Website, Ely and Ebay

I am working on a major addition of prints to my website. This will still take at least another week but I wanted to signal some of the areas that are nearly finished. These include the "Birds and Beasts" and the "Brothers" series. Bot still have some prints to add but I am nearly there. Personally, these two galleries hold my favourite images, especially those of my children.

Many of you will know that Ely cathedral features in many of my images, often as a silhouette on the horizon as here:
So what is the attraction? The answer is that I have lived within site of the cathedral for about 45 years and it is a powerful and iconic building. It is also my favourite medieval building in Britain. I pass it every morning on the way to the station as I do my "taxi" runs. Today I stopped and took a photograph to share with you:


Today I worked on a "change of address" card for friends. This evening, I added some prints to my Ebay shop. The idea is to raise money to pay for the conservation of the Rembrandt. If you are interested, you can find them here. (Note added 26th Jan - everything sold out overnight but I have now added more prints to the Ebay shop - mainly artist's proofs).

Storms, A Bookplate and More on the Rembrandt

I have just about tidied up after storms earlier in the week. I was up at dawn on Wednesday, tying down the roof over the hens as it threatened to fly away. Later, I was on a shed roof nailing down the roofing felt that had torn and was rapidly unravelling. Luckily, there was no great structural damage. In the afternoon, I drove into Cambridge to collect A and J from work as trains and buses had been cancelled. We passed one bus that had been blown of the road and into a ditch.

I carried out more updates on my website during the week, including a "story of a bookplate". I was particularly pleased with this one and so I will show it again here:

I drove back into Cambridge on Friday to collect prints from a gallery and to take my Rembrandt to the Fitzwilliam Museum to compare it with theirs. Everything seems to be absolutely right about it and the next stage will be to have it floated off the album page to have the paper examined more closely. My fingers are still crossed that it is an early impression.

Well that was this week. Next task; more work on the website.

Engraving.... Eventually

I was working on enforced flexitime today thanks to a migraine. I walked out early with Bella the dog, posting a letter, buying a newspaper from the village shop and heading out down the drove. The visual interference started about as far as I was going to be from home. Bother and Blow! Migraines are a fairly regular part of my life and I cope well as long as I medicate early. Today, I wasn't carrying and, by the time I was back home, I couldn't see much at all with the wonderful - almost beautiful - swirling patterns. I closed the curtains and lay on the couch, waiting for the headache to hit.

Actually, it wasn't too bad and I was able to do some admin tasks this morning and I could start to engrave at around 3pm. I took a break for dinner and was back in the studio until 9pm when I just had to give up; a few hours after the headache I tend to feel like I went a few rounds against Tyson.

Still, the job is finished except for the proofing.

Here is my little corner of the world:

And again, a little closer:

The block is raised on two leather sandbags placed on a wooden platform with two handy draws. My most used tools are laid out ready and the magnifying glass is poised for those tricky details. The daylight bulb lets me work at any hour of night or day under exactly the same conditions. The eagled-eyed will make out my fave CD of the moment, "Ys" by Joanna Newsom, a Christmas present from A. The job is a bookplate. It will probably be posted soon in the bookplate gallery on my website.

New Year's Eve

Took a rare day off yesterday and travelled, with J, to the Suffolk coast. The first stop was Kessingland, with its striking church. I love the tall tower an partly thatched roof.

We visited the grave of J's parents and checked the lettering for her father that was added to the memorial. Afterwards, we wandered through the graveyard. Some graves date back to the 1760s and I was interested in the lettering and carved motifs, which ranged from skulls to anchors (for sailors). We ate lunch in a pub overlooking the sea before walking alng the beach.

In the afternoon, we dropped in to see Arthur at the Suffolk Villa gallery in nearby Lowestoft. He always has a good selection of East Anglian artists on display. It was good to be in Lowestoft again. J grew up here and we were married in this town, twenty four years ago.

Back to work today on another commissioned piece. Regular readers will know that I tend not to show these so I will lead you into the kitchen to see what jars of jams and conserves look like in the house of an engraver.


I enjoy making the labels. They are good ways to practice lettering. Here is a closeup:

A and O are hosting a small party tonight and the music has started. ts time to tidy myself up and slip off, with J, to a nearby house to meet up with some other villagers.

I hope that 2007 brings everything that you wish for.

Notes From A Cold Studio

So what is the happy engraver doing today?

Up early to scrape the ice off the car and run J and A to the station, then help O scrape his car.
Took food and water for the hens and walk out with Bella through icy lanes.
Into the studio to rig up another temporary handle for the small Albion. I fettled it from a spanner and a yard of black insulating tape. I must get a proper one cast next year. Finally, I set the inking slab warming over the little oil filled radiator ready for printing - the main task for the day.

And now? Steaming hot coffee, toast and marmalade - and a chance to blog after yet another hectic week. Today should be one the last big working days before Christmas.

The latest news on the Rembrandt is that is does appear to be the self portrait with a fur hat from 1630. I need to arrange to take it to the museum to compare it side by side with their example. At the moment, its propped up on a shelf; I'm looking forwards to seeing it conserved and framed.

Unwrapping a parcel is always a great pleasure. When it contins 250 sheets of Zerkall paper, it is doubly so. Here is a year's supply of printing paper ready for transfer to the top drawer of my mapping chest

Set Off To London - Came Back With A Rembrandt!

It seems like I have been engraving solidly for weeks, working through my list of bookplates and other commissions, and so it was with great pleasure that I, together with J, took a day off and went by train to London town.

First stop was the British Library - just five minutes walk from Kings Cross station. There is a wonderful display of treasures. J mainly drooled over illuminated manuscripts - as did I, but my heart was finally lost to a Gutenburg Bible and Caxton's Fables of Aesop.

A short walk took us to Falkener's Fine Papers. Here were more treasures and, if we had not a day in the city ahead of us, I would have stocked up on hand marbelled and paste papers.

We swung along through Bloomsbury, past the British Museum to Museum Street - one of my favourite London locations. Sadly, the bookshops and print shops are slowly disappearing from this short street but it is still a pleasure to explore - especially in the hope of picking up a bargain. We sorted through a box of inexpensive prints and drawings and one small image stopped me in my tracks...

A couple of weeks ago, A and I had spent a happy half hour in the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. I had wanted to see the exhibition of Rembrant etchings and A was glad to come along and join in the fun. It is a lovely display of etchings in a small room off one of the main galleries. Much of it concentrates of his portrayals of his wife, Saskia, but there are also many of his etched self portraits and we were really captured by them.

Now people who know me well will confirm that I am not great at remembering people's names but I maintain that I remember every painting, drawing or print I have ever seen. And that is why, gentle reader, I was in a state of some excitement when I took my own Rembrandt self- portrait, rescued from the box, to the desk and paid for it.

I had to wait until this morning to confirm my suspicions. A moment with a hand lens showed that this was an etching and not a reproduction. A Google search soon found the work - a self portrait in a fur hat from 1630 just a I recalled from the exhibition. The full image would have looked like this:


Mine has been trimmed within the plate mark and pasted into an album at some stage. I found a trimmed example in another museum:


My copy is wider and has just the end of the signature/date above the head.

I need to get some advice about the state of the etching - it would be great to find out that this is lifetime impression. I also need to think about conservation. I doubt that it has any great value but it is a thing of great beauty. Just to contemplate the quality of the working takes the breath away; it is amazingly fine. And how much did I pay for this? I would normally avoid any financial references here but I have to tell you... sorry, but I really MUST point out that it cost me slightly less than the cappuccino that I enjoyed at the British Library! It just goes to show that even an impecunious engraver can acquire art.

We enjoyed the rest of our meanderings through London but, I have to confess, my mind did keep wandering back to what I was carrying in my backpack, slipped into a magazine for safety.

I will recommend, once more, the Fizwilliam Museum. It has some online exhibitions, including a couple which concentrate of Japanese Woodblock prints:

http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/

And now back to work, a chilly studio and the LJ bookplate.

Illustration and Introducing "The Days Between"

I am interrupting my bookplate work to take on a couple of small illustrations. Far from being an unwelcome intrusion, I enjoy this work; apart from any other consideration, it puts vegetables on the table for another couple of weeks.

I always keep a day or two free in my weekly schedule to take on this type of work - illustration is unlike the rest of my work in two respects: there is usually a strong design brief and the deadline is generally very tight. Since most of my work involves lengthy planning and, perhaps, days of engraving, I enjoy the change of pace. Its a bit like being on a long walk, with its steady pace and rhythm, and then breaking into a run - a sprint. Afterwards, you are happy to get back to the usual pace for a bit.

I often get "bogged down" with longer term projects. Invariably, taking a break to spend a day on an "illie" allows me to go back to the job in hand refreshed.

As usual, with commissioned work, I will not show it here. Instead, here is a view of Ely cathedral across a sunny, but slightly misty, fenland - viewed from the bedroom window a few minutes ago.


I have started a new blog "The Days Between" to allow readers who are interested in engraving to continue to read "Studio Diary" without having to put up with the tedious details of my everyday existence. If you are interested to find out how this journeyman engraver spends his days, then you will find it here:

http://days-between.blogspot.com/

Printing Bookplates

One of the reasons that I post infrequently is that most of my work is commissioned and so is either for publication or - very often - a suprise. I have spent much of the day printing a bookplate and I asked permission to share the process with my readers. Thank you Katy for giving me the go ahead.

For most of the images, you can see an enlarged view by clicking on them.

Here is the block when it was almost finished; before the first proof was taken:



The next photograph shows a view of the studio. The block is fixed in the bed of the smaller Albion Press. You can see the orange sheets of packing and makeready taped to the tympan. To the right is the inking table and, in the background, my engraving desk. This configuration works well as I hardly need to take any steps during the printing.


Here is a closer view of the block on the bed of the press. It is held in place by "furniture" which is tightened by "quoins".


In the next photograph, I am using a brayer to roll a thin film of ink on the block. For engravings, it is generally better to print with a thin layer of ink under high pressure.


Next, I am placing a small piece of Zerkall paper into position on the tympan. I have developed a method of holding small sheets without the need for gauge pins. I will reveal all on this blog in a few days.


The pressure is achieved by pulling the bar towards one, as can be seen in the next photo below. The beauty of this method is that the printer "feels" the pressure through the bar and so can control the printing pressure. The date 1865 is stamped into the bar; This Albion was built in the year that Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.

The next step is to wind the bed out from under the platen and carefully lift the tympan. This pulls the paper off the block and I can inspect the work.


Finally, I place the printed sheet up on the drying rack. Adter drying, the plates are carefully inspected and then they are trimmed, reeady for dispatch.


And that, as they say, is that.

Design Week

A rainy morning has given way to a most pleasant afternoon. Sunny out but chilly enough to ask O to help me move the lemon tree into the cabin for the winter.

No engraving for me this week. I am spending my time with my sketchbook, pens and pencils working on some of the projects that will soon need transferring to blocks, ready for the graver. I start engraving again on monday, working on the next bookplate.

I have caught up in other ways this week, carrying out some more work on the website. I really need to get more images posted so I intend to spend a large art of tomorrow scanning. I will try to finish the "Birds and Beasts" section.

I have been plagued by migraines recently. I have had a cluster for over a week; the last one was a real "hum-dinger" and left me really disorientated when it started, followed a few hours later by the familiar aura and then the headache. Nothing for a couple of days now so I hope that it was going out in style and will leave me be for a few months. Luckily I can control the headaches quite well now but my vision loos and tiredness tend to get in the way of work. C'est la vie!

I have posted quite a few printing-press related photographs on my flickr site:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artistandy/

They include the setting up of the new Albion press and two stages in the work on the smaller one: recovering the tympan and fettling a temporary handle.

Work carries on apace with a lovely variety of projects: bookplates to design and engrave, a press device and a commission of an ancient favourite dog. At the same ime, I am keeping an eye on the future and hoping for fresh commissions for January and February.

As I sit and type at the dining table there is a loud rapping at the window and I have two visitors:

Since "Three French Hens" are likely to figure on my Christmas card, its a good idea that I have my sketchbook handy!

Design Week

A rainy morning has given way to a most pleasant afternoon. Sunny out but chilly enough to ask O to help me move the lemon tree into the cabin for the winter.

No engraving for me this week. I am spending my time with my sketchbook, pens and pencils working on some of the projects that will soon need transferring to blocks, ready for the graver. I start engraving again on monday, working on the next bookplate.

I have caught up in other ways this week, carrying out some more work on the website. I really need to get more images posted so I intend to spend a large art of tomorrow scanning. I will try to finish the "Birds and Beasts" section.

I have been plagued by migraines recently. I have had a cluster for over a week; the last one was a real "hum-dinger" and left me really disorientated when it started, followed a few hours later by the familiar aura and then the headache. Nothing for a couple of days now so I hope that it was going out in style and will leave me be for a few months. Luckily I can control the headaches quite well now but my vision loos and tiredness tend to get in the way of work. C'est la vie!

I have posted quite a few printing-press related photographs on my flickr site:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artistandy/

They include the setting up of the new Albion press and two stages in the work on the smaller one: recovering the tympan and fettling a temporary handle.

Work carries on apace with a lovely variety of projects: bookplates to design and engrave, a press device and a commission of an ancient favourite dog. At the same ime, I am keeping an eye on the future and hoping for fresh commissions for January and February.

As I sit and type at the dining table there is a loud rapping at the window and I have two visitors:

Since "Three French Hens" are likely to figure on my Christmas card, its a good idea that I have my sketchbook handy!

Engraving In France

One of the most wonderful things about engraving is that it is an extremely portable pursuit. My briefcase, purchased many years ago to use in college, holds everything that I need. It takes less than two minutes to assemble everything and set up.

So, when J proposed that we spend a week in France, I didn't have to worry about falling behind with work. We were very lucky with the weather and engraving, like eating, was carried on outdoors; I set up in the shade of the summer kitchen. J is in the distance, gathering walnuts.


I was working on a bookplate with an intricate design. It took hours to carefully draw out the design. Here is the result of the first session:


The central image focusses on two owls. The next photograph shows them drawn onto the block, ready to engrave. You can make out the pencil marks of the "squaring up" that I used to transfer the drawing onto the block:


Finally, I started to engrave the owls. I enjoyed this work as it involved much detail and the block of English boxwood engraved beautifully. Here is a later photograph:


We both enjoyed our stay in France. Although we can "get by" in much of Europe, we are both more confidant of our French and enjoyed several pleasant conversations. Add to this the good weather, the walks, the food and some excellent museums, and you have a recipe for a most pleasant week.

Productivity

This has been a very productive week so far with two engravings finished: the PJ bookplate and the tawny owl. I illustrated the block for the owl some time ago and I have only taken it up intermittently, between other jobs. It was nearly done yesterday but I made some final adjustments this morning and accepted the 4th state as the finished version. Click on the scan for a larger image:

I have also worked on the new Albion press for the first time. I will soon start to describe what I have been doing on the Albion Press Restoration Blog so check it in a couple of days.

There are other kinds of productivity to describe at this time of year. I sat out in the sun this afternoon and "strung" the rest of the onions we grew so that they can hang and keep dry in the garage. Earlier this evening, I foraged in the hedgerows with A to collect blackberries. We stewed these with apples from the garden and enjoyed them for dessert.

I recovered the tympan of the small Albion this evening (also to be described in the Albion blog). I will put it in a warm place to dry overnight so that it is ready for packing tomorrow morning ready for editioning.

The New Albion

The last few days have been crazy! I dismantled and moved the Arab Treadle Platen press out of the studio. I cut down my desk by 6 inches so that it would turn and sit next to the map chest to give more room. The bookshelves were emptied and removed and smaller items were stacked onto my desk.

The reason? My new Albion arrived this morning. It was delivered, assembled and set-up by the guys at AMR, who I recommend highly. More details to follow but I wanted to share some photos.

I feel I must warn readers of a sensitive disposition that the piston and platen have, at some time, been painted bright red. I was planning on repainting them but I have to say that it is growing on me and I think the colour will stay. I have christened it "Red".

For Sale (Or Rich Patron needed)

I have been offered a larger Albion Press:


This is exactly what I need to print from larger blocks. However, this is the worst time for me as I have just received my final paycheck from college and my only current income is from engraving.

So, in a desperate gesture, I have gathered together my "life's work of engraving" - namely:

A copy of all of the engravings that I have editioned. There are over 100 of these. Most are from the signed, numbered editions; a few are signed Artist's Proofs. All are perfect copies.

In addition, I include about fifty "states" from various engravings. These are the the proofs that I take to show the stages between the first pull from the block and the final editioned image. Each "state" is numbered but not signed. I will happily sign these if you wish.

In addition, I will include some of the original sketches made for engravings. There are at least ten of these. They are signed pencil or ink drawings.

All of these will be placed in a handmade box and mailed to you with no mailing charge.

In addition, you will receive your own engraved 2 x 3 inch bookplate. The earliest that this could be delivered would be January 2006 as I already have many bookplates in a queue. I would include 100 plates. Additional plates would be charged at cost.

The price for the above is £1000. Bear in mind that bookplates start at £250, and that the most expensive print included costs £120.

Alternatives? 1) Make me an offer. 2) If you are rich and a very nice person, make me a gift and become a patron. 3) Pay me the above and I will create for you your own engraving (at least 4x6 inches) and print your own exclusive edition of 100 prints and also include the block and all original artwork.

Email me if interested. I am interested to discuss any aspect of this. This would only pay for a proportion of the cost of the new press but it woulod certainly help.

I'm off to bed to dream of Albion Presses!

Engraving Al Fresco

I returned to my exhibition after lunch so that I could demonstrate the noble art of engraving. Peter had set aside a table out on the terrace that proved perfect. Since, like most printmakers, I work in isolation, it was a pleasure to be out and about and chatting about the process of making the images that are on display. I decided to carry on with my owl - featured months ago. I cut the outside of the block into a gothic arch and started to use stippling to attempt to show a halo around the moon in the background. The photograph that I took - looking through my magnifying glass - is not that clear but the print will feature in further entries in this blog.


During the afternoon, I took a break after Peter supplied a plate of scones, cream and strawberry jam. This is just what engravers of a certain age need to sustain them during an afternoon of engraving!


This was a very pleasant afternoon. I don't often have the opportunity to show how I do what I do and to talk to the people who are buying my things. We are planning another demonstration - probably in two weeks time.

The exhibition continues to be very successful. We have sold just under half the works in the first two days. With a month to go, I am starting to hope for a sell out.

Exhibition

The "Private View" of my exhibition was a great success last night. It was lovely to see old friends and great to see those red dots appearing on the works as they sold. It was a frantic day - I was actually half an hour late for my own show as I was still sorting out the unframed engravings.

When I arrived at the gallery, I could finally relax. The exhibition was looking good and I tried to find the time to chat to everyone. A is back on his feet again and took photographs for me. At the end of the evening, I took the opportunity to take my own photographs of the empty rooms. Only then did I realise how hungry I was and so J and I walked the short distance to find a restaurant that was still serving food.



You can see more photographs on my new website:

www.andyenglish.com

Find "Latest News" on the drop-down menu from the "Home" tab. Yes - its finally online. No images of engravings in the gallery yet but they will follow shortly.

Framed

Back to work after a few days at the coast. It was good to relax but now unto the breach, dear friends. While I was there, I collected my new set of exhibition frames. I am very pleased with them; they are simple, square profiled planed ash. The engravings will look superb in them. Pictures to follow.

I returned home to a treat - my first ever ripe fig from the garden, eaten and enjoyed straight from the tree. I know that this is nothing to some readers, but seems to me to be another facet of our changing climate. The lemon tree is also producing fruit in quantity and I look forwards to a garden "g and t" with fresh lemon slices later in the year. Sadly, no olives yet. The Mediterranean certainly seems closer, in terms of climate.

Today's job is framing (again) and I hope to break the back of it this morning. Writing this is a bit of a distraction for me as A in on the operating table as I write and I won't be able to settle until I hear how things are. All being well - including the weather - tonight will include not only a fatherly visit to hospital to see the hairy son, but then open air Shakespeare (Romeo & Juliet) in the gardens of Girton College, Cambridge.

Yesterday, I pointed my new domain name at the servers and so I hope that the website will be "live" in a few hours. I will announce with suitable fanfare as soon as this happens.

And now, back to the framing.

A New Life

It is weeks since I posted here. I imagined that, after the end of term, I would be able to write a nice chatty blog every day. As it happens, I have been working long hours catching up with jobs in hand.

My "retirement" could not have been more pleasant with good wishes, cards, presents, dinners, speeches and visits from old students. My colleagues gave me a wonderful Lawrence's print drying rack. I love the old technology - wood, wire and glass marbles. I still need to hang it from the studio ceiling but I am already putting it to good use.


The last week left me exhausted, especially the clearing of 26 years of accumulated materials. I used cupboards at college to store trays of type and my childhood fossil collection, among other things.

I have so many jobs under way that is it difficult to finish one. I am gradually getting through them, working on a strictly first come - first served basis. I will be emailing over the next couple of days to update everybody on progress with their particular job. Everything will have settled down by the end of the month and new jobs will have a much faster turnaround than before.

I have an exhibition at Ely in Cambridgeshire, UK which starts on 25th August and carries on until 30th September. It is at the three cups gallery. I hope that some readers will be able to visit during the month. I will give more details in a few days.

There we go; just about caught up here - if only I had in real life!

Serendipidy and Change

I was proofing a couple of engravings for wine labels on tuesday evening when I realised that I was running short of ink. I found myself driving home this afternoon with a car laden with boxes full of ink - a gift of unwanted materials. This was a most pleasing juxtaposition of events. Here they are (click for an enlargement):


The larger tins are old and I am not yet sure what I can salvage. The smaller tins are much newer and much of the ink seems to be fine. Here is a large quantity of coloured, rubber-based inks.

However, I use black, oil-based inks.

But this has got me thinking. I used a rubber-based ink at Alembic Press and was very pleased with the results, despite the longer drying time. I particularly liked being able to leave the ink on the slab to carry on the next day. I don't think the drying time is going to be an issue with me being in the studio every day so I am considering... wondering...

Since this is a time of big changes, perhaps I should be more open to less familiar ways of working.

But... colour? Now there's a thought!

New Horizons

June is really blooming! I worked through the morning on a piece of commercial work - a wine label. I then reviewed my current bookplates and planned what to do next for each of them. Finally, I made some mental notes about my forthcoming exhibition in Ely during July. I really need to finalise the engravings I will show and organise frames.

This was followed by lunch in the garden with J, finishing up the last of the goodies she brought back from France. The garden looks lovely at the moment; we ate close to this rose:


Some of you will already know of my news but I will also announce it here. After 26 years, I will be leaving teaching to concentrate on engraving and illustrating full-time. The story behind this is lengthy and complex but, essentially, financial problems in my college allowed me to volunteer for redundancy. In a few weeks, I will be building each day around engraving. Unfortunately, the arrangements are taking an awful lot of my time and I am making very slow progress with my various projects. Things will really speed up after the end of term. I will keep you posted with developments through this blog. A new life beckons.