Blue Wren Woodcut
This is my first ever woodcut, a little blue wren, sitting on an old fence post singing his heart out in the morning sun. There was a family of blue wrens that lived on our property and spent the day ruffling through the gardens looking for tasty treats to eat. They would come and watch you garden and sing and cheep away, such lovely companions.
This is the last print I did for my first relief printing class and it was a two colour wood cut. This time instead of reduction we did a two plate print. Again we had no choice in the second colour so not the colour I would have chosen. But I see this as a draft for the second lot of prints that I am currently working on. A short series of the birds that used to visit us on the property I used to live on in Castlemaine.
Blue Wren Woodcut
I enjoyed using the wood and really liked how the texture worked on the stump. Lots to think about in how to use the grain of the wood in future work. The wood also smells better than the lino.
Karen
Karen Bailey Studio 
Your print has a meaning to me which you probably didn’t mean it to have. But that barbed wire symbolizes imprisonment for me. And the bird is like – liberty. So there is a fantastic symbolic contrast. This could be a great image for something like Amnesty International. Oh – and it is gorgeous. I do like the colours too, even if you wouldn’t have chosen them yourself. The colour which the print has gives it a sort of gravity which fits in with my symbolic theme.
It is always amazing to hear what other people see in your work. Barbed wire is so everyday to me, I didn’t expect the strong emotional response it brings in many people. Karen
I like the textures and the composition of this one, Karen. We have some wrens here – little brown round birds with long tails that they hold up behind their backs like this one is doing. Boy, do they have big voices!
Lovely to see wrens are universal. These ones are the most vivid blue.
Looks great Karen – an interesting composition, so evenly balanced, but it works. And I agree with Julie about the symbolism, the more you look, the more clear it is!
Thanks Anna, it was quickly done, but sometimes that works best. Love what others are finding in it. I was looking more at showing the birds in a rural man-made environment as they interact with us and use our structures for their own needs.
It’s so interesting to do relief prints using different materials for the block. They each have a completely different ‘feel’ to them 🙂
Yes just beginning to explore, and after looking at your work I am inspired to try combinations of different papers and to stain and colour them before I print on to them. So excited with all the possibilities of this medium. Karen
Goodoh. I love printmaking. Once you come over to the dark side, there’s no going back lol
Nice print Karen. I love the texture that the tan ink brings in, especially in the background sky. Looks rich. Love the happy look to this little guy too.