the Print of the great Deer

On 24 February I made this pen and ink drawing.

Only months later came the desire to draw this work on copper

because this image wants more ... and much more

inking and wiping

pieces of tarlatan

a print of 8 June

I know it is still growing

weeks later, in July, I have a dream.

A wounded child runs away from a wrong house

runs onto the beach

on the beach a strange peaceful storm

trucks and busses are blown away like feathers on the wind

and the atmosphere is peace

there is this very quiet, reassuring, soft golden light everywhere

in this tremendous storm

subtle lines of moving wind

subtle lines of flying sand

subtle lines of flying water

all is gently luminous

the wounded child is not afraid

only full of trust

a beautiful sailing ship will come

flying on the air, it will take the child on board.

I wake up with this scene

knowing this will help me to go on with the print of the great Deer

great Deer like sailing ships

in a cave in the antlers one person takes care of another

the woman on this deer rests her head as if she is listening

to his heartbeat

the other deer carries a city in his antlers

tears fall from his face

tears fall from the face of the woman riding him

in the center a girl with very long hair

a crescent on her womb

one hand indicates the city

her other hand reaches for a cave under a tree

there too are people, watching everything

Rays of sunlight, a quiet light

And now we go on ...

Carving and scratching, exploring the colors that make the print blossom. Several times already I have refreshed lines on this copper plate with the etching needle. This is what I longed for when I turned to intaglio printmaking again : images that last many months and many efforts, all the dedicated hours again and again, to slow down, to dive deeper. I will never become tired following the prints of the great Deer.