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Vermont Autumn
Monotype
22½" x 13½"
Connecticut Sunset
Monotype
19½" x 10½"
I paint on white or buff colored acrylic panels with Windsor Newton Oil paint. Sometimes, if it is very hot, or my painting is very large, I add a small amount of poppy seed oil to retard drying. Occasionally I rub oil on the plate before I begin painting, working into the oil.
If my subject is very complex I plan to use two days to complete the print. On the first day I work on composition and lay in a strong drawing, thinning the paint with turps to encourage drying of the paint. The next day I begin laying in color, proceeding in the same manner as if I were painting a canvas. I check my work in a mirror frequently and often look through the backside of my plate to see what it will look like reversed.
I select the paper and size of my print in advance and mark a guideline in pencil on the plate, or I place tape on the plate to guide me in registering the paper - I take extra care doing this if I am trying to preserve deckle edges on the paper.
My prints are done both wet and dry. If I decide to print on wet paper, I usually choose Rives BFK Heavyweight or Arches 88, and spray the paper at least a hour before I start to print, covering the paper with damp towels until I am ready to print. I keep a sampler selection of fine machine and handmade papers on hand for spontaneous changes of mind. I can't resist buying paper and some subjects cry out for unique oriental and handmade papers with marvelous deckles and different shapes.
I print with a silver serving spoon, a wedding gift to my parents 60 years ago, and it has just the right shape and size to fit my hand and I can place a considerable amount of pressure on it. It does get very hot! It is so successful as a printing device I have little need to acquire an etching press! I check the progress of the print as I go, lifting the edges of the paper, and if an area is weak I can exert more pressure on the spoon on that section to get as much paint transfer as possible. I also print with a dauber I made by gluing two wooden drawer pulls together - it works well, but I prefer the spoon.
To me a successful print is one that needs no further enhancement - but that is rare. A critical dark might have dried out and left a white spot in a shadow - and so using extreme caution I use a bristle brush to touch up any places that mar the final print. I always wait until after I pull the print to clean my palette, just in case I need a tiny spot of color somewhere, trying to imitate the "printed" appearance of the monotype; not an easy task. I have also overworked prints with pastel, when I am trying to salvage a ruined print. Wet prints are tacked or stapled to the walls of my studio to dry.
E-mail: gainor@3oaks.com
Website: www.gainor.biz
Phone: 813-779-3570
Address: 34730 Sturgeon Loop
Zephyrhills, FL 33541
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