Centerfold 8-]

Hey, I'm in a centerfold.  8-]

Ok, so it's for CHEM 13 news, Dept. of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.  ;->

This from Jenn Shmitt, the co-ordinator:

It's that time again... more Periodic Table Print Project News.




The September issue of the Chem13 News features our project (we're even the centerfold!).  They were so inspired that they have started their own periodic table project--open to more media than just printmaking-- as part of the University's celebration of the Year of Chemistry, 2011. 

Here's my contribution to the project:  Titanium.

And the colophon:

Titanium, atomic number 22, is light, strong, lustrous and resistant to corrosion, even in sea water. It is a silvery-white metal and can be alloyed with iron, aluminium, vanadium and other elements to produce many lightweight alloys. It is used in everything from spacecraft to dental implants, and because it can burn in both air and nitrogen, it makes great fireworks.

Titanium was discovered in England in1791 and was named for the Titans of Greek mythology. I took my inspiration from the Titan allusion and have displayed the most famous Titan, Prometheus, who brought fire to mankind, against the wishes of an angry Zeus.

Here is Prometheus with a high-tech, titanium robotic arm, holding aloft a burst of fireworks. As serendipity would have it, fireworks can look remarkably like a spray of fennel blossoms, the seed of which Prometheus hid fire in to sneak it past the Gods.

No good deed goes unpunished, but that’s another story.

Ti22 full size url

Ti22 -- recarved image

recarved for a sharper image

Titanium, atomic number 22, is light, strong, lustrous and resistant to corrosion, even in sea water. It is a silvery-white metal and can be alloyed with iron, aluminium, vanadium and other elements to produce many lightweight alloys. It is used in everything from spacecraft to dental implants, and because it can burn in both air and nitrogen, it makes great fireworks.

Titanium was discovered in England in1791 and was named for the Titans of Greek mythology. I took my inspiration from the Titan allusion and have displayed the most famous Titan, Prometheus, who brought fire to mankind, against the wishes of an angry Zeus.

Here is Prometheus with a high-tech, titanium robotic arm, holding aloft a burst of fireworks. As serendipity would have it, fireworks can look remarkably like a spray of fennel blossoms, the seed of which Prometheus hid fire in to sneak it past the Gods.

No good deed goes unpunished, but that’s another story.

Ti22 More Colorways

magenta, black oil based ink


yellow added to magenta; black


more yellow added to magenta; black

Red was rolled on, black was tapped in. Interesting and more like I envisioned the image, but now that I've worked with both, I think I like the yellow ochre water based inks better. The colors look more antique.

Titanium 22 -- Periodic Table Project

Ti 22 block


Ti 22 test print -- yellow ochre


Ti 22 test print -- yellow ochre & black

Ti 22 -- another variation

A couple lines need a little more tweaking, and I need to fine-tune the coloration. But it's almost done. 8-]

Now I can work on the text, explaining just how Prometheus with a robot arm holding fireworks relates to the element Titanium. ;-j

Ti-22 Working Sketch (reverse image)

Here's the working mock up for my Titanium block in the Periodic Elements Project. I took a re-assignment. Glad to play. 8-] The Ti and the 22 will be worked into the greek key bands. I printed out a bunch of them to work on colors today. I'm thinking I'll go with red and black and grey, but we'll see.

Titanium is named after the Greek Titans, of which Prometheus is the best known. He stole fire from Zeus and brought it to mankind, concealed in a fennel stalk, for which he was punished -- chained to a rock to have his liver eaten by an eagle, only to grow back at night for the next day. Gotta love those Greek gods.

Titanium is a whitish metal-du-jour that shows up in everything from paint to the space shuttle, and even fireworks. Or in this case, as a robotic arm holding aloft fireworks (which also looks a lot like a fennel stalk).



Tweaking the composition.