Defining terms (tricolor gum)
P.S. As to the lack of response to my request, I've had eight
responses, all offlist, and no one who responded had any trouble
understanding what kind of tricolor work I'm talking about. Most just
wanted to tell me about the one or two tricolor gum prints they've
done themselves, or work they hope to do in the future, but I'm
pleased to learn of at least a couple of people whose work I didn't
know, and to find that there are people still interested in printing
tricolor gum in this traditional sense and eager for instruction in
the process.
But I think this misunderstanding is the logical result of the phrase
creep that has allowed the term "tricolor gum" to be used for a lot
of different things. I notice that of late, Chris has started
calling hers "cyanogums" which I think is much more descriptive. If
we're going to use the term "tricolor gum" for prints that only have
two layers of gum in them, then the term has lost its meaning
altogether.
As I keep saying, there's room in this tent for all of us, and I for
one am not trying to push anyone out. Never have, never will.
Katharine
On Jan 27, 2007, at 11:30 PM, Katharine Thayer wrote:
Judy, and unfortunately, everyone,
This is a personal attack that has no basis in fact or even in
rationality. To respond to more of it than absolutely necessary
would cause needless unhappiness to the group, but the personal
accusation that I omitted Chris from my list of tricolor gum
printers because of some personal dislike, must be responded to
because it's not only false, but inexplicable given the nature of
my request.
Chris, like Sam and many others on the list, does tricolor prints
consisting of two layers of gum and one layer of cyanotype, which,
as I explained in my request for names, is a fine method in its own
right, but isn't what I'm talking about, and isn't what my tricolor
web page is about. My website is a discussion of how I print
gum; since I do tricolor gum in the traditiional sense of three
layers (or more) of gum, my web page on tricolor gum is about
doing tricolor gum that way. The page is not an overview of
tricolor printing methods, just some observations about how to
print tricolor gum with all gum. And I thought it would be useful
to include mentions of or links to the work of other folks who do
tricolor in this particular way, which is why I asked the
question. I don't have anything against Chris's prints, but they
aren't examples of the tricolor gum method that my page is about,
and that's why she wasn't included in the list of people I can
think of on the list who do tricolor gum this way, nor were Sam
Wang and any number of other people who do tricolor work using gum
over cyanotype. Their method is described on their sites and
elsewhere, but my page is not about their method, only about mine.
Love and kisses? give me a break.
Katharine
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