Re: Learning a new process

Hi Bill,
I suppose most people will answer that the way they learned is the way
they recommend you learn, and if that's so, I'm no exception. I totally
taught myself to print gum, with the help of written instructions from
William Crawford (Keepers of Light) and Steve Anchell. It's true I
underwent a long period of trial and error before I felt I had mastered
the process, but once mastered, it's yours forever.

To my mind the most important advantage of doing it on your own is that
you will invent your own process, in a sense, to suit your own materials
and your own vision. Since gum is extremely versatile and flexible,
there are as many ways to print gum as there are gum printers, and if
you learn from someone else, you'll learn their way of doing it instead
of developing your own. If you're in the true spirit of the alternative
photographer, who traditionally has been someone who prefers to go it
alone, to take the road less traveled as it were, you will be happier
learning it on your own. At any rate no amount of taking classes,
reading gum texts, etc, will get you any closer to the goal of learning
to print gum; to learn gum printing, you must print gum. Again and again
and again. And there's no special knowledge that can only be imparted by
apprenticing with a master, the way it might be with some other old
processes like wet collodion or daguerrotype. With gum, the gum itself
will teach you more than any teacher could ever teach you. That's my
2cents, Good luck,
Katharine Thayer

Bill King wrote:
>
> I've been struggling with my notions of photography, art, and craft over the
> past few years, and I would love to ask the list for some advice.
>
> Looking over the pictures I've taken over the past ten years, I can see an
> evolution of style and technique. My early photographs showed glimmers of
> originality, but those glimmers were usually overcome by technical issues
> (learning how film sees differently from my eyes) and too heavy an influence
> of David Muench. Many pictures were well-lit, well-composed, perhaps even
> lovely, but they were not art. They were all-too-often copies of others'
> art or style.
>
> Since 2002, I've really struggled to take pictures; I've been doing battle
> with the dreaded Block. My photos have felt emptier and emptier. I have
> felt like I wasn't expressing myself, my own vision, my own sense of
> emotion. I have felt too removed from the final product - as though I was
> capturing something rather than creating it. I guess I've felt distanced
> from both art (expressing my personal vision) and craft (the process of
> creation).
>
> And so I basically began reading in place of creating. I read books about
> philosophy, art, photography, woodworking, ceramics, pottery, the craft of
> writing, etc., etc. Perhaps the break from shooting cliches and the
> exposure to so many different sources helped further my notions of art and
> craft. Certainly, I feel now that I have a much better idea of what I'm
> trying to accomplish - I have a much better sense of what I'm trying to
> communicate and display in my work now.
>
> So over the past few months, I've had the camera out a little more often,
> and I'm feeling much better about what I'm capturing. Artistically, I'm
> feeling like I've been making some progress. But yet it still seems a bit
> on the empty side. I guess I still feel like I'm missing the notion of
> craft in my photography. I want to shape and knead these captured images
> into beautiful prints that have the essence, and texture, and richness of my
> imagination, but I do not have the skills or training to do this. I want to
> put my imprint on the final product, and I'm feeling wholly unsatisfied
> watching the final product roll off an inkjet printer.
>
> So my rather simplistic sounding question is this: how do you recommend
> learning an alt-photo process from scratch? From what I can tell, gum
> printing looks like it would be a great way to begin realizing the visions
> in my head. I have lots of reading material about gums, and certainly this
> list is a great resource, and I have a decent intellectual notion about how
> to accomplish it, but I'm wondering where to make the next step - the step
> to take action.
>
> Unlike learning to draw, it's hard to run over to the local community
> college and take a class on gum printing. I'm not aware of anyone in my
> area doing gum printing. So, it's a big outlay, but do I just buy a Nu-Arc,
> nice scale, good paints, paper, chemicals, gum, etc. and go at it on my own?
> Would this be a little too risky, a little too unsupported? Or might it be
> the most rewarding way to go about it? Would I be best served by traveling
> to a workshop or two to get me started? Are there mentors to be found? (I
> live in Northern Arizona.) Should I find a BFA/MFA program, where I could a
> find a mentor and immerse myself in art and craft for a few years?
>
> I know that this is a rather personal question, and I apologize if it's
> unanswerable. I've been feeling a bit stuck and I thought perhaps throwing
> my question out to a wider audience might help. Thanks for helping the
> artist and craftsperson in me emerge.
>
> Bill
Received on Sat Aug 13 21:07:11 2005