Hidden and in reverse
Ken the Professor started by dabbing globs of gooey thick printers ink onto a plexiglass plate, not saying much. We watched as he took a hand-held roller and spread out the black ink, squeezing it forward and back, swishing it this way and that, rolling it to the corners and edges of the plate... shweee.... shwoo..., shwee....shwoo..., shwee... shwoo..., like breathing.
Ruben, Ken the Professor, Susan, and me
A final glistening field emerged. A field of possibilities. A field that hid things and made things in reverse.
In front of me now was a white sheet of paper that covered the slick black ink. Pencil in hand, I started with what I knew, mark making and written drawings without thought. Such a big white sheet of paper, I felt. Such thin lines from the pencil, I noted. My inner mood was more bold and this didn't feel like it could express it.
Until I lifted up the first sheet and saw it. Sush held it up. The strong black marks seemed to be unspooling into an awkward frenzied tumble.
Sush, founder of Studio PAUSE
Then a second pass, in its reverse:
Ken the Professor guided me to try different things and resisted interfering. All the while, though – as he gently nudged, smiled as he took a step back, or leaned in as he said to just try it – it was like my own hidden resistances were being interrupted and my own interferences were being redirected.
Hidden in reverse were deep black backgrounds, thick bold lines, and merging edgy textures. What I couldn't see on top showed up in reverse from below. What I felt within showed up, too.
Glowing flames and deep embers (detail at right)
Each subsequent print seemed to get more dramatic, more surprising, as if on the surface of that white sheet of paper I could conjure up anything. Except I didn’t know what it was going to be. I couldn’t know. The layers of black ink, some spritzed with water, and prior marks underneath were a hidden caldron.
Volcanic eruptions
Cosmic starbursts
Ruben breathed artful and tranquil lines. Sush painted her favorite yellow within a decorated window pane, joyous after so much black and white. Susan created soundscapes of dotted raindrops in a patient rhythm. Ken the Professor saw us play and be playful and seemed happy.
My own chaotic and thundering prints excited me, until I didn’t know how to leave them, how to quell these forces of what seemed like fire and water, of seen and unseen.
Cosmic starbursts
I could have kept making more to be honest (I made 17 in all!), but I needed to come back to earth. My last prints helped me wind down a little.
Dancing wildly in the rain
Susan’s dotted rain prints kept catching my attention towards the end of our time, and I was almost desperate to be near them. They were a respite, I realized, cooling the heat I had conjured, and so soothing. I wanted to hug them close to my heart.
Susan’s dotted rain
It wasn’t until the very end that Ken the Professor gave us something that he had typed up earlier. He didn’t want to give it to us at the start of the session, he said.
“We are actors on a stage tracing our inner thoughts, experiences and feelings across a white expanse of infinite possibilities,” he had written.
Indeed. And it’s often hidden. And sometimes in reverse.
May the flames within excite. And may the raindrops soothe.
PAUSE/play was a new art series from Studio PAUSE to celebrate its 10th year, make time for creativity and play, and explore ideas with other PAUSERs (regulars of the studio). This four-part session, “Monoprinting & More with Ken Krafchek” kicked it off. Ken is a retired professor from MICA in Community Arts.
“Hidden and in reverse” was originally published as an exclusive post to my Ko-fi supporters in January 2023. Now it is public to you, too!
Ko-fi is also an online creator platform and makes it easy for fans to financially support creatives with either a one-time donation or signing up for a monthly subscription. It is where I share early access and exclusive content of my creative process, original stories, and inspiration. My work explores fiber arts, nature gathering, mark making, photography, and writing.
Want to join me and other supporters on a journey? By joining one of my monthly membership tiers, I get to show my appreciation to you by offering benefits! Depending on the tier, the benefits I offer are behind the scenes, works in progress, personal stories, early access, exclusive content, and mailed packages of my art, experiments, and/or Lao materials.
Want to offer a little support because you like what you see or read? I’m humbly grateful for your one-time donation!
Thank you, each of you, for supporting my ongoing creative work. It means so much and I am grateful. Much of the art and writing on this website is because of you!
A big shout out to my wonderful Ko‑fi supporters! Kara B, Kori J, Marga F, Sharmila K, Skip M, Beck C, Richie M, and Sush M! Thank you so much for supporting my creative endeavors. I think of you often in the work that I’m doing — what I’m exploring and experimenting with, and what I write and share. It enables and encourages me to continue onward and I hope that it offers you insight and inspiration along the way.
