“Navigational Aid” was composed using five plates printed onto navigational charts that had been in use onboard AmNav tug boats. Most of the charts were specifically of San Francisco Bay, and the waterways and tributaries that meet in the bay. They were printed using a homemade printing press.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as art, block print, lighthouse, lino, linoprint, point bonita, print, printmaking, relief print, san francisco, san francisco bay, woodblock
“To Guard Against Hexes Cast” is a cyanotype printed on Canson watercolor paper and onto Arches Platine paper. The prints are toned with coffee and the image measures 8″ x 18″.
Filed under cyanotype, Print Making
Tagged as alternative process, Ben Leib, bird, cosmos, crystals, cyanotype, erebus crystals, moon, nature, oak tree, photography, print, printmaking, stars
THE CARP FIGHTS THE CURRENT HOME
The image is printed on navigational charts retired from use on the APL President Wilson. Six separate blocks were used (though the first is nearly invisible).
I chose to create the carp print after sailing around the Pacific and delivering cargo to Japan, China, and South Korea. The carp and koi fishes have strong cultural relevance in the region, and have historically been represented in visual art work. There is a Chinese legend of the Dragon’s Gate, which is described on Wikipedia: “The legend states that while many carp swim upstream against the river’s strong current, few are capable or brave enough for the final leap over the waterfall. If a carp successfully makes the jump, it is transformed into a powerful dragon.” The metaphor is one of struggle towards a worthy goal.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as apl, art, carp, chart, koi, lino, linoprint, map, mariner, merchantmarine, mmp, ocean, presidentwilson, print, printmaker, printmaking, relief print, sailor, seaman, woodblock, woodblockprint
“The Helmsman” is five plates printed onto navigational charts that had been in use onboard Foss tugboats, SeaCor’s Ocean Giant, and APL’s President Wilson. They were printed using a homemade printing press.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as Ben Leib, block print, captain, chart, helmsman, linoprint, map, merchant marine, ocean, print, printmaking, relief print, sailboat, sailing, sailing ship, shipping, tall ship, woodblock
“La Fuerza” is five plates printed onto BFK Rives paper using a homemade printing press. This image was inspired by several sources – tarot, Mexican Loteria cards, Indochinese Mysticism, and classic antiquity.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as Ben Leib, black and white, la fuerza, linoleum, linoprint, loteria, print, printmaking, reduction print, relief print, sak yant, tarot, tiger, woodblock
The greeting card design was based on a traditional Noh mask of an Oni, a mythological Japanese demon. There is a history of traditional Oni tattoos. They are printed on any scraps or appropriately sized cardstock, and more are printed as I need them. I include a greeting card of some sort with all prints that I ship.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as block print, demon, japanese tattoo, lino, linoprint, noh mask, oni, oni tattoo, print, printmaking, relief print, sailor jerry, tattoo, tattoo flash, traditional tattoo, woodblock
The greeting card design was based on a Sailor Jerry traditional tattoo. They are printed on any scraps or appropriately sized cardstock, and more are printed as I need them. I include a greeting card of some sort with all prints that I ship.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as art, block print, classic tattoo, lino, linoprint, print, printmaking, relief print, sailor jerry, tattoo, tiger, traditional tattoo, woodblock
“La Estrella” is six plates printed onto four different types of paper using a homemade printing press. This image was inspired by several sources – tarot, Mexican Loteria cards, romantic painting, and symbolism.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as art, black and white, block print, la estrella, lino, linoprint, loteria, mermaid, print, printmaking, reduction print, relief print, romanticism, siren, star, symbolism, tarot, woodblock
“Endurance” used six plates printed onto navigational charts. These charts were used in navigation of the Ocean Giant, a heavy lift ship that makes a yearly voyage to McMurdo Station in Antarctica.
The Endurance was the ship that Ernest Shackleton set sail f0r Antarctica in January of 1914. The ship became ice bound in 1915 and sank in November of that year. Ernest Shackleton survived nearly insurmountable odds and managed to save his entire crew. He’s cited as one of the most admirable maritime leaders, though he died broke at the age of 47. In 1959, Alfred Lansing’s Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage was published, memorializing the voyage of the Endurance, and standing out as an enduring work of literature.
Filed under Linoprint, Print Making
Tagged as antarctica, art, block print, chart, endurance, exploration, linoprint, map, navigational chart, print, printmaking, reduction print, relief print, ship, shipping, woodblock
This stencil mural was spray painted onto the bulkhead of the Ocean Giant’s Engine Room. Photos record the process and final result. The image is approximately 2 1/2′ by 3′. The ship tends to make a circuit between the arctic and Antarctic, and I was aboard during the 2023 trip to McMurdo station in Antarctica. I also used the stencil to make poster-sized prints onto navigational charts that had been used aboard the ship.
Filed under Print Making, Stencil
Tagged as antarctic, antarctica, arctic, chart, compass, globe, heavy lift, map, mcmurdo, mcmurdo station, north pole, ocean giant, pengine, polar bear, Print Making, printmaking, seabulk, seacor, ship, shipping, south pole, Stencil
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