This was my primary sketch for my block print design. I wanted to capture the movement and violence behind the motions and play style of baseball. I kept the same design for the whole printing process. I did make a few minor adjustments to make it look cleaner not just in the sketch but also on the block that we were carving into. I wanted to make sure that the carved lines would look clean. In this sketch, I captured the main theme of the piece which is my passion for baseball. I think that this way was the best layout for my actual carving and for the final outcome being the print.
This is another one of my sketches that I made for my block print. All of my sketches stay consistent with what my theme is for this piece. In this sketch, I made a bat shattering after impact with the baseball. This occurs a lot in the pros/major leagues. In it I used lines to show the impact of the baseball and the bat. Plus, the movement of each shard flying off from the bat. I thought that it would be a great way to use lines to show movement throughout the print itself. It though is a more detailed sketch, and it would require a whole lot of detail when it would need to be carved.
This sketch is fairly simple, and it is just simply a baseball moving in mid-air. In this sketch, I incorporated lines once again to express movement within the print. Through this print, it would provide a balanced contrast between white and black on the print. I made this one to show the ball in flight, and show speed and velocity. Rather than the impact of the bat hitting the baseball. This sketch and the other sketches that I made allowed me to experiment with how the certain usage of lines, and different styles of lines create movement throughout the piece.
This is my block with the carving of my primary sketch. I fixed part of my design to move the baseball bat and ball into the middle of the home plate. It allowed me to make a unique look, and it was fitting as a background for the piece. Making the home plate in the background though was intended, to give it more of a baseball feel. I also made it to help the viewer see more of the baseball bat and ball, because in the final, perfect print, the bat and ball do pop out more. The bat and ball are more clearer to see, and the different details in both the bat and ball pop out more too.
I stuck to my first sketch mainly, just because it was more balanced and provided a better balance of contrast. I though did incorporate some of my ideas from my other sketches into my final layout and planned sketch. It allowed me to create a better overall piece that provided good movement, and it had a certain contrast to give it a more German Expressionist feel. Printing my final sketch from the block was very simple. It only took one print, and it turned out to give the true grit, toughness, and power in baseball, which then gave me a good result of a perfect print.
I stuck to my first sketch mainly, just because it was more balanced and provided a better balance of contrast. I though did incorporate some of my ideas from my other sketches into my final layout and planned sketch. It allowed me to create a better overall piece that provided good movement, and it had a certain contrast to give it a more German Expressionist feel. Printing my final sketch from the block was very simple. It only took one print, and it turned out to give the true grit, toughness, and power in baseball, which then gave me a good result of a perfect print.
Reflection:
The block print piece allowed me to use the techniques and style of German Expressionism to my advantage. It allowed me to also incorporate my passion for baseball into my art in a unique way. Which was primarily movement, and it allowed me to use a balance contrast throughout the print. I definitely think that my sketches were able to meet my theme for this art. Another strength of the piece is that it does have some of my other sketches incorporated into the art. There are a couple things that I would do better next time. At least to strengthen the quality of the art itself. One being that I definitely should have fully incorporated all of my ideas together, even though that there would be detail in the piece. I think that it would have provided more contrast between the black and white on the print in my final design. Otherwise I think that my art was good, the only other thing that I would change would be to add more movement and not make the lines that create the movement so stiff, and motionless.
The block print piece allowed me to use the techniques and style of German Expressionism to my advantage. It allowed me to also incorporate my passion for baseball into my art in a unique way. Which was primarily movement, and it allowed me to use a balance contrast throughout the print. I definitely think that my sketches were able to meet my theme for this art. Another strength of the piece is that it does have some of my other sketches incorporated into the art. There are a couple things that I would do better next time. At least to strengthen the quality of the art itself. One being that I definitely should have fully incorporated all of my ideas together, even though that there would be detail in the piece. I think that it would have provided more contrast between the black and white on the print in my final design. Otherwise I think that my art was good, the only other thing that I would change would be to add more movement and not make the lines that create the movement so stiff, and motionless.