Block Printing -- Argggggh!

It’s been a week and a half since I took my block printing workshop and, try as I might, I have not morphed into a master block printer yet. Imagine! I’ve hacked a few perfectly good pine boards to bits and I’ve mangled just as many linoleum blocks as well. Then I looked at an old Mary Azarian calendar and I was ready to slit my wrists with a dull v-gouge. How does she do it? Siri Beckman, my block-printing guru, says I don't have the proper carving tools. So I’m blaming my lack of equipment and not my lack of inspiration, enthusiasm, or elbow grease. A neice will rush the family heirloom set of wood carving tools to Brooksville Memorial Day weekend, and I’ll give them a try. If they aren’t adequate, I’ll spring for a set of real carving tools—maybe two sets!—one for wood and the other for linoleum. I’m still excited about this art form and I’m determined to master it. Here’s the only linoleum block print I carved in the past week that I half-way like. It's based on a photograph by Holly Merrow:

Swans

4" X 6" linoblock print

2008