Lake Tahoe, where we reside, has been a source of inspiration over the years.  It's famed blue waters, in particular, really spark the imagination. Here are a few images of the pieces that we have created over the years that have sprung from our muse, Tahoe. 

A linocut made into a card.  Here is a little video of the printing of this card

http://tahoepov.com/2012/08/06/quail-lane-press-in-tahoe/#comments 

The Lake Tahoe Basin map, ready to be printed!

"Sunrise at Bliss," a reduction linocut that I sold out of years ago.  Bliss Point, and Bliss State Park are located on the westshore of Lake Tahoe.  A really sublime place.  You can follow the Rubicon Trail along steep cliffs that drop into deep blue watersand discover sweet little swimming coves.  For more info check out this site:

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=505 

We're big fans of the show Portlandia.  And as much as it is a satire of the people and things in the city we found that it kinda made us want to visit and see the progressives in action, in the flesh.  

We were pretty blown away by the city and how much cool s*** is going on there.  People walking or biking everywhere, the city actually smelled nice, and happy hours that made us flip out.

Portland is a real mecca for letterpress.  Artists are definitely making some cool things happen with their presses.  

One of our favorites is Old School Stationers

http://order.oldschoolstationers.com/ 

Downtown in the "Pearl" district.

People are serious about their beer in Portland.  And this place is no exception.  

http://saraveza.com/

Perhaps these flowers are what made the city smell so nice. 

First of all a linocut is a printmaking technique, very similar to a woodcut, in which a sheet of linoleum or a linoleum block is used. A design is carved into the linoleum surface with a sharp knife.  In a reduction print the artist prints all colors from the same block. For each color pass through the printing press the artist removes more material from the block. A reduction print can therefore never be reprinted. Each color is printed on top of the previous. The artist must print the entire edition as the work is done, because the printable area of the single block is reduced with each pass. 

Here is an example of a reduction print of a star I did a couple of years ago.   The paper passed through the press five times to reach its final completed state.

I grew up in LA and still go back to visit pretty frequently.  I don't think I could live there but I get why so many people live there...It is pretty damn nice in the winter time.  The weather was a breezy 75 degrees and not a cloud in the sky the whole week I was there.  

Feeling deficient in museums since I live in the mountains, I filled up museum culture (both science and art) by visiting the Los Angeles Natural History Museum and the LA County Museum of Art.  I recommend both, though watch out at the NHM-during the week you are going to have to throw some serious elbows with school children on field trips if you want to get a good look at the mammal dioramas.  The weekend is probably more mellow.

http://www.nhm.org/site/ 

Dioramas at the Museum of Natural History

Chip was delighted to spend the weekend in San Francisco learning how to tame the beloved Vandercook printing press.  The maintenance course was taught by senior Vandy guru Paul Moxon at the Center for the Book http://sfcb.org/.

Sunrise in the foothills on the drive from Auburn to San Francisco 

One of seven Vandercook printing presses at SFCB