Part 2: Project 5 - Linocuts

I began this project with an A4 soft cut lino sheet and a set of lino cutting tools. My Husband made me a bench hook using wood we had, which worked really well.

Here is my working space:

I really enjoyed this exercise of dividing the sheet into squares and using different cutting tool heads for each square. The process of carving is really theraputic which is great for the current time we are in.

Beginnings of carving:

I am finding the carvings so tactile and love the marks that I have made so far.

My finished A4 sheet, using each blade at least twice in different marks and lines:

I am really pleased with how this came out, there were just a few squares that I wasn't happy with. They turned out to be the ones with the finest blades and the straight cutting blade which I didn't know how to use properly.

Blades I used and in which squares:

My Favourite Squares:

I really like these squares the best because the marks came out so pretty and tactile. Most of the squares look pretty good, but these are my favourites. The depth of the carved lines and how the blades glided over the lino felt really good.

Proofing my lino:

I then did my first proofing using a soft pencil and a thin sheet of marker paper (I didn't have any tracing paper)
I loved seeing my marks come to life as I rubbed the pencil over them. It's hard to see from this photo but the actual sheet of paper with the rubbings on looks quite striking with the marks.

Squares that didn't show very well:

Fine v blade (blade no. 1)

Straight blade (blade no. 5)

Fine v blade (blade no. 1)

Straight cutting blade again, similar to square 8.

I noticed right away that the squares with the finer blades and the straight blade were the ones that showed up the least, so I knew I needed to try again with this and so went back and carved again.

Second attempts:

On the second attempt with the fine v shaped tool, I soon realised that I could press harder and get a much nicer line and marks. I was much happier with this attempt and it changed my mind about liking this particular blade.

This was the straight cutting blade and I still didn't know how to use it and made quite a mess with it. This is one I will need to look into how to use properly.

This was the blade no. 1 the fine v shape. It was fun to carve different types of marks to square 1.
Square 19 was the straight blade again and so I didn't bother to re-carve that as I still wasn't sure how to use it.

Second proofing:

This time I just proofed the squares that failed the first time. They came out much better this time and so I felt ready to move on to printing.

Printing:

For printing I chose the Schmincke waterbased inks as I didn't want to deal with chemicals. The set I chose were primary colours including white and black. For paper, I had newsprint and cartridge paper to hand to start with and marker paper for test prints.

It took me a while to get the hang of how much ink to use so here are my attempts. I started with yellow as I wanted to use a bright, happy colour.

This first print was on newsprint and was a disaster. The paper is so flimsy I ended up dropping it onto the lino and it was totally wonky, so I went and lightly printed it anyway and then moved on to a different paper.

I then chose Canson marker paper because its see through so I could practice lining it up properly. These came out much better and gave me a bit more confidence to try another paper next time.

Right is a ghost print.

**Updated Photos:

I then moved onto Winsor and Newton cartridge paper, I was really pleased with how this one came out and then took a ghost print which is pictured on the right.

I then tried black ink, again starting with Canson marker paper to practice lining it up. I liked how this one came out, the carvings really pop off the paper.

**Updated Photos:

I then moved onto Winsor and Newton cartridge paper and this printed nicely but was messy around the edges. Right is a ghost print.

Reflections:

I am really pleased with how my lino carving mark making prints came out. The black really makes the marks pop out from the page and instantly made me think of Zebra markings. They definitely make me think more of fur and animal markings so this might be something I explore in the next project.

Since I am fairly new to lino cutting, I am not sure how the marks will translate to different subjects and so I am looking forward to experimenting with this in the next project.