A Sustainable Palette 2022 Calendar Pre-sale Campaign - live through Halloween!

 

CLICK HERE to order calendars and/or original art at a 20% discount, through midnight on Halloween! 

"The Wedding" Re-created

 

I re-created "The Wedding" print from my book "Owl and Cat In Love" recently. Click here to see the original. This new version is a 5 layer reduction and only an edition of 2. It was special made for a collector. It's also the mirror image of the original because I drew the image directly on the block.

It was definitely an interesting experience to re-create a print I first made 7 years ago. When I started, I really didn't want to do it. It felt like forcing myself to do something that I'd long moved on from. But about halfway through I kind of got into it. It felt a bit like visiting a place from my past that I don't go to anymore and that has changed, but of which I had very fond memories. 

Not that I want to do this again. It took a long time, and I am generally way more interested in finding time for my current projects, especially since my studio time is so limited. But yeah, glad I did this once just for the experience. 

Pollinators Gallery

 Here are all the linocuts hand-colored with watercolors I created for the Pollinators 2020 Calendar I've just published. 

Thanks to everyone who purchased the calendar and original artwork through the Indiegogo Campaign! I raised $1310, 109% of the set goal. Without your support this calendar couldn't have been published. 

"Wasp and Tulip Tree Flower"

"Mosquito and Bog Orchid"

"Bluebottle Fly and Skunk Cabbage"

"Hummingbird and Cardinal Flower"

“Gerbil and Hedgehog Lily”

"Nectar Bat and Agave"

"Painted Lady and Aster"

"Human Hand and Vanilla Blossom"

"Bumble Bee and Sunflower"

“Gecko and Metrosideros”

"Monkey Beetle and Ice Plant"

"Honey Bee and Clematis"

"Naked Selfie No. 10"

Here's the last of 4 new woodcuts in this new series. All of the prints from this series can be viewed in this Pinterest album. Read more about the series in this initial blog post. 

"Naked Selfie No. 9"

Here's the third of 4 new woodcuts in that series. All of the prints from this series can be viewed in this Pinterest album. Read more about the series in this initial blog post. 

"Naked Selfie No. 8"

Here's the second of 4 new woodcuts in that series. All of the prints from this series can be viewed in this Pinterest album. Read more about the series in this initial blog post. 

"Naked Selfie No. 7"

It's a New Year! That means back to work - hooray! Now that the holiday season, with all its obligations and distractions is over, I'm throwing myself back into my studio work with serious energy and enthusiasm. 

I've been wanting to get back to the Naked Selfies series that I started in 2017 for a while, and last month I finally found the motivation. Here's the first of 4 new woodcuts in that series.

All of the prints from this series can be viewed in this Pinterest album. Read more about the series in this initial blog post.

And Happy New Year! 

The Nautilus and the Ammonite is now for sale!

Announcing the release of The Nautilus and the Ammonite! 

The Nautilus and the Ammonite is my latest book project. It features an anonymous poem that I simply fell in love with. The poem dates back to the 1800’s, an era when the science of paleontology was still taking its first steps. Its narrative follows two ancient mollusks, friends who together witness the last days of the Cretaceous, and one - the Ammonite - who is lost in the same event that took the dinosaurs.

This book is unique in that it juxtaposes old fashioned poetic language with contemporary visual art. The result is a volume that explores scientific questions about our world while contemplating philosophical implications in a way that is as emotionally responsive as it is brainy. 

You can view all the artwork and hear the poem in a Read Aloud version of the book on YouTube found here. 

The book is 9" x 12" Smythe sewn case bind (hardcover,) color offset printing, 32 pages plus printed end sheets. First edition of 300. Retail price of $20.00. 
Get a signed copy (FREE SHIPPING for US customers) by contacting me directly at marfknox (at) gmail (dot) com with the subject line "Nautilus and Ammonite". 

The Nautilus and the Ammonite Pre-Sale Campaign is Launched!

Almost three years in the making and now The Nautilus and the Ammonite Pres-sale Campaign is LIVE! For those who don't know about it, check out the video above. I have 6 weeks to raise funds needed to print a first edition of 500. Check it out and please share with any potentially interested friends through email, Facebook, Twitter, word of mouth, etc. - it all helps. Thanks so much! 

12 Owls Gallery

African Wood Owl

 Here are all the linocuts for the 12 Owls Project I've just completed. The original artwork as well as signed color wall calendars and black and white coloring/keepsake booklets are being offered at a discount through this Indiegogo campaign through Nov. 6. All pre-orders will be filled by the first week of December in time for the gift-giving season.

Please share this campaign through social media and to whoever you think might be interested. The best method for reaching new fans and collectors of my work is word of mouth. Thanks!

Barn Owl

Barred Owl

Bay Owl

Black Banded Owl

Burrowing Owl

Great Grey Owl

Great Horned Owl

Long Eared Owl

Screech Owl

Snow Owl

Spectacled Owl

"Naked Selfie No. 5"

This is the fifth of six new prints for a series based on nude selfies I've found while surfing the Web. Read more about the series in this initial post.

"Naked Selfie No. 4"

This is the fourth of six new prints for a series based on nude selfies I've found while surfing the Web. Read more about the series in this initial post.

"Naked Selfie No. 3"

This is the third of six new prints for a series based on nude selfies I've found while surfing the Web. Read more about the series in this initial post.

"Naked Selfie No. 2"

This is the second of six new prints for a series based on nude selfies I've found while surfing the Web. Read more about the series in this initial post.

"Naked Selfie No. 1"

This is a new series of Nude Selfies I've been working on, stemming from the small white line woodcut male nudes I did in 2015. I loved describing the figure through the subtle variations in textures and values, but for a long time wasn't sure where to take it in terms of imagery and ideas.

While surfing Google images without filters I inevitably come across naked selfies of complete strangers. Much is discussed and written about how easy access to digital cameras and Internet has blurred lines between the private and public. What we expect to be only shared in intimate settings is instead casually and indiscriminately disseminated around the globe. The completely ordinary naked bodies of specific individuals are now subject to all manner of comment and objectifying scrutiny. Many might say these people have invited scrutiny and crass comments; after all, they are holding the phone, snapping the image. But does that really get everyone else off the hook for any and all of our responses?

With this series I aim to return some of the dignity to these individuals. I don't know who any of them are in real life. I picked out selfies I found particularly interesting or lovely mainly for their compositional lines and shapes. I eliminated background distractions to emphasize what was always intended to be the subject: the figure. My medium of choice is white line woodcuts because the crisp, white lines combined with soft and airy gradations emphasize the shape and volume of the body. I worked on small blocks - no larger than 4" x 4", because I wanted viewers to have an intimate experience akin to perusing family photographs. Also, working at this small size in this medium renders the faces abstract enough to retain anonymity.

"A Wise Old Owl" Editions Completed

Mid-January I launched "A Wise Old Owl" Kickstarter campaign to make 100 accordion books (50 black and white and 50 hand-colored) illustrating this Mother Goose rhyme:

A wise old owl sat in an oak, 
The more he heard the less he spoke; 
The more he spoke the less he heard; 
Why aren't we all like that wise old bird? 

Tonight I finished the edition. I purchased some Thai marbled mulberry paper for the covers, which adds to the uniqueness of each book in the editions. Here's a photograph of the 60 scheduled to be mailed out to campaign contributors next week. The rest will eventually be for sale direct from my studio and possibly at a couple of local stores.

Sketchbook Sunday: Spotted Owl for Make 100 Kickstarter Campaign

A wise old owl sat in an oak, 
The more he heard, the less he spoke; 
The less he spoke, the more he heard; 
Why aren't we all like that wise old bird. Kickstarter is encouraging people to create Make 100 campaigns to usher in the new year. So I'm beginning 2017 with a new Kickstarter campaign (click here and please share!) - if I reach my goal I'll be creating an original, hand-made book illustrating the above Mother Goose rhyme A Wise Old Owl.

I've decided to use the Northern Spotted Owl as my main reference for the book. It has such beautiful markings. Today's post features two preparatory sketches.

Contributors can choose either the black and white version ($25) or hand-colored version ($40.) The campaign runs through February 13th.

Holiday Sale of Cats A-Z and Owl and Cat in Love

Now through December 23rd I'm selling signed copies of Cats A-Z and Owl and Cat In Love at discounted prices plus free shipping within the United States!

Links to my online store:
Cats A-Z $16.95 $15
Owl and Cat In Love  $20 $18 

If you prefer not to buy through Etsy, you can also contact me directly with the subject line "Book Order."

There are also lots of affordable original art for sale on my Etsy store.

Owl and Cat In Love is now for sale!

Announcing the release of Owl and Cat In Love! 

Edward Lear's nonsense poem "The Owl and the Pussycat" is the most familiar, published, and illustrated of all of the nineteenth-century, English artist's works.

This version is a wordless reimagining of Lear's poem through fine art woodcuts. While the imagery is inspired by Lear's text, it frequently presents unique interpretations and embellishments.  You can view all of the woodcuts from the series in this Pinterest album. 

The book is 10" x 10" Smythe sewn case bind (hardcover,) color offset printing, 40 pages plus printed end sheets. First edition of 500. Retail price of $20.00. 

Get a signed copy (FREE SHIPPING for US customers) by contacting me directly at marfknox (at) gmail (dot) com with the subject line "Owl and Cat In Love."

Or purchase it online through my Etsy Shop (cheaper US shipping) or my Amazon Store.

"Great Horned Owl" and "Margay" Art Cards for Owl and Cat In Love Pre-Sale Campaign

These are the first two of four 2.5" x 3.5" art cards I am creating for the Owl and Cat In Love Pre-sale Campaign. Anyone who pre-orders the book before its release will receive his or her choice of one of the cards.

These two are hand-printed in oil-based black ink on 90 lb. Natural-colored Stonehenge paper. They simply depict a great horned owl and a margay, the types of species after which I modeled the book's characters.

Fans of Words On Woodcuts Press can also support the publication of this second book by lending money through my Kiva Zip business loan campaign.