't necessarily there.
Planning
Inspiration
Public Domain Review. “Sir John Tenniel's Classic Illustrations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.” Medium, Medium, 7 May 2015, medium.com/alice-s-adventures-in-wonderland/sir-john-tenniel-s-classic-illustrations-of-alice-in-wonderland-2c3bbdca3a77.
All of these illustrations done by John Tenniel influenced the style of my piece, but I specifically looked at the image of Alice and the Cheshire Cat. In the book, the white space in the lower right corner was filled with text, but for my print, I didn't include any.
This specific illustration includes the Cheshire Cat looking down mischievously at Alice. I thought that for my piece, I would change the idea of the Cheshire Cat. The Cheshire Cat was a creature Alice stumbled upon in Wonderland, who would appear and disappear throughout the story. It was know for its mischievous and almost villainous grin, which could actually be left behind even after its body was gone. The origin of the Cheshire Cat is thought to come from an old Victorian saying: "Grin like a Cheshire Cat". No one really knows the true origin of this saying, but it is thought to come from the town of Cheshire, where there was a famous cheese made in the shape of a cat's face with a large smile. I thought for this piece, I would turn the idea of the Cheshire Cat into a symbol of anxiety. Like the Cheshire Cat in the book, anxiety can creep up on you at any time and leave behind behind reminisce of its effects, similar to how the Cheshire Cat's smile can be left behind even though the body isn't necessarily there. |
The inspiration for my piece came from the original Alice in Wonderland illustrations done by John Tenniel. This book was written in 1865 by Lewis Carroll
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Sketches
These were the sketches I made for my block print. I had two other ideas before coming up with the Alice in Wonderland idea, which I also sketched out.
Experimentation
When I was sketching my first ideas, I originally wanted to do a block print of dragons in the shape of a Yin Yang. They are very important aspects of Chinese culture and they have lots of symbolism that they could have added to my piece. Once I began drawing, however, I realized that the dragons that I wanted to draw had too much intricate detail that I couldn't really get across through a block print, so I switched the subject of the piece to something with a little more basic shape.
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Sketch ideas for dragons
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My second idea for the block print was to do koi fish, because I have always thought they were beautiful. I was going to incorporate the idea of yin and yang, and how they come together to create unity, but after sketching it out, I realized that the design would just be too basic, and I wanted to create something with more meaning.
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Sketch ideas for Koi
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Another thing I had to figure out through experimentation was how I was doing to do the contrast of black and white. If my background was black, I'd have to figure out how to do slim lines of positive space in my linoleum block. This was a little challenging to figure out, because I had some detailed lines that I wanted to incorporate.
The hardest thing to figure out for this project was how do do the intricate detail. When I was sketching it out, I thought I could just use the small tool to get the detail, but once I started to use them, I found it was very hard to get the tool to do what I wanted. This caused a lot of issues when doing the monster and the person in the corner. In order to fix this problem, I had to simplify the design on the girl and monster because I just couldn't get the little details. Once it was printed, it turned out pretty well, but I think that it would make it better if I was able to get the detail.
Process
2. Then, I began carving out the negative space (anything that was white on the lenolium block) with a U shaped carving tool (left). I did the bigger areas first, then went in to do the detail with a V shaped carving tool (right) to be as precise as possible.
When carving, I made sure my linoleum block was on a wood stopper so that I wouldn't cut myself or anyone else. |
5. Then, I took the brayer and coated the block with ink,
6. Next, I put my piece of drawing paper on top of the ink and proceeded to put another piece on top just in case it bled through.
8. Finally, I peeled off the drawing paper and revealed my piece.
Reflection
Critique
Overall, I really like how the final piece turned out. When I was sketching it out, I got very excited about what I was going to create, because I felt like I had a really solid idea. When I started carving, however, I started to not like how it was turning out. Sometimes I couldn't get the carving tool to do what I wanted it to, and it was very hard for me to get the intricate detail that I wanted. The carving process took a long time and by the end of it, I honestly didn't think the print was going to turn out like the sketch. When I printed it, however, I was very happy that it translated the way I wanted it to, and I think that even though I couldn't get all of the detail that I wanted, the simplicity of it makes it look really nice. The hardest part of the project was carving everything out. It took a long time and some parts, like the leaves and the monster, took a lot of focus. I think that if I did this project again, I would make sure to make the lines thicker so that it wouldn't require so much intricate detail and it would come out cleaner. The main problem I have with the finished piece is that I couldn't carve as many leaves as I had originally drawn in the sketch. I think the final result would have been just as good, but I think it would make it look more like a tree.
Compare and Contrast
Public Domain Review. “Sir John Tenniel's Classic Illustrations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.” Medium, Medium, 7 May 2015, medium.com/alice-s-adventures-in-wonderland/sir-john-tenniel-s-classic-illustrations-of-alice-in-wonderland-2c3bbdca3a77.
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Similarities
Differences
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Public Domain Review. “Sir John Tenniel's Classic Illustrations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.” Medium, Medium, 7 May 2015, medium.com/alice-s-adventures-in-wonderland/sir-john-tenniel-s-classic-illustrations-of-alice-in-wonderland-2c3bbdca3a77.
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ACT Responses
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork.
Similar ideas of symbolism were reflected in both my piece and the illustrations done by John Tenniel. There is also similar balance and shapes in both pieces.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The author of my research really focuses on the symbolism behind characters in the story Alice in Wonderland, specifically the Cheshire Cat.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
From my research, I can generalize that the symbolism embedded in a piece, weather it be writing or art, is important for adding meaning.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The central idea around my inspirational research was symbolism. I really wanted to focus on the significance and symbolism of the Cheshire Cat so that I could translate it to the ideas of my piece.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
I could infer that the significance of the Cheshire Cat is much more than what it may seem. I learned a lot about its background and its meaning and I can infer that its symbolism adds a lot of meaning to the story.
Similar ideas of symbolism were reflected in both my piece and the illustrations done by John Tenniel. There is also similar balance and shapes in both pieces.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
The author of my research really focuses on the symbolism behind characters in the story Alice in Wonderland, specifically the Cheshire Cat.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
From my research, I can generalize that the symbolism embedded in a piece, weather it be writing or art, is important for adding meaning.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The central idea around my inspirational research was symbolism. I really wanted to focus on the significance and symbolism of the Cheshire Cat so that I could translate it to the ideas of my piece.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
I could infer that the significance of the Cheshire Cat is much more than what it may seem. I learned a lot about its background and its meaning and I can infer that its symbolism adds a lot of meaning to the story.
Bibliography
Public Domain Review. “Sir John Tenniel's Classic Illustrations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.” Medium, Medium, 7 May 2015,
medium.com/alice-s-adventures-in-wonderland/sir-john-tenniel-s-classic-illustrations-of-alice-in-wonderland-2c3bbdca3a77.
Shmoop Editorial Team. “The Cheshire Cat in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass.” Shmoop, Shmoop
University, 11 Nov. 2008, www.shmoop.com/alice-in-wonderland-looking-glass/cheshire-cat.html.
medium.com/alice-s-adventures-in-wonderland/sir-john-tenniel-s-classic-illustrations-of-alice-in-wonderland-2c3bbdca3a77.
Shmoop Editorial Team. “The Cheshire Cat in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass.” Shmoop, Shmoop
University, 11 Nov. 2008, www.shmoop.com/alice-in-wonderland-looking-glass/cheshire-cat.html.