The fat/thin paradox...

Sparse Tree   linoleum print Christmas card

I am an amateur print-maker. In other words, I am no Joan Colbert. But I have done linoleum cut holiday cards a number of times. It is refreshing to work in a different way and to experience different creative problems. Several years ago, I decided to challenge, for myself, the notion of a beautiful Christmas tree. Some folks insist on finding the "perfect" shaped tree every year. Some love tall.....and the taller, the better. Some prefer a certain kind of pine, exclusive, always the most expensive. We are what we decorate? All in all, the notion of bounty rules in the Christmas tree realm. Full has become more beautiful....that is, unless we're talking about the female figure. Well nourished. Well fed. Fewer gaps. Straighter.The kind we like to see on happy Christmas cards. The year of this card, we had a Charlie Brown tree.....the sketch of it turned into a card the following year. Mixing the dark green color was problematic for me, as each batch of mixed paint yielded quiet a different color. My studio is brightly lit, so those that seemed perfect became almost blackish in a more dimly lit surround. Oh well. The bulbs were printed with the tip of an eraser. Several years hence, I realize that there is just too much white space.....perhaps the Charlie Brown tree could have had more branches. I do, however, love the fact that I challenged this notion. I also like the diagonal cuts in the border. Sometimes I am satisfied with a few good passages. I am easily amused.