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April 3, 2017

Block Printmaker Farquharson

        Let’s take a break from the first half of the twentieth century and visit the contemporary work of Linda M Farquharson (UK, 1963-).  These are linoleum block prints, with all the flat, smooth control  linoleum makes possible.  Farquharson does lots of flowers, birds, and animals, which I enjoy very much.  She also does both black and white and color designs, and I find her color choices very rich and beautiful.
        I especially like this tree of life, a symbol that’s always been meaningful for me.  I like the contrast between the very simple, stylized design of the tree, and all the exuberant details.  Notice the variety of leaves and fruits and flowers: grapes, acorns, lemons, peas, strawberries, pomegranates…  The birds, on the other hand, are all much more similar.  I like how the background space within the tree is filled with an even speckled pattern.
        And here’s a wonderfully vibrant color print.  It’s a reduction print, so it’s interesting to try to figure out Farquharson’s different levels of carving and ink.  Or on the other hand, if you’re not a printmaker yourself, don’t try to figure it out, just sit back and enjoy it.


        And here are some more printmakers for the letter F:



[Pictures: Tree of Life, linocut print by Linda M Farquharson;
Flower Power, reduction linocut print by Farquharson (Images from Linocut.co).]

A-Z Challenge, all posts for the letter F

4 comments:

  1. That tree of life looks strangely like an embroidery from here. And I do love the vibrant colour print. No, you're right, no point trying to work out how she did it. Just enjoy!

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  2. I am a printmaker but I have never done a reduction print and I am just going to enjoy this print, although I may try my hand at one after April.

    Finding Eliza

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    1. If you're interested in reduction prints, try searching on the term in the sidebar to the right. I've done several posts on reduction prints, including my own (very simple) ones, and some step-by-step instructions.

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  3. Interesting pieces of art for this non-printmaker to just enjoy. Thank you for sharing them.

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