Here are the final cuts painted. Looks like a giant watermelon grew out of the ground. I dig it.painted watermelon yumtrees layerWith these layers, I am able to use them as huge stamps and make prints on paper. Here is my 6th attempt at printing.Here are my many other attempts. In order to make these, I essentially had to learn traditional Japanese woodblock printing. But instead of carving the prints, I laser cut them. The process involves wetting the woodblocks and paper, painting the woodblocks, and then laying the paper on the woodblocks pressing it with a pad. I used burnt wood, printer paper, and acrylic paint. You get out what you put in, I guess. Improvements to be made: make registration marks to easily align the paper to each layer so they match up, invest in better paper that does not dissolve when wet, and use paint that works with water and that does not dry immediately.
Layers Cut post:
Cut 2 out of 3 layers and stacked them. The right side of the mountain has some dead space above it. This is because I didn’t want to waste time engraving, so I cut out. The engraving had a total estimated time of about an hour so I wasn’t trying to be there longer than necessary.
I will be using acrylic paint for this entire project. I am thinking about different colors and possibly a sunset theme. What colors could I paint the mountain, sky, and clouds?
This is the mountain that I will be painting. The wood grain has a nice curvature to it that wasn’t planned and I am sad to see it go 🙁This layer has the clouds raster engraved out. The mountain and label are also removed.
Hi!
I appreciate how real your piece feels when I look at it.
To answer your question and also add an opinion I think painting the background in blues and greys fot the sky then staining or watering down paint for the mountain so you still get some of that wood grain in the final product.
Hi Shane! I think the piece is coming along really well! I appreciate your design choice of rastering the clouds. I think that a sunset theme would work well but I think you could also do any color gradient for a background. Maybe try to use a thin layer of paint or switch to colored stains so that the wood grain stays?
I’m struck by how the simplicity of the mountain contrasts with the detailed sky behind it. Do you have any plans for adding a border or frame to the piece? In my opinion it would be a good idea to look at a reference image of a mountain when choosing the colors for your piece. For sky color it really depends what time of day you want to represent. Dark blue and purple for a night sky, blues and whites for a midday sky, or yellows, oranges, and purples for a sunset maybe.
Hi! I noticed all the cloud engraves in the background. How did you plan to display the piece? I have an opinion about the color. Like Grace and Lauren, I think staining the mountain could be an option to keep the grain.
Hi Shane! This mountain scene and clouds is so calming and detailed I really appreciate the time you put in to make it so. For colors I think pale greys and blues for the sky would be nice with maybe purple tones for the mountain? I have always felt like mountains look almost purple from far away. Also if you like the wood grain definitely consider watering down your acrylic paints before painting them, thats how I stained my water layers blue and was able to see engravings and rastering through the paint wash.
Hello! I am very impressed by how you were able to use engraving to add a sense of texture to your piece. Does this volcano mean anything to you? what made you pick this scene.
Hi Shane! I appreciate the art medium you worked to try out with your laser cut piece! How did you determine the proper paint or pressure to use for the prints? In my opinion, I think deeper cuts could have been made to help with the printing process? But I think it’s just a trial and error thing, I would love to learn more about your process!
I noticed how you added texture to the upper-most layer (I think you said it was the trees layer?). I am curious if you consider your final project the wood piece or the prints that you make from it? In my opinion, this is an amzing work of art, it feels vintage, but also modern. Nice work!
I love how you painted the volcano with multiple different gradients, it adds a lot of depth to your piece and some nice contrast at the top to really make the flowing lava stand out.
Hi!
I appreciate how real your piece feels when I look at it.
To answer your question and also add an opinion I think painting the background in blues and greys fot the sky then staining or watering down paint for the mountain so you still get some of that wood grain in the final product.
Hi Shane,
What are your planes for the negative space and the label? Also how big is the piece? I can definitely envision it up on a wall.
Hi Shane! I think the piece is coming along really well! I appreciate your design choice of rastering the clouds. I think that a sunset theme would work well but I think you could also do any color gradient for a background. Maybe try to use a thin layer of paint or switch to colored stains so that the wood grain stays?
I’m struck by how the simplicity of the mountain contrasts with the detailed sky behind it. Do you have any plans for adding a border or frame to the piece? In my opinion it would be a good idea to look at a reference image of a mountain when choosing the colors for your piece. For sky color it really depends what time of day you want to represent. Dark blue and purple for a night sky, blues and whites for a midday sky, or yellows, oranges, and purples for a sunset maybe.
Hi! I noticed all the cloud engraves in the background. How did you plan to display the piece? I have an opinion about the color. Like Grace and Lauren, I think staining the mountain could be an option to keep the grain.
Hi shane! To answer your question, I think you should use blue and purple tones for the sunset (they might look nice against the mountain)
Hi Shane! This mountain scene and clouds is so calming and detailed I really appreciate the time you put in to make it so. For colors I think pale greys and blues for the sky would be nice with maybe purple tones for the mountain? I have always felt like mountains look almost purple from far away. Also if you like the wood grain definitely consider watering down your acrylic paints before painting them, thats how I stained my water layers blue and was able to see engravings and rastering through the paint wash.
Hello! I am very impressed by how you were able to use engraving to add a sense of texture to your piece. Does this volcano mean anything to you? what made you pick this scene.
Hi Shane! I appreciate the art medium you worked to try out with your laser cut piece! How did you determine the proper paint or pressure to use for the prints? In my opinion, I think deeper cuts could have been made to help with the printing process? But I think it’s just a trial and error thing, I would love to learn more about your process!
I noticed how you added texture to the upper-most layer (I think you said it was the trees layer?). I am curious if you consider your final project the wood piece or the prints that you make from it? In my opinion, this is an amzing work of art, it feels vintage, but also modern. Nice work!
I love how you painted the volcano with multiple different gradients, it adds a lot of depth to your piece and some nice contrast at the top to really make the flowing lava stand out.