Hey!! It's an art festival!!!

Mom, Dad & I headed out towards Fort Fisher yesterday at my brother’s suggestion. Ken had to work so I had the pleasure of taking the folks around the area. Unfortunately, my tour guide skills are not quite up to par with my brother’s. Well, not yet anyway. Driving towards Fort Fisher, Mom & I spotted a big sign that read “Arts Festival” in Carolina Beach. Why not? Let’s stop and check it out!!! Mom and I were game… and Dad, well, we kind of forced him to go… like it or not. Sorry, Dad!

BIG PRINT BLOCK PARTY ART FESTIVAL. “See giant 4x8 foot woodcuts printed with a steamroller LIVE!” That’s what the brochure read. My curiosity was piqued. After seeing the artwork laying on the ground and surrounded by those bright orange construction cones I was even more pleased to find out that I could see the entire process from start to finish. Well, almost, from start to finish.

So, what exactly were they doing? What is woodblock relief printing? According to the brochure - Relief is the oldest form of printmaking. The earliest relief printmaking on paper goes back to the woodcuts of China, dating back to the 8th Century. Woodcuts appeared in Europe much later, in the 15th Century. The basic principle of relief printing is to create an image on paper from the raised surface of the matrix. The artist draws onto a surface of the block or matrix and then cuts away the areas that are the non inked parts of the image. The un-carved block surface is rolled up with ink with a rubber roller and a piece of paper laid over it. The artist then either rubs the paper using their hand or a hard, smooth object or runs it through a printing press. The image produced on the paper mirrors that on the block. Woodcuts and linocut are the most common examples of relief prints.

While today’s venue was small – this was its first year – I felt the size of it to be manageable. In other words, I liked the fact that you didn’t have to try and maneuver through a mass of people. There were the typical booths that one would expect to find at such an event – photography, jewelry, paintings, etc. My pleasant surprise was actually being able to watch the woodblock relief printing process. Mom and Dad seemed to enjoy it, too! I do believe my favorite part was watching the steamroller!!

... And I love my little treasure I found at the art festival!! It will look quite lovely in my new place...well, when I eventually move into it! :)