John Altringham

Light and Time (3) Wood engravings by John Altringham and poems by Daniel Hoffmann

A giant knife blade of rock, Forcan Ridge in the Scottish Highlands cuts into the sky. The 3rd "Light and Time" duet (4 planned) pairs a splendid engraving by @johnaltringham.bsky.social & a poem by me on the mountain as part of a cycle that is shaping it.

Free at open.substack.com/pub/blots/p/...

Lovely work, particularly like the sense of movement captured in the crow.

Really enjoying the monotype process using oil paints instead of printing inks. Learning taken from an artist called Emerson Mayes. Need to keep the oils thin as you apply the layers & be loose with the mark making. Birds are roughly A5 and Sheep A4. High risk as only 1 impression but lots of fun.

Light and Time (2) Wood engravings by John Altringham and poems by Daniel Hoffmann

A spectacular geological formation on the Isle of Skye has inspired the second "Light and Time" duet of a wood engraving by @johnaltringham.bsky.social, and then a poem by me. Enjoy!

Free at open.substack.com/pub/blots/p/...

Love it! Gorgeous colours/composition.

A watercolour of a moor with a road through the middle, over cast gray stormy sky

view of Greenock cut with low winter sun

Light and Time (1) Wood engravings by John Altringham and poems by Daniel Hoffmann

The wood engravings of @johnaltringham.bsky.social speak to me, often in the form of a poem. So I was happy when John agreed on a project, in which we show his and my work side-by-side. Share our joy in creating & savouring nature-inspired art.

Free at blots.substack.com/p/light-and-...

Done!

This is exquisite! I'm going to buy one right now...

I’ve been terrible at posting on here, but here’s my latest reduction linocut of waders; a common ringed plover, dunlin, and sanderling:)
#linoprint #birdart #printmaking

Rough sketch in walnut (brown) ink of a wet and misty moorland edge.

A rapid sketch in walnut ink of what the moor might have looked like the last time I was up there if it hadn't been enveloped in rain and cloud.

Brian Williams - Winter Dawn
#ShinHanga #Woodblock #Print #JapaneseArt #Ukiyo-e

For those who like to know: the Shiant Islands, between Skye and Lewis, NW Scotland. The nearest island is 1.5 km long, Adam Nicolson has written an excellent history/natural history of this tiny archipelago - Sea Room.

Watercolour, greys. Islands from the air on rough watercolour paper.

Watercolour islands in a sea of rough, handmade Two Rivers watercolour paper.

I added a page to my website that hints at the idea that I am interested in experimenting with artsy stuff when exploring landscapes with rocks and rivers zsylvester.github.io/art/

Pencil sketches of curlews in flight, showing a range of dynamic shapes.

Howling wind and rain, the moor half-hidden in cloud. Sketching curlews throwing shapes.

Thanks. I will take a slow look this evening.

Monochrome photo. A rock outcrop on open, snow-covered moorland. Thawing under a wet sky.

Ilkley Moor. The snow turns to rain.

Congratulations and best wishes for a bright and appreciative emergence into the world. I look forward to the revealing light.

My pleasure! My website might evoke a few more mountain memories: johnaltringham.co.uk

I was at my (very modest) peak when chalk on trad was controversial. I well remember the "Scottish HVS".

It certainly has some impressive lines, but I've yet to see climbers there. My climbing days are long gone.

Grand, love a bit of owl-talk. Tawny owls were regular crooners outside our bedroom window but not seen or heard for a while. Spring will bring the curlews.

Ha! I guessed as much, Scotland's finest.

Thanks, glad you like the engraving prints! Any of your top peaks among them?
I took the photo from the top of Sahale Mountain in the Cascades of Washington State. The mountain is...

Rugged mountain ridge with small glaciers falling from it between pinnacled ridges. Seen from a similar mountain ridge. Other mountains like them fade into the distance under a blue sky.

No snow, no swim, on that occasion.

Here's a real mystery mountain... taken in late spring, many years ago.

Coire Mhic Fhearchair, Beinn Eighe on a scorcher of a day, May 2025.

Share a photo of mountains that you've taken.

Prints in black ink of small wood engravings, irregular shapes no more than a few cm long or high. Island lighthouses, coasts, castles, mountains.

Prints in black ink of small wood engravings, irregular shapes no more than a few cm long or high. Bat, barnacles, tree, curlew, puffin and great northern diver.

Wood engraving loose ends - practice blocks, doodlings, explorations, bookmarks, etc.

Thanks! Good luck with your first blocks. I got hooked very quickly.