The Gulf of Alaska

[Cuin]

Well, this past July a friend flew my gf and I out to Anchorage for her wedding. That was obviously incredibly nice, so... I decided I'd make a map as a gift. I just got inspiration for this and hopefully it will be done in time to enter for this challenge.

I will be doing an etching on copper with watercolor and calligraphy added to the print. The etching style is what I've been going for all along, but haven't had the right tools. I recently had the opportunity to take a printmaking class and am excited to get that 15-16th century look! There is not a whole lot to show now except some prep work I am going to copy to the plate. Hopefully there will be progress every week. The class just began, but haven't gotten too far yet. For the first WIP, imagine a 8x10 copper plate with nothing on it .

[Diamond]

Woah. Ambitious! Looking forward to seeing it.

[ChickPea]

This sounds fantastic! Can't wait to see your progress.

[TK.]

Yay! Gotta see it!

[Cuin]

### Latest WIP ###
Gulf of Alaska map copy.png

This is my 'sketch' that will be the first part of the etching. It is a mirror image after printing, so it needs to be etched on backwards. Of course, I'll have to do text post-print. The style of mountains is just what google maps shows, I've toyed with the idea of replicating it, but I might go with the old classic style. Haven't decided on that yet.

[ChickPea]

Wow, this is going to be amazing! I admire you for jumping right in at the deep end!!

[Cuin]

### Latest WIP ###
Gulf of Alaska map copy.png

Here is my plan for the marginalia. There are 3 separate images combined (roughly) in photoshop. The end product might look quite different, but this is a starting ground.

In other news, the map and it's elements aside from the marginalia are finished. I went with a more classic fantasy style of mountains, but tried to incorporate true geography. I'd post photos of the plate, but you can't really see much... nor have I done any test prints yet. All of the line work need to be done first. So, there isn't too much to share for WIPs.

One magical day you just see a finished map

[Cuin]

### Latest WIP ###

Gulf of Alaska map copy.png

With the title block.

[tainotim]

How is the etching going Cuin? Eager to see how this turns out. The drafting you have posted looks very cool (And difficult)

Cheers,
Tainotim

[Cuin]

How is the etching going Cuin? Eager to see how this turns out. The drafting you have posted looks very cool (And difficult)

Thanks for sharing enthusiasm! Good news is that I did the etching, but I was not able to finish in the class last week. I have another portion of the etching to do with the aquatint technique. So, I was not able to make any prints, let alone finish the typography. I don't have another class until 12/5. I'll have to wait until then to do final work, printing and post-printing calligraphy. I'll have to drop from the contest. I thought it would be tight. That's ok though, I've learned so much this being my first experience with etching and discovered quite a bit of "I'll do that next time" educational experiences.

Anyhow, I'll share the current plate that shows all line work that has been etched. The aquatint will finish the mountains in the landscape backdrop. I'm really happy with how this turned out and am looking forward to developing an archaic expertise. Here's a photo of the plate.

### Latest WIP ###
etch.jpg