A catalogue for the International Mezzotint Festival 2011 is out and on the Festival’s facebook page
Didn’t realised there were so many mad social retards – the likes of me, sitting somewhere in their little corners, rocking, scraping and burnishing away… Us, little gnomes.
The Matrix
A friend of mine, Lesley Samms, sent me a link at the end of December to apply for the “Show Me The Monet” BBC series on art which I did. And forgot about it.
Last week nice voice by the name of Nel phoned and we had a great chat – that was the second stage of selection. So, from 3000 it went down to 300, and after the telephone conversation another 150 of the applicants went in a puff of smoke. But I survived. And that’s why…
Tomorrow I am going to Shepherds Bush for an interview. After that only a quater of the remaining 150 artists will make it to the final exhibition. Wish me luck!
Me and The Matrix
I’ll have to produce a proof of my identity and a proof of my authorship for the artwork I submitted. I thought I’d do the latter in a blog form to save myself lagging stuff around London and also illuminate briefly on my way of working on a mezzotint portrait.
It started last Autumn. I was again thinking about a getting a new model on my quest for a remarkable face, and remembered Eve – a pretty girl of about 14-15. I contacted her mom Angela, asking if Eve would be interested to sit for me and if Angela herself wouldn’t mind. “Yes” was the answer and one day after that they came to the gallery.
Sketch drawing of Eve Delf
Eve was 15, slim, nearly 6 foot tall and beautiful beyond words. I didn’t expect all this when I was asking and certainly got more than I bargained for. It turned out as well, that Eve has just been signed up by a modelling agency after an unexpected turn of events.
We had a couple of sessions in my studio with Eve. I was photographing and drawing. We talked about this and that. And so, at the end I had about 800 photos, a few video clips and several quick sketches.
The next stage is brooding. Brooding, brooding. Looking through the materials: photos and clips. (I am still to figure out how to make use of videos…)
Fibonacci spiral
During that time, I re-visited the Golden Ratio and Fibonacci spiral ideas and thought about composition.
A few photos emerged as possibilities. Then I photoshopped them into something I wanted the mezzotints look like. Trying them with bands of colour, cropping etc.
Eve
So, here is the photo of Eve which was the base for the print. What attracted me to this particular one out of the 800 others is the geometry of the lines formed by the hair on the forehead, outline of the face, hand and arm.
The face is peaceful, at the same time there is a subtle smile. It hints towards thoughts which cannot be seen, cannot be known, but they are the most important element. They create the dynamics of the whole picture. So, the picture is very static here, but there is motion created by the underlying geometry of the composition and by the subtle expression f the face.
Eve Delf - 2
Next stage – cropping. I decided to take the Golden Ratio proportions and Fibonacci spiral to base the composition on. Why? To tie together proven classical references and rules (one way or another they run a lot of human programming in terms of how we perceive art) in order to create an iconic image.
In a way, I am after something as iconic as Mona Lisa, and some references to that portrait are also incorporated into Eve’s mezzotint. All that laid on the powerful chiaro-scuro effect of the technique itself is bound to create a remarkable image.
Eve Delf - 1
The road is marked. Now, all that is left to do is to actually make it. Simple 
I ordered two large plates to Martin Maywood. Not long before that we talked and he said he was able to rock much bigger plates now. That’s why I could plan a more ambitious project – size-wise as well as in other ways. 75-46cm plate is quite large for a mezzotint. Got the plates some time in February or March. The next 4-5 months were spent in burnishing. And that’s it.
Many hundreds of hours and several stage proofs later I had two beautiful portraits of Eve Delf. Well, also a series of hands with an apple and a trio of smaller plates picturing fragments of Eve’s beautiful face.
PS. I’ve never watched the program itself, as we haven’t got a television in the house. I might leave it that way to make it more exciting
Matrix and the framed print
Presentation and Lecture by Chris Nowicki
Visit to Ball State University – Chris Nowicki and Jacek Szewczyk
During January 16-18, 2012 we were guests of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Our main objective was to see the Printmaking and Glass Departments. We stayed at the University Hotel in the Student Building and it was very nice. Everyone was friendly and we had a great stay.
We had a great dinner at the home of Peter Blume who is director of the Ball State University Museum of Art. Peter gave us a complete tour of the Museum complete with the history of the collection and it’s most important acquisitions.
During our stay in Muncie I had the opportunity to give a lecture and demonstration about my favorite technique – mezzotint. The Printmaking Department at Ball State is small compared to our Academy in Poland but it is very well equipped. David and Sarojini Johnson are the professors of printmaking and they were very helpful in showing us around and helping with the demonstration. There were about 20 printmaking students in attendance who were all very attentive and asked a lot of good questions. I was able to take my time and explain about tools, paper, inks, printing presses, technique, and the history of mezzotint. My greatest compliment came at the end when some students decided to try mezzotint.
Jacek's Lecture
Jacek gave an excellent presentation of our Academy with photos and videos to an audience of about 50 students. We hope to arrange an exchange of students between our schools and Jacek’s talk created much interest among the students.
Ball State University has a beautiful campus with nice architecture. Everything is within walking distance. Our visit was a success and we look forward to future contact with this excellent institution.
Please click here to see more posts by Chris Nowicki at Active Artist Network.
Student Building
Printing Demonstration
Windowscape II. GenoaStrangersSo Day Becomes Night
Artists Chris, Agata and Jacek
We arrived in Chicago in blizzard conditions but what can you expect in the middle of January.
As you can see in the photos, the Chicago Cultural Center did a wonderful job setting up our exhibition of the Wroclaw School of Printmaking. The exhibition was hung in three galleries and was attended by about 250 people. For anyone going to Chicago the exhibition is in the Michigan Street Galleries of the Chicago Cultural Center and will run until March 25. It consists of work from the Printmaking Department of the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Fine Art and Design in Wroclaw, Poland.
Chris Nowicki Interviewed At Printmaking Show
We stayed in the Courtyard Marriot Hotel in the middle of town and were able to enjoy Italian food in Bruna’s Restaurant one of the oldest in Chicago (and the food was great) and a super Cajun restaurant on Michigan street.
Now we are in Muncie, Indiana to see Ball State University. I will give a lecture today to students on the history and technique of mezzotint. I don’t believe that anyone here does mezzotint so it should be interesting for the students.
Cajun Restaurant Wall Of Hot Sauce
Unfortunately we are only here for one day; Muncie is a beautiful small Midwestern own. The people are friendly and helpful.
Tomorrow we are driving with my friend Mel Arndt to Toledo, Ohio where we will visit the Toledo Museum of Art and I will show my colleague the sights of Toledo.
