Betwixt and Between

 

old life and new in the garden
© Teresa Newham

It's a special period, the time between Christmas and New Year. Things are just starting to stir in the garden; the church is still celebrating Christmas Time, harking back to the old tradition of daily feasting and jollity during the Twelve Days of Christmas; some people call this week Betwixtmas and spend it watching Netflix in their PJs; and many of us fortunate enough not to be working have been taking time out to rest, contemplate, dream and plan.

all Christmas-carded out
© Teresa Newham

Since the excitement of Open Studios and the Harpenden Arts Club exhibition back in September and October, my art life has consisted almost entirely of printing up old Christmas cards to sell in aid of the church building fund, and creating a new one for friends and family. This week I put the few remaining cards into storage, freeing myself to think about other projects.

waiting since September
© Teresa Newham

I'm hoping to get started soon on a design for a linocut which has been sitting in my sketchbook since September.  As quite often happens, the delay in getting around to doing anything with it  has been a blessing, as several ideas have floated to the surface in the meantime.  I also want to see if I can adapt an old sketch and turn it into a Japanese Woodblock print or two - it's hard to resist the lure of the Skelligs . . . 

an old sketch to simplify
© Teresa Newham

Mainly, though, I've been content to relax and leaf through my books, including A Year Unfolding by Angela Harding, which I was given for Christmas.  There's a new Moleskin watercolour sketchbook which I'm looking forward to using outdoors when the weather improves. Laura Boswell's latest video The Twelve Gizmos of Christmas has given me a few ideas, and the February (!) edition of Artists and Illustrators dropped through the door this morning. Time to look forward to a Happy New Year!

enticing and inspiring gifts
© Teresa Newham

Forgotten treasures

 

my Instagram "Advent Calendar", beginning with the cheery robin 
bottom right and finishing with the Nativity top left
© Teresa Newham

From the beginning of December until Christmas Eve I posted an image on Instagram every day as an online advent calendar. I usually get one for myself, but couldn't find any I liked, so I thought: Why not dig out some of my older Christmas/Winter-themed artworks instead, and share them online? 

Harpenden Common in the snow
photo © Teresa Newham

Putting the calendar together was a lot of fun, and I found plenty of work which doesn't often see the light of day nowadays: I'd love to make a watercolour of a snowy Harpenden Common, and it may be that this ten-year-old photo would make a suitable starting point. I'd almost forgotten it . . .

Christmas Carol cards
© Teresa Newham

When posting the calendar I also suggested a Christmas carol of the day; which was easy for this trio of watercolour Christmas cards which originally had the words of Silent Night, O Tannenbaum and O Come all ye Faithful printed inside them.  I've always thought of the little red-haired girl as me, even though I don't have red hair. Or a dog.

linocut Christmas cards
hand printed by Teresa Newham

I was somewhat surprised to find that I'd made ten linocut Christmas cards over the years; sadly I don't have a decent image of the first one to include here.  Foolishly I limited the edition for that one so it's a bit of a collector's item - I sold the last one a year ago and didn't keep one for myself.  You live and learn.

miscellaneous watercolour Christmas cards
by Teresa Newham

It was good to revisit some of the watercolour Christmas cards I made before I started producing them in  linocut.  I still have some of the originals, although the dove and the poinsettia have both found new homes.  And I'd forgotten all about this experimental snowscape from 2010, which was one of three I made back then. I really should get round to making some more wintry art!

snowscape - one of three similar
watercolours by Teresa Newham

Mood Indigo

 

linocut Christmas cards in indigo on white
© Teresa Newham

It's a reflective time of year, as the clocks go back and the nights draw in.  Less daylight means shorter studio sessions; and as I'm trying something new I've taken plenty of time when considering how to go about things. I made several attempts to turn a sketch of an acer leaf into a design for a Japanese woodblock print, and was delighted when I finally hit upon something I was happy with.

evolution of a design
© Teresa Newham

 At the same time, I've been selling Christmas cards in aid of the church building fund: unable to do this after Mass, as I normally would, I sent out an email and was delighted by the response.  Someone asked if I'd print the design in indigo on white card, and it was interesting to see the result; I think they look rather smart.  

mixing the right colour
© Teresa Newham

My next Japanese Woodblock challenge was to work out how to transfer the image for cutting - at which point I realised that while my lovely design fitted onto the block, there wouldn't be enough room to cut the kento registration marks without running the risk of splitting the wood.  And there would be no margin down one side. That led to quite a bit more careful contemplation . . .

looking at various options
© Teresa Newham

One end of the studio was full of drying cards; at the other end of the table my sketchbook lay open reproachfully as I tried to work out a solution to the problem.  I considered buying bigger blocks, or printing the leaf anyway, regardless of the margins.  Then I realised that with a bit of careful positioning I could use some stick-on kentos for this first attempt, as they take up less space.

the drying end of the studio
© Teresa Newham

My notebook is now full of reminders and suggestions for various blocks and colourways, but at least I have what I hope is a workable plan.  So it's been a busy time in the studio; I think I've managed to avoid falling at the first hurdle as far as Japanese Woodblock is concerned, but we'll see.  You have to start somewhere!

the way forward
© Teresa Newham