I had to share this portable clothesline I found on Amazon for hanging my prints to dry.
It is on a bungee cord line and you can lock the pins in place to space out your prints.

It was an awesome find.

HAWATOUR Portable Travel Elastic Clothesline Adjustable Clothesline with 12pcs Clothespins for Outdoor and Indoor Use (Blue)

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Summer Printing Adventure

Since I live in the deep south and have a studio that is not insulated enough to withstand the intense summer heat I usually move my art projects inside around June 1st or so. I have been working on small printmaking project since last fall so I decided to keep to printmaking but try something totally new to me that did not require a printing press.
Since I used to make and sell pottery I found myself drawn to a technique invented by Mitch Lyons,
He was both a potter and a print maker who found an ingenious way to combine the two into a new form of printing. The process is done using a clay slab for the plate and the "ink" used is actually tinted clay slip. He found the best surface to print on was some synthetic cloth like material called Reemay but you can also use Pellon sew in interfacing material which is what I use.
He passed a way not long ago but here is a link to his website where you can see his work and still order his book.
https://www.mitchlyons.com/

 I found that once you have printed with the clay it is pretty permanent and yet you can go over the print when it is dry with other mediums like pastel, markers and inks.
Now that August is here I am taking a break from art to work on getting some of my previous work framed and up on my walls. I am also going to work on getting my blogs and my studio face book page up dated.
I will post some of my clay printing attempts below as well as a few etchings.The colored prints art the clay printing.

I hope to get more info on here about the whole process of clay printing in the next week.

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2018 is turning out to be my printmaking year. I got a Xcut Xpress which is designed as a die cutter and embosser but works as a little etching press just fine. I have been experimenting for the last 3 months with different kinds of prints and there is nothing this little press cannot do.

These are etched from polymer plates and inked with Akua intaglio ink.
I have tried etchings on mylar cardboard and plexi, collagraphs with assorted material and block printing and it works fine with all. You are limited in width to 8 inches but I had a press bed made 24 inches long for it so you can make a decent 8 by 22 print without borders or a 6 by? if you want one inch borders.

Well we had a lovely time at today"s workshop. I want to thank Bethann and Carlotta for being such attentive students. I showed them three techniques and as you can see from the photos they did some awesome pours.

Abstract Art Freeform Painting Workshop

 I will be having an afternoon painting workshop in the La Porte Texas Studio Sunday November 19th at 1PM. It is by reservation only. We will be exploring a few of the currently popular paint pouring techniques so this is a perfect class for those who are looking to get a creative spark into their current art or those with absolutely no painting experience whatsoever to get a feel for the paint.
It will be acrylic paint so there will be no oil paint fumes to contend with. The studio is no smoking no pet environment for those that have that concern. It will be a laid back just for fun event.
Adults only please.....

The fee is 35.00 nonrefundable because of the short amount of time until the class date.
I will provide all materials needed to complete 2 painting (8 by 8 or 10 by 12). You can chose to ttry an abstract landscape or just go total freeform in your work.
They will have to be left to dry for a few days and then I will varnish them for you. You can pick them up the following weekend or any weeknight after that. The class will be 2 hours or until we get finished. I will supply water bottles and ice tea but I do not allow food in the studio.

Class space is limited to 6 only so if you are interested you need to let me know immediately. 

Introduction to Drawing Class

We are located in La Porte Texas.
This class if for the true beginner who has not had a drawing class at the college level or ever.
The class is every Wednesday from 11AM to 2PM and will run from November 1st through the 22nd.
The night class starts November 9th and goes for 4 weeks ending on the 1st of December.
The cost is 20 dollars for the first week to cover supplies and then 15 dollars a week for the next 3 classes.

We will have no more than 4 students per class. I will have all the supplies you need. We will take a break in the middle so bring a snack if you need one.
You will be amazed at your improvement after just two classes