The critical report is submitted and the deadline for the practical work submission is getting closer… ahhhh…. exciting but hard times! Last weekend was a “killer weekend” - on Friday I went to LCC to print all the pages for the book. It took the whole day to do it. Xavier was there too, frantically scanning his work :) It was an interesting experience to be in the same “physical” space with a class mate, haven’t had that situation in a long time. I was transfixed to the printer, checking how the prints came into being and at some point Xavier said, I should stop starring at the printer… but I was so excited… and worried at the same time! I forgot what it meant to print the work by yourself, it is a lot of pressure because you just don’t know how the print will look like, the result on paper is different than what you see on screen… On top I have not worked with Hahnemuehle paper so far and each of these printing papers have their own characteristic. BUT I must say, Hahnemuehle is worth every penny spent. The quality, the sharpness and the feeling is incredibly beautiful, some of the details are breathtaking! Though, Borg (besides he was very helpful - DANKE BORG!) who runs the digital lab, said the prints will get darker when the ink sets in and I might have to re-print the odd one.
Cycling back home after this printing session was pure torture, physically and mentally, Friday traffic in London is far from being fun and I was over cautious and every vehicle, pedestrian or “something else” that came close to me felt like a huge threat to the “precious” prints I carried with me. Back home I spread it all out on the living room floor and I could nothing else do but watching three documentaries in a row… I was so tired that I couldn’t sleep, knowing that I had to finish writing the critical report on Saturday and Sunday didn’t make things better. First thing on Saturday morning I could see, yes Borg was right, there were several prints that will have to be re-printed. On the ones that were ok I had to apply the protective spray. After the morning ritual (strong black coffee) I started spraying as if there is no tomorrow… in all that madness I forgot to protect myself and after while I started to feel dizzy and I could feel a head ache lurking… It’s written fairly big on the can to do this spraying in well aired rooms and with protection! I couldn’t believe my own stupidity but it was too late and I went out for a walk/fresh air. Luckily is was beautiful weather and I had the windows open for the rest of the day until my hands were freezing cold. But the critical report had to be finished and it became a long night… and more documentaries afterwards to wind down.
Yesterday I went to do the re-prints at Uni, sprayed them in the hall way afterwards with the door wide open. Today I brought all the prints to Wyvern Bindery and on Friday I can pick up the concertina book… nerve wracking… For now the project is not in my hands any more but in Cat’s from the bindery - I am sure she will do a great job. Though, I wonder what she thinks of the photos, I saw her facial expression when she looked at the print I gave her with the sequence on it… I might ask her opinion on Friday.
