Week 1
Initially, hearing the brief in the morning made a shiver run down my spine. 100 iterations in a publication format. It seemed daunting as a one week project, through my mind ran all of the ways I could tackle this monumental task. I knew I wantedto continue experimenting and exploring my previous linoprinting project, the physicality and tactile process of it was a pleasant meditative experience I was thrilled to experience again.
Trying to keep my process quick and not overthinking it meant that I had no time to dwell on how this publication wuld be bound, as I ran a high risk of falling into overly complicated bindings. I opted for a coptic bound publication using thin smooth paper, this choice was motivated by my desire to have the iterations presented in an A5 format and weight related thinking.
For printing I opted to use a combination of blockprinting ink and of standard craft stamp inks to overlay on top, this was used with teh intention of having a speedier process in layering.
The result of this week was 100 prints of the same block done in fast succession which was an intentional move as it created unique and incomplete prints, over which I overlayed several designs that very directly lifted or inspired from romanian shirts, paintings and overall just graphic designs with a romanian inspiration.
The inquiry I worked towards was exploring identity and loss of it as an immigrant through linorprinting. A traditional medium depicting my uneasiness with my identity.
Week 2
Once again I found myself unsure how I would attain the number of iterations needed, but confident I could if I put my mind to it. By this point most of my life is packed in boxes in my room in preparation for my move, which limited my ammount of space or supplies to be used. Instead of seeking out fancy experimental paper, I opted to go straightforward, printer paper and blockprint ink.
I decided the variation of the iterations would come through the images the empty space of my stamp framed, the skirt acting as a window. The images were all self representative, places from my life, childhood foods, images from important historical romanian events.