mental layers

ed. art is pleased to present new monotypes by Madeleine Aleman. As in her previous works, Madeleine Aleman practices meditation and puts herself in hypnagogue states to access mental layers other than intellect and craftsmanship. This is how she describes her process:

- My ritual when making the monotypes is that I first set out all the material: plates, ink, brushes and paper. Then I go into meditation for a while before I start adding color. I choose a limited palette based on what the meditation has given: the mood, a picture, a memory or a dream that has emerged. The images that appear on the plate are often reflections and energy threads between heaven and earth, a kind of landscape.

The difference between painting on canvas and on plate, to print a monotype, lies mainly in the printing process itself, says Madeleine Aleman:

- The element of surprise - I never know how the result will be - depends on many factors: whether the ink is opaque or transparent, how and in what order I have applied the ink to the plate, how much pressure the printing press is set to, and the choice of paper.

- Another difference is that I can use the ink residues on the plate from one print to create the next image. In this way, I often make series of monotypes.