Through the Glass Lightly

There was a little get-together down the street. There were dog and cat people and rabbit people too; a second grader and some retired folks; some college professors and a few artists. Our magnanimous hosts served Champagne, which I hardly ever drink and never in the morning, but today I was feeling just a little like Audrey Hepburn perhaps, so I raised my glass to our new president. The new day has come.

Monday BunBumday;Rabboratory Report

Note foot,tail and glare positioning for maximum disapproval

After modeling for BunBumday Tyler went to work in the Rabboratory with Sydney and the Simple Assistant. As good fortune would have it the Spots were blessed with some Willow cuttings. As you know Willow wood  is a non-toxic chew favorite. It became quickly evident that the Simple Assistant was not, despite her supposedly superior digits, able to make anything close to a ball. After much discussion it was decided that balls and cubes were in a fact a "man" made shape and that these shapes were used not because they are particularly appealing to lagomorphs, but because it makes marketing easier. How could you get anyone to buy a Willow construction of unknown shape? Simply impossible to mass market. The Spots worked hard and came up with some interesting lagomorph centered constructions. These will be dried as the hardened work will give teeth more of a workout and once hard they will be less likely to spring apart when chewed; now all the pieces are under tension.

Tyler puts finishing touches on his creation. It features both thick and thins chewing options and enough space to really get in there and get a good tooth workout.

Sydney thought something small would be nice; something a girl could carry to a quiet corner for a good gnaw away from prying eyes and cameras.

Here the Spots confer on the final design refinements of a piece that sports width, height, thicks and thins; small enough to move around and large enough to share.

There were more pictures but silly Blogger refused to down load them, even though it was tried several times at different times. Bye for now, have a good Martin Luther King Day and a great and historical Inauguration however you observe it. 

Message Received

 "What's this?" I asked Boyfriend "this is freakin' me out." As you may remember I worked for Lou Harrison many years ago. Boyfriend confessed he had put the little note on the table just to freak me out and he had found it in a book he had checked out from the UCSC library called "Social Security; the Phony Crisis". The calligraphy is Lou's for sure, as is the signature, I had a signature stamp that was exactly the same for signing letters.  And this is exactly the sort of thing he would say. Lou passed in '03 and how this bit of him came to be it that book could be any of 10,000 stories and the chances that it would find it's way to me are astronomical........A latent treasure surfaces unexpectedly and now I share it with you. Read it and go make something beautiful and tender, be it art or food or love or a garden or..............Good luck, yeah!

Monday BunBumday

Orlando's person, DKM, put out a spotted bunny bum challenge. We cannot rise to the wonderfulness of Orlando's pose, but do humbly submit these views for your consideration.

TYLER

Please note my lovely rear angle, so acute and so cute.

TYLER

My back spots are a special design, like vertebrae showing through my furs.

SYDNEY

Feet tucked, tummy fully extended, how many points for this, judges?

SYDNEY

Backfield in motion, moving the bum, bun moving.....

Enjoy your Bunday.

See Spots Learn

Here they are waiting for training. Sydney is seeking reassurance from Tyler who seems to have his eye firmly fixed on the greens bag.

Training is progressing. The other day when I didn't have time to do  a proper feeding training session, I just picked some fresh Chicory from the yard and put it is the Spots bowl. Tyler hung back and gave me a look. Either he isn't too smart and has completely forgotten how to eat on his own or he does think it is a nice way to have a meal. Indeed when I stock up the Bunvention they both seem to think it more fun to be fed strands of hay rather than rummage in the Bunvention.

Tyler with all four paws on my lap, he is getting really good at this. I am trying to reinforce the word "lap", but he seems to think that just hearing "good" means jump in lap and have a snack.

This morning Tyler spent about 75 percent of the time in my lap (that would be all 4 paws on). When he is there I touch his ears a forehead, not too much just a bit, since these are bonding gestures. Sydney seemed to put out  and she sulked under a chair. I addressed her a few times, because she does know her name, so she wouldn't feel forgotten. Finally she came hopping out, did a sort of half bink with a shoulder shake and planted herself in my right knee for her breakfast. She had decided she could play too and wasn't she a good girl!. For awhile I had both rabbits with 4 paws on on my lap (getting mighty crowded). Didn't get a picture of that because my camera batteries ran out.

Tyler firmly on lap with Sydney showing that she can do 2 paws on very well.

Giving credit where credit is due: I have to say that reading Furrybutts tale of Yohji gave me courage/motivation/faith to try training the Spots. Thanks Furrybutts !!!!

Monday Bunday; Paws On

Meal times for Tyler and Sydney have become an intensive training session. Since they are free roaming the Spots think it is easier and more natural to run away from a person rather than be friendly, and I can see their point in terms of "rabbit think". I consulted Rabbit Haven a couple times as regards their behavior and was pleasantly assured that these things take time and that Tyler and Sydney were raised as snuggle buns.

Tyler demonstrates  2 paws on.

Indeed at the adoption show Tyler was a total snuggle bun. I was advised to pick them up a lot, but if you can't catch them this doesn't work. I tried putting them in a closed pen, but feared they would hurt their teeth with the break out attempts they immediately demonstrated. This is fear grounded in reality, I did have a rabbit who got her teeth caught in a Xpen and very nearly died from the resulting injury. Being able to handle my Spots without major trauma seems important for nail trimming, grooming. trips to the vet and such, not just my selfish need to hold a rabbit.

Sydney shows 2 paws on with a stretch and says where is my nose?

 I tried Clicker training, but Sydney was scared of the sound. Feeding in their open pen and hand feed treats just didn't seem to be making much progress, so two weeks ago I started them on a new program. A hungry rabbit is a friendly rabbit, so I feed them a bit less and all food is hand fed, even pellets (unless I have to run out or something). Bunnies must demonstrate "paws on" to get some food and "four paws" on gets constant rewarding. Sometimes they have to push between my two hands held like an open clam shell to get the food.

Sydney with 2 paws and a nose

Some interesting results have occurred in two weeks. Tyler is very possessive about food and sometimes growls at Sydney. He also will no longer present himself to me for petting(oh well). He will come up on my lap with 4 paws and eat. Sydney comes out more frequently than before when she sees me on the floor and will sometimes sit nearby and groom herself. Sometimes she boycotts hand pellet feeding and sits by her red bowl letting me know she disapproves. 

Tyler with 2 paws on shows his smudge nose

A Real Blockbuster

Henri Matisse said, and I paraphrase slightly,  that much of the beauty of art comes from the struggle the artist has with the medium. Here are some of the tools that one struggles with in Moku Hanga. 

After the design is done, and we won't go into that wrestling match here, one must carve on the blocks. You can see some un-carved blocks under my knives. I use Shina plywood and carve both sides, this appeals to my occasionally thrifty nature. Some people use a dremel to carve and some use wood burning tools. Just now I am stubbornly traditional, partly because I love the look of the knives and partly for the challenge.

Ink is applied with brushes. I have found that it is worthwhile getting the best brushes one feels one can afford; crappy brushes can drive you mad, if you aren't there already. Of course there is a technique to applying the ink and getting the mix of water and nori (rice paste used as a medium to help the ink print evenly) correct. 

The paper is dampened slightly so that it is soft and placed on top of the block and the baren (the cute round thing with the handle) is pressed and rubbed about on it. There is technique to this pressing part and strength. Large solid areas require quite a bit of pressure. Unlike oil printing or press printing where the ink is on top of the paper, Moku Hanga impregnates the fibers of the paper with color. This can be seen on the back of the print. I'd show you a scan but I haven't got one....

For Year of The Ox the first color was Green, here's the block. The lighter colors are usually printed first. The second color was Magenta on just part of the green block using a "bokashi" or gradation technique.

Then it was blue blocks turn to strut his stuff. First the whole thing was printed with Ultra Marine Blue then I did a "bokashi" of Prussian Blue along the top. You can see on the block where the Magenta off set from the paper onto the block. The moon looks even less round than in the print because I sanded it's edges to create another kind of "bokashi" called "ito bokashi". It worked OK there's a nice fragmentation of the moon edge on the actual print. Edges are very important to pay attention in art.

Here's a close up of the blue block, I admit I love the texture and (ahem) would run my fingers over it just because.

Next is the Gold block, it is a color called Quinacridone Gold of which I am very, very fond. You may have notice it in the background of 2 Rabbits as well as 2 From Nottingham. This block shows the "kentos" that are used to register the paper for multi block prints. They are on the right hand corner and on the bottom to the left. The paper is cozied up to these little bumpers and is in the same place on each block. Does that make sense? It does work, mostly, if you are careful.

Black is the last block, this is printed using Sumi ink. Because the paper was getting damper and damper from printings I had to let the prints dry a bit so the Sumi wouldn't wander too much and the paper wouldn't sag and catch ink it wasn't supposed to and get blotchy, yuck.

Finally done. I set about making the cards. Although simpler than printing it was labor intensive and I shortened my mailing list considerably; removing those individuals I thought might throw away their Ox....I think I'll do some color xeroxes and paste them on some good card stock for those particular suspects.......

Here Comes Another

Here comes another New Year. Hot on the heels of the Solar is the Lunar New Year on the 26th of this month. This year will be the year of the Earth Ox and I just finished the prints that will become cards; 43 oxen pressed and teased from wood, ink, water and paper. A surprising percentage are without gross error, just a few are not even fit to go to my most elderly and dim sighted relatives. Some will be put up for sale on my Etsy site, both as cards and matted prints.

Happy Solar New Year to one and all. 

Blue Monday Bunday

We are sad to have woken up this morning to find that our friend all the way round the world in Nottingham, England, the lovely and lordly Hugo, lagomorph partner of Dutchie girl Miss Eve, has passed from this physical plane. 

Wrapped in angels

Snowy Hugo

Winks his ruby eye

We wave our paws

And whisper through our tears

"Until we meet again"

Year of the Ox Proofings

Been working on the Year of the Ox print. Actually this is the second one, I started over having had a bit of a slip with the big chisel. I took the accident as an opportunity to re-design the whole thing. The first image here is a proof of the re-design, it's OK but I don't really see anything in it that would keep people from throwing it away. It's just a bit flat and maybe even a bit boring after a minute or two.

This is four blocks and four impressions.

Mr. Ox got a makeover with some carving and fancy printing techniques. Somewhat jazzier, though the moon is not quite round, I think I can fix that. Hmm, just a bit more carving here and there and maybe this Ox will be ready to fly!

Here I carved away the green that was inside the Ox, added some flecks and did Bokashi (gradation printing) on the mountains and the top of the sky. Four blocks and six impressions.

.......And to All a Good Night

Rose photo dates from early Summer, I took it thinking that it would be nice to remind me of warmth, light and flowers sometime in mid Winter.

Have just listened to part of an NPR program that informs us  Christmas was singlehandedly popularized by Charles Dickens. Before "A Christmas Carol" it was a sort of minor holiday; the power of the word and of some clever ad men is awesome. But do not think that I am such a terrible curmudgeon regarding this season. Just today I have been cleaning house with holiday cheerfulness, accompanied by rabbits thumping behind the sofa. Only the restocking of a new bunvention with three kinds of hay has soothed injured feelings. As far as spiritual inspiration, for me this time of year seems to call for Lord Buckley's "The Nazz" and you can hear it here. 

Don't eat with your mouth full, share your food, may all buns have good appetites and plenty of greens.

Special get well soon wishes to our bunfriends in Nottingham, Hugo and Miss Eve

May all our Blogosphere friends and buns stay warm, be happy and dig infinity.

Monday Bunday; Art Project

"This is not a treat induced pose, I am naturally cute."

PJ from here asked me to make her a custom mat using sloppy seconds. Tyler sure hopes she likes it, and so do I because it's going out today. 

Happy Bunday all.

Monday Bunday; Book Review

The top is quite tasty, but will it make me grow taller?

The Spots bought a book at the local bookstore. It was of reasonable price because it was a "remainder". What we used to called in the record business an "over pressing", which means it didn't sell so well at the original list price. This book has a catchy title, so it was purchased. It is comprised of Chinese sayings mostly from that 6th century BC classic,  The Art of War. 

Could we learn something from this book, or could it learn something from us?

The first part of the book goes through the sayings and elaborates on them. For example the favorite saying "A clever rabbit has three hiding places" is further explained thusly, "The world is full of hunters and each hunter brings danger. The hunted have their hiding places, but the hunter knows them too. That is why it is necessary to fool the hunter and offer him an empty hiding place while you have secretly prepared another place of safety." 

I think I can hide use it to hide behind  (not quite, Sydney)

The second part of the book offers an A-Z of everyday situations and relevant stratagems. Success is just a quote away. Under  C we find Conscience and one of the situations reads "I have a bad conscience and want to feel better." Here the advice is to  "scold the goat because the milk is sour" or in other words if you have made a mistake and want to avoid punishment shift the blame to someone else. 

This is an excellent hiding place, I sure can't see you......

Hmm, but then wouldn't you just find bad because you'd caused a possibly innocent person to be unfairly blamed ? Well, the book doesn't quite all fit together, but it is a good introduction to some classic Chinese sayings such as: A good horse runs by itself:  Learn from the teacher and the tinker: Let the meal cook slowly: (and finally) Make everyone happy.

We Are Pleased With Ourselves

Tyler and Sydney are pleased to announce that they have been featured on another blog, that of  Junk Style Diva and you can see it by clicking HERE. And check out the rest of her blog while you are there.

The Bus Was Late

Pay no attention to the rabbit behind the curtain.

The bus was late so we missed Monday Bunday. In the mornings I often sit in the kitchen to warm up and drink tea. Sometimes I will hear tremendous crashings from the living (rabbit) room, as if they had suddenly sprouted uncontrollable wings and were bouncing off walls and windows. When I push through the door all is quiet. One morning after just such a commotion I found Tyler hiding behind a towel that covers fire wood and Sydney in a box that some nutritional supplements arrived in. Of course the event had to be documented. I thought I might use Sydney's picture as a Christmas/Solstice card, but I use it now to thank everyone who dropped by in last post and left kind, sweet and supportive comments. THANK YOU. Rabbits rule and we are cooking up some ideas for prints and such in the rabboratory.

Fragile bunns for peace, we will thank for treats and snacks.

Something to Be Learned

I was asked to make as a donation to benefit the Waldorf School, some sauerkraut. I carved and printed labels too. Here are the pints waiting for their ride.

I like to think there is something to be learned from a fiasco. Maybe fiasco isn't the right word, since that implies crazy mix ups, possibly some ironic humor, or a badly dramatic situation. So maybe my experience at the Winterfest was just flat bad. I had thought I was being cleaver by sharing a table with someone who has many connections in the community, this I was sure would bring some buyers my way. Unfortunately my half table was ill positioned and it seemed to me nothing could be done about it, so I didn't complain. We were outside and the table shape was an L, with the toe of the L against a wall. My part was the foot of the L. As far as real estate goes this was certainly a fine and private place, but almost hidden by the display trees of my table mate. The area where my potential customers might be standing and merrily looking through charming prints was encroached upon the chairs of my neighbor, although I made a point of telling them that I needed to maintain a clear access to my area. I made some signage and put my most fetching print on the wall, hoping Hugo and Miss Eve would reel in the buyers. Action was minimal. People, who I know, seemed not to recognize me behind the table, or thought I had some hand in making the misshapen, but  popular felt creations of my table mate. It is not as if I didn't sell a thing, I did sell 2 prints and 11 mini pics. I may live in a rabbit centered universe, but rabbits, it would appear are not universally popular. Yes, this is a shocking realization. One little girl wouldn't even look at the bunnies, even though urged by her grandmother, because  she was a "dog person". Lessons learned: 1-get your own table. 2-educate the public on how these prints are made. Everything is so instant and accessible it takes some knowledge to appreciate "Slow Art". I had made  slide show to this end, but couldn't show it because there wasn't power available. 3-Maybe offer a few non-rabbit prints (ouch). 4-Boyfriend urges me to add that I mustn't let myself be pushed around.

Close-up of sauerkraut. Labels attached with rubber bands from the New York Times.

Printing and Prepping

2 From Nottingham (one color way)

This Saturday I take my prints to an arts and crafts fair; I have half a table a the Santa Cruz Waldorf Winterfest. These last two weeks or so I have been consumed with printing new color combos of 2 From Nottingham (that would be Hugo and Miss Eve to most of my readers). 

And another color way with added bokashi (7 colors)

I've also been making things out of my sloppy seconds prints (quality control claims a certain number of works). To this end I made some, um, some, well I don't really know what they are. Cut out reject  rabbit heads are decoupaged on leftover mat board which is three and quarter by four inches and the top is laced with some ribbon to make for hanging. 

Desperate attempts to use up not so great prints and leftover mat board bits.

They could be appropriately used as tree decorations, pictures for a doll's house, an elf's yurt (you didn't know elves lived in yurts did you?) or a teddy bear's study. I think it is good to have something cheaply priced for kids, I'll sell these for maybe 3 bucks even though that in no way reflects the amount of work that went into them. OTOH they aren't perfect, if they were the corners would be rounded and the holes would have grommets. 

I made 22 of these and probably spent 4-5 hours doing it, so silly.

Since I don't have any Moku Hanga bizness cards I banged out a few of those using blanks, the rest of the chopped up prints and some decoupage. Since I used the heads for in my first print reincarnation project this left me with a lot of bunny butts for the cards. Oh well, I see no need to take myself too terribly seriously, not when looking at the big picture. What's wrong with a bunny butt anyway????? 

All parts of the bunny are attractive and socially appropriate.