Monotypes in the making: 'Tranquility'

Tranquility and natural beauty abound in New Zealand. This blog featured three time-lapse videos of three different iterations of the same subject - a very tranquil scene near Whangarei in the North Island.

'Tranquility #1', monotype, 38cm x 49cm, Akua ink on Hahnemuhle paper

After printing a monotype, there is often quite a bit of ink left on what we call the "ghost" plate. There's not usually enough ink to get a straight print from it but it can give you a good start on a new, but always different, image. I decided to use the "ghost" of Tranquility #1" as the basis of a new print, adding ink with brushes in a more painterly way. Here's a time lapse video of how I got on.

'Tranquility #2', monotype, 38cm x 49cm, Akua ink on Hahnemuhle paper

There's still ink left on the plate, so what do you do but have yet another go. This time I went for greater simplicity and didn't use my reference at all. I didn't shoot a time lapse because you'll already have the idea from my first two attempts. However, I couldn't resist recording the big reveal at the end - always the most exciting, and sometimes the most exasperating, bit of the process.

'Tranquility #3', monotype, 38cm x 49cm, Akua ink on Hahnemuhle paper