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| Late Summer Hollyhocks reduction linocut by Teresa Newham |
I meant to spend August preparing for #HertsOpenStudios - but instead, I found myself playing hooky and indulging in some last-minute linocut printing. Last summer, hollyhocks seemed to be everywhere I went, brightening up gardens from Cambridgeshire to Dorset and all points in between.
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| working up the design © Teresa Newham |
Once I'd started spotting them I couldn't stop - and the photos I took formed the basis of my design. I decided to go for broke and cut the complete outline, trusting that the registration would work. At this stage I only had the vaguest notion of how the printing would proceed.
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| cutting the outline © Teresa Newham |
I began with yellow for summer sunshine, then added blue sky at the top and some pink at the bottom, which looked red on top of the yellow and represents heat. I used extender throughout, keeping all the layers thin so that they didn't take long to dry.
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| printing early layers in the studio © Teresa Newham |
I hadn't planned for the flowers to be so pink, but while I was experimenting with colours this one appeared and I liked the way it popped against the background. I added the dark red centres with my finger, which gave me a lot of control over the positioning on the petals.
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| getting the colours of the flowers right © Teresa Newham |
I assumed I would need two layers of green for the leaves, but when I came to assess the print after the first one, I realised that it was finished. Just as well, because I was terribly behind with my Open Studios preparations and have only just caught up in time for this Saturday!
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| some of the finished prints © Teresa Newham |
#HertsOpenStudios runs from Saturday 10th September to Sunday 2nd October 2022. I'll be sharing my studio with fellow artist Sue Wookey again this year - you can find full details of our venue and opening times here and an overview of the whole event here. With around 130 artists taking part throughout Hertfordshire, there really is something for everyone!
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| 'Redwings in the Holly' and 'Late Summer Hollyhocks' framed ready for Herts Open Studios © Teresa Newham |
Fantastic print - really beautiful!
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