Flickering Signal: May 2006

Triad

Triad
woodcut,
8" x 10", 2006

Dappled

Dappled
woodcut,
8" x 10", 2006

Reversal

Reversal
woodcut,
8" x 10", 2006

Winter White

Winter White
woodcut,
8" x 10", 2006

Sea Creatures lower right

The Emergence of Narrative

leg·end (lĕj'ənd)

n.

An unverified story handed down from earlier times, especially one popularly believed to be historical.

A body or collection of such stories.

A romanticized or popularized myth of modern times.

One that inspires legends or achieves legendary fame.

An inscription or a title on an object, such as a coin.

An explanatory caption accompanying an illustration.

An explanatory table or list of the symbols appearing on a map or chart.

[Middle English, from Old French legende, from Medieval Latin (lēctiō) legenda, (lesson) to be read, from Latin, feminine gerundive of legere, to read.]

USAGE NOTE Legend comes from the Latin adjective legenda, "for reading, to be read," which referred only to written stories, not to traditional stories transmitted orally from generation to generation. This restriction also applied to the English word legend when it was first used in the late 14th century in reference to written accounts of saints' lives, but ever since the 15th century legend has been used to refer to traditional stories as well. Today a legend can also be a person or achievement worthy of inspiring such a story—anyone or anything whose fame promises to be enduring, even if the renown is created more by the media than by oral tradition. Thus we speak of the legendary accomplishments of a major-league baseball star or the legendary voice of a famous opera singer. This usage is common journalistic hyperbole, and 55 percent of the Usage Panel accepts it.

Definition from Answers.com

Black shows white...

Dong Jiansheng used these words to guide Renee Covalucci as she studied woodcut technique under his guidance. You can read the full story as I did last week in her article cited below.

I am currently working on a number of large woodcuts. To improve my view of the carved marks, I had blacked the entire surface of the block before cutting anything and as I worked Dong's mnemonic danced in my brain. I realized that the mountain was described simply by the cutting the snow lying on it. For some unexplained reason, I found this a very enjoyable thought. This massive looming lump of stone was only visible because of a ephemeral tracery of snow lying on it.

Covalucci, Renee, Realized in Wood: Printing Techniques (and Stories) from China, the Boston Printmakers Newsletter, Spring 2005