Author: grahamclaydenprints

This woodcut print that I have just added to my Latest page expresses how I feel at this stage in the pandemic with vaccines in and lockdown measures easing. I tried to show some ambivalence in the posture of the person who like me is in two minds about socially unlocking at this time. My other print “Muddle” on that same page is similarly inspired by uncertainty.

The various Covid-19 avoidance lockdowns have provided more time for working on my prints and a motive to concentrate on nature and the skills of the ancients. My Christmas card (Christmas 2020) this year was a homage to an amazing illuminated manuscript from the 12th century where the expressions on the faces of the holy family and the donkey and cow seemed to reflect my feelings about the pandemic. Click Christmas 2018 to 2020

My other wood block print that I have added to my Latest page is the Redwing arriving from Iceland and feasting on the cotoneaster berries as a symbol of travelling freely when we are all restricted. Click Latest

Having finished the woodcut Trewhiddle that was based on the amazing discovery of the early 10th century AngloSaxon brooch in Norfolk, I found that the British Museum already had a quirky Trewhiddle design brooch called the Fuller Brooch that depicted the 5 senses. I then made a wood cut of this and then further inspired me to do a modern version. Instead of strange animals or human forms I decided on scientific symbols and signs of our times. I chose the caduceus symbol of medicine, the double helix of molecular genetics, printed circuit patterns and orbiting planets or subatomic particles all woven together like the Anglo-Saxons brooches. You can see these in more detail on the Homage 6 page if you click here

I added the 3 block wood cut Tough nut limited (50) print back in 2020. This was in response to the anxious hope that the Covid-19 pandemic will end but as a result of the change of life pattern as a result of lockdown, time seems to move strangely but at last the mass vaccination progress seems to be hopeful. To see the image in more detail please click here

I have added the 2 block (silver/gold and black) woodcut (20 x 20cm) to my Latest page having spent a number of Covid-19 lockdown days cutting out these strange shapes. This is based on a rare find in Norfolk of an Anglo-Saxon 9-10th century brooch with its Trewhiddle design. Click here to go to the Latest page

Being trapped indoors inevitably restricts outlook and activities. This made me feel the difference between being a caterpillar and being a butterfly. So spending many Covid19 avoidance locked down days cutting into this A3 size piece of plywood and then printing each of the 6 colours for the 8 copies (and 2 artists proofs) seemed analogous to the munching caterpillar with the ultimate hope of flying free. I liked the colour contrast between the subtle pinks of the buddleia and the vague green and browns of the background bush with the dramatic black, rich brown and bright orange/red of the red admirals’ wings. Click here to see it in more detail

You might think that this is a rather gloomy pair of images especially as we are all under the cloud of the current pandemic of Covid-19. This poor squirrel was a regular visitor to my bird feeder from a young age, when it was small enough to squeeze through the so-called squirrel-proof guard. Unfortunately for the squirrel, it gradually struggled to leave the feeder as it grew until one day it was trapped by his pelvis. My attempts to help it escape failed and it suddenly stopped struggling and died. I buried him/her in my compost heap. A couple of years later I was moving the heap to an excellent hotbin compost system and rediscovered the skeletal remains. It was quite easy to clean up the skull and I was impressed by the elegant curves. This inspired these two prints. Click here to visit the Latest Page

Inspired by the memorial brasses in St George’s Church Beckenham to Sir Humphrey Style and his wife Dame Margaret Damsell, I used A4 size woodblock printed with a mixture of silver and gold ink on a black background. I thought the medieval patterns intriguing. The other is a smaller single woodcut block (15.6×7.5cm) representation of the mythical moment of grasping freewill for our species. See more by clicking here