Adley on the Stump II ~ Yellow Ochre layer

There is probably little need for showing each layer of gum as it is applied, being so much of what is happening is lost in the viewing, unless one knows the color layer that will go on top of the one being seen. Sometimes even I don't know what the next color will be until it shows itself. Before I begin working with any colors, I set the print in the coating plate (artist's clipboard of Masonite) and tape it in place, then set it upright, then just sit there and stare into the scene for awhile and color choices begin to show themselves, and it is from there that I begin plotting the color layers and what that will mean in the end, where to apply the colors, and how thickly, all of which ultimately is determined by the tonal layer the color is on, the print time, the float time and the float water temperature.

This is an art, not a scientific experiment. I studies Experimental Design, I know how that works. It's good when dealing with the chemistry portion, but a lousy guide for the aesthetics of printing. Colors are a personal choice. The gum printing process follows the rules of watercolors, subtractive color theory. Using that as a guide, the colors are stacked in printed layers, each adding an affect on the color below them. A layer of Yellow Ochre, followed by a layer of Pthalo Blue becomes green(ish) with the value from a China blue/green to a slightly bluish green, depending on which color is over and the density of the two mixtures. This is done using an artist's color pallet, mixing colors to the artist's liking. There is no measurements in mixing or formulas for order of color. There is artistic expression at ever step.

The first color layer is Yellow Ochre, a 'medium' mix. About the point when the light showing through is dim. It was brushed on the entire image, soon followed by local applications on the darker foliage, but not the lighter area in the background, setting up for the next color layer of Pthalo Blue, mixed slightly lighter, leaving it sheer, then applied only on the darker foliage, over the thickened Ochre, with the intent of arriving at a recognizable green, of some tone and hue. A comparison of prints shows a bit of shift on the highlights on the stump, and on Adley's clothes. That will get bolstered in subsequent layers.

Gum over Palladium ~ Layer #1 ~ Yellow Ochre
"Adley on the Stump" ~ 8x10