Black Heart Press

Soo a little while back I was posting about Klinger’s “Eva und die Zukunft” suite of prints. It featured a large feline, some narwhal surfing (best take on the Deluge ever) and A&E getting expelled from paradise.

The print shown above, from the suite ”Oeuvre Priapique“ was made by Dominique Vivant, Baron de Denon. Aka the “Eye of Napoleon”  aka the first director of the Louvre aka Musée Napoléon. Back then the job description for Napoleon’s #1 art guy included a considerable amount of looting aka curating the art spoils of war, making sure the collection in Paris was above all others.

But enought about the guy, on to the print: Paper size ~8x10cm, gorgeous take on the expulsion from paradise! Maybe not en par with the draughtsmanship of Klinger, but such a nice etching of a swift kick in the butt by an angel! Now GTFO!

Further reading:

Earlier, in the Garden of Eden:
http://pbfcomics.com/16/

Suprême NTM:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7trJTujKv8

IAM - L’empire Du Côté Obscur:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW4PtgKDc1k

Oh Gabriel <3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06YE_KsedfQ

Source, btw:
http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1509946&partId=1&subject=16808&page=5

Franz von Stuck
Die Sinnlichkeit (Sensuality), 1889-91
Etching and drypoint on paper

German painter, printmaker (and knight) Franz von Stuck (1863 - 1928); heavy on symbolism, allegory and erotic implications.
He did multiple variations of the “Lady/Snake” theme (curiously, the painted version is called “Die Sünde” (Sin) while this print is Die Sinnlichkeit. Makes you wonder).

Either way, I’m sitting watch at FAFA Gallery in Helsinki all day (fuck, all weekend), reading Paradise Lost - so probably more snake / fall of man / sin themed prints coming up. Come visit if you’re in the ‘hood.

Further reading:

Time to crank up the volume:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJKbd3QMQS0
LONG SNAKE MOAN

diehler:

Tired printers

Manno Kalliomäki (1948-2005)
Hautausmaa ja luuranko haamut
(Cemetery and skeleton ghosts)
Etching and aquatint, 1973
Edition of 5

Manno Kalliomäki was a Finnish printmaker / artist based in Turku.
Dark Finnish humor and at times biting social commentary = BHP approves!  

Not much on the web about him, unfortunately.
Go see this print here: http://www.bulevardi7.com/se/myyntikokoelmat/?isokuva=6478 

Further reading:

Also not so sure what kind of music he was into (his obituary says he had a well sorted collection of over 2000 records), but here’s Finnish tango classic “Kohtalon Tango” played on a mechanical organ, for that Monkey Island feeling you’ve been trying to reconnect to for years now:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKDXNberllg

Goes well with the cemetery / skeleton choir etching, too.

EVA UND DIE ZUKUNFT
(Eva And The Future)
Max Klinger, 1898

Eva und die Zukunft is Max Klinger’s third suite of prints, printed by Wilhelm Felsing, published by the Klinger himself. Shown here is the 6th edition (!), via the Met: http://metmuseum.org/collections/search-the-collections/90028445?img=0
In case your German is a bit rusty, here’s the titles for the prints:

I. Eva
II. 1st Future
III. The Snake
IV. 2nd Future
V. Adam
VI. 3rd Future

Klinger being Klinger, he re-did the Adam plate later, will post about that another time. Forgot to make special random whatever “happy 300 posts” post, now at 302. Hm.
Love the cat scaring them out of paradise, Adam’s defiant(?) pose outside the gates and the reign of Death as the last print of the series, so great. Go to the Met page to look at unresized HD versions of the prints!

Also so close to 600 followers, you’re all amazing!

Further reading:

This actually calls for an audio book version of Paradise Lost, but the ones out there have terrible accentuated p’s and s’s, so unlinkable. Best to read it in your own voice within your head anyway. Library time!

The Library of the Undead:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX3X1U2lR3k

Books!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZBb1J8vPIU

Helsinki Moments

The amazing CBH is still visiting BHP, and we’re dilligently working on our upcoming edition. Nothing much to write, just a whole lot of drypointing and proofing going on. See pictures.
Now that I’ve refilled my Sodium Hydroxide supplies there’ll also be a lot of steelfacing over the next few days, so stayed tuned for More News from Nowhere Helsinki.

Further reading:

I had to, kinda:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MajmI5j7Bs

Recently recommended to me, kinda into it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krGDNbT4CSE

LA VS StP in HEL

I have a couple of favourite spots in Helsinki, and one of them is pictured above - I walk past it every morning: a curious meeting between Catman and Priboy.
I like it because it reminds me of the time the amazing Priboy was visiting Helsinki, crashing at my place, and within seconds of entering my appartment for the first time spotted some Catman stickers on my kitchen table and exclaimed “Oh, Camilla!”
You guys totally need to hook up and exchange stickers.

My only weakness is a listed crime 
My only weakness is … well, never mind, never mind
Oh, street artists of the world
Unite and take over

If St. Petersburg, Tel Aviv and Los Angeles are kinda far away, a walk through Helsinki might take you to all these places, street art wise. 

Further reading:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJ_94PJHaGI

Alternatively:
THE SHAPKA 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La1qNWi4LjQ

THIS IS LOS ANGELES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utsHQy3ywS8

Drypoint dedication

It’s finally some kind of spring in Helsinki, and the amazing Christian Bazant-Hegemark is back in town for a week of excessive printmaking. We started with day off, I took my students to Rastila Beach to celebrate the end of the term with a campfire and night swimming in the sea. 
Christian was having none of my day off shenanigans and took some plates to the beach..

Without further ado: en plein air drypoint videography.
Oh yeah

Further reading:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yk9hEpDz4ik
or 8hz higher:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThiSqefRAzY

Final Exhibition Blues

Printeresting is running (or planning to) a feature on final exhibitons all over the place. I’d love to participate from Helsinki, where Riku Mäkinen, Diana Soria Hernandez and yours truly showed prints - but too lazy and incompetent when it comes to documentation photography, and it’ll probably take months for official school photos to be released.

So instead showing: 
- photo of my socks + matching rose I got on exhibition evening
- photo of NOFU on my right hand, curtesy of Priboy
- photo of yours truly and the amazing Kalle Ceder. Also a copious amount of green balloons.
- terrible photo of my prints, on exhibition in FAFA gallery, until June 2nd. Sheet in the middle is 184x125cm.

*(I spent most of the time prior to the exhibition working, most of the opening events partying and the days after the opening I was busy with coke withdrawal symptoms. All in all 2 good years. I’d say.)

Further reading:

Riku!
http://rikumakinen.net/Site/Riku_Makinen.html

I wasn’t there when you made it, but I feel like I’m there when I’m looking at it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfVDLw237IM

The etchings of JANOSCH

If you grew up in Germany sometime within the last 55 years, it’s impossible to not know Janosch, or his creations, the bear and the tiger, the tiger-duck, Popov, Antek Pistol, so many wonderfully odd figures.
A couple of years ago I discovered, much to my surprise, that Janosch didn’t only illustrate just about everything, no, he also makes etchings.

I’m still not sure where exactly they are printed, but I like them nevertheless. They are maybe not high brow printmaking, but done wonderfully - one can see that in this case artist and medium clicked right away. Posting these now because I finally found some proper resolution images online here. (Follow this link for details to the etchings pictured above.
Oh Janosch..

Anyway, enjoy enjoy.

Further reading:

Popov learns to fly (in German):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjqcmlSPGwY

Schnuddel builds a house in the clouds: (in German)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9IepyUz3zk

Der Maulwurf und die Grille:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-Gh8AjFVTg