More Printmaking Stuff

A few weeks ago the BelmarArts Council sent out an e-mail reminding us of the plan to close for a few weeks for a cleaning of the Boatworks, and that if we had anything stored there, to make sure it was properly labeled to make sure it wouldn't be disposed of.  I had a large plastic bin for my class, which this year mostly contained several bench hooks I had made years ago.

It's a low-tech device that can be very useful in the woodcut process.  Basically a board with a raised edge at both ends, on opposite sides of the board.  The one pointing down is placed against the edge of the table, while the one pointing up becomes a place to secure the end of the woodblock.  The result is that the artist doesn't need to use as much energy and muscle power to hold the block in place while cutting, allowing both hands to be used to guide the cutting tool.  I have made several over the years for the class to use, such as these two from 2012.  Some students have quickly gone ahead and made their own, such as one I remember made from a wooden cutting board purchased at an estate sale.  The plastic bin was on a shelf in the supply closet, marked with my name, a date of Summer 2018, and Woodcut Class.  I pointed it out to our student worker, and she assured me it would be safe from the planned cleaning.

Last week I stopped by the Boatworks to drop off my artifact for he Ancestors show, went to take a peek in the closet, but the bin was missing.  Nothing else in there was marked to indicate that my items were relocated there.  But the office was officially closed down until after the 4th, so nothing I could do then.  They reopened today, so I stopped by in the afternoon on bits of business, including asking about my missing items.  Diane, our new director, was in and mentioned seeing the bin on the shelf, properly marked with my name and class (which she knew was filled before this cleaning project happened), and followed me to the closet where she saw it was missing.   Her plan is to ask the person who took charge of the cleaning what happened to it.  If they can find it and let me know where it is, no problem, and we have a few weeks before the first class anyway.  If they threw them away, then I expect to be compensated for the devices- wood, screws, labor, etc.

On a more positive note. got e-mail confirmation today that my big print order from early this week finally shipped.  Have a tracking number and an estimated delivery date next week.  Last time I ordered from this place the post office lost the package for a few days, after inexplicably sending it to the wrong town and then across the state while they figured it out, which I found especially odd, since the correct shipping address appeared on both printed shipping labels (company and post office) affixed to the package.  I'll be relieved when it arrives in my hands.