Artwork description:

"Sea Spirits" Is the first of my series of mermaid etchings. I read somewhere that in ancient myth, waterspouts were created by dragons who lived beneath the sea.

I have always had romantic associations with the sea ever since I was child and have, throughout my life as an artist produced a great deal of fantasy art. I have a particular fondness for mermaids and fairies -something that has also stemmed from childhood which has remained with me ever since. I have derived my inspiration for these etching from illustrators such as Arthur Rackham, Aubrey Beardsley and some of the Victorian fairy painters such as Richard Dad.

In addition to my more figurative work, I enjoy etching as medium for my more "etherial" art. I use crosshatching to explore space, perspective, contours, organic and architectural structures, textures and curves as well as concentric and geometric designs.

THE PROCESS OF ETCHING:

Etching is a form of printmaking whereby a plate of metal is protected by a layer of resin creating an area on which to draw using a fine sharp implement such as a needle or a filed nine inch nail. Once drawing is complete, the metal plate is then placed in a bath of diluted nitric acid. The acid then bites at the marks on the plate made by the drawing. Once the metal plate is lifted from the acid bath and the protective layer of resin removed, the lines of the drawing are revealed as incisions created by the acid. Ink is then applied to the metal plate, (the excess of which is wiped off) leaving the remainder embedded in the incisions created by the acid (drawing). The plate is then placed face up with damp paper on top. Both are wheeled through a large print press.

A NOTE ABOUT PRINTMAKING: I prefer to refer to any kind of creative manual prints as "pressings" rather than prints. Etchings are not to be confused with other types of limited edition prints which can be reeled off in large quantities. They are an arduous process that require a great deal of physical work depending on the size and the amount of detail. There is also only a finite number of pressings that can be obtained from plate depending on the type of metal used. Also, each pressing made from the same plate using, for example - the same combination of colours, will never be quite the same as the as the previous pressing, even with monochrome . Each pressing is unique.

Materials used:

Line Etching: Oil based ink on paper.

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