bloom
a process book
Catherine Ho
To new beginnings...
Introduction I came into MICA with the intention of producing a story that had been on my mind for the past five years. My biggest trial would be its completion. Afterwards, anything would become possible. There was much to do in preparation. Before coming to graduate school, it felt like I was festering. I was consumed by self doubt. The first year was the chance to fortify my will and direction. I knew I needed to quiet this inner voice. This needed time, direction, and a great deal of self analysis. The endless possibilities in stories has always been a constant fascination. Books have been used to teach literacy, explain phenomenons, construct an experience, and create lifelong memories. It is fascinating how this simple medium has such power. The earliest form of communication was imagery. Mesopotamia, one of the earliest if not the first, civilization
had a glorious abundance of illustrations throughout their city walls and objects. The Egyptian alphabet of hieroglyphs, considered one of the first true writing forms, consisted of small images. The Neolithic Yangshao culture of China had drawn on pottery that are believed to contain the precursory marks of Chinese script. All of these forms contained a narrative - a universal language. My introduction to illustration may not have started so far back. It began with long hours spent at the local public library next to my elementary school. While the popular children’s
books were full of great big pops of color, the giant book of Silverstein’s poems and illustrations became my greatest comfort. The curiosity it inspired and the many spot illustrations, these didn’t restrict imagination. In fact, they provided a stepping block onto a crazy adventure. A gravitation towards similar works lead to more authorillustrators with an eccentric narrative. They had a vision, their creations were explanations of their experiences.
Process & Inspiration What did I love so much about these types of works and why were they so appealing? It was because their worlds were so rich and enchanting. I wanted to create such an opening. To provide just enough imagery that would solidify characters and let the reader take them off on their own. To do this, I had to believe my characters were real before anyone else would, I had to trust in them. That was the most important thing I learned and understood. The first year at MICA was a great help. By exploring through various mediums and taking on projects with my own process, I began to understand myself. In addition, extra classes strengthened my characters and provided great stimulating questions on how I was going to approach becoming a world-builder. By completing each oncoming project, an selfunderstanding developed about the
extent of my abilities. This created a smooth transition into the thesis year. I found things I liked, and things I did not like so much. This was true in regards to pervasive styles and aesthetics. The constant analysis became a great exercise in making decisive choices. As a bonus, a stronger self-awareness arose. For thesis, the book I planned is heavily based on childhood aesthetics. I wanted to create an experience. The works of Edward Gorey, Shel Silverstein, Arthur Rackham, Alan E. Cober, etc.. provided great inspiration. These midcentury illustrators worked exceptionally in black and white, some of them were also amazing narrators. Looking at these illustrators, lead to another interest I had towards textures. Specifically ones created in traditional etchings and through different printmaking processes. At my other university, my wood relief printmaking classes lead to a reaffirmation that I still loved and preferred finer detail. Thus, the decision for this thesis book ended up with the most simple tool: a pen. The honesty and pureness of ink has always been an attractive means. For a while there was
a short deviation towards creating with collages of graphite and digital. In the end, a simple ink pen is the perfect tool.
Objects of Inspiration :
Thus, The Story of Herman began.
THE STORY OF HERMAN V.3 - HAPPY ENDING Cat Ho 1 Herman lived alone. 2 His best friend in the world was Max. But Max lived far away with his father, a botanist. Together they lived in Sisig village with many others. Dr. Night read to Max every night. Max was very smart. 3 When the doctor was out, they were usually at Herman’s home on Potage Bay. Picking food, telling stories, playing pretend. Herman and Max were the best of friends. 4 One day, Herman woke up really early. 5 They met on the middle point of the forest and the beach like usual. But when they got to the shore, there was a GIANT SHIPWRECK. Max had never seen these strange cans before. 6 Max watched as Herman opened one and dumped all
of it in his mouth. Herman always ate a lot. A lot, a lot. “Max, you should try some. This is really good.” “I don’t think you should eat it,” warned Max, “we don’t know what this is.” 7 Herman’s face started losing color and soon turned white. “You should sit and rest. I will be back soon with help,” said Max. 8 Max ran into the forest to find help. In Sisig Village, he saw Rocky and Anna playing with Ms. Scarlet like usual. “Please come, something is wrong with Herman,” Max told them. 9 “Herman is strange. He has no fur and his skin peels off. You are his only friend,”sniffed Anna. “What is wrong with Herman?” asked Rocky. “I don’t know,” said Max. “We will come and see,” said Rocky and he pulled Anna along. 10 They looked for Herman. “All of these are empty.. he must have been very hungry,” said Max as he picked up one of the cans. “He must have gone home. Let’s go, it is getting late,” said Anna.
11 They headed back to Sisig Village. Suddenly, a huge figure loomed over them and snatched Rocky! “What... is that.. ” Anna cried, “wait.. is it Herman?!” 12 Ms. Scarlet found them running back and asked what was wrong. “I don’t know, I don’t know..” stammered Max. “Herman took Rocky!” Anna shouted. “Children, be calm we will solve this. I will notify the elders, and we will find Rocky,” Ms. Scarlet said reassuringly. She started penning a letter for Chip the duck to take to the elders. 13 Max watched the villagers form a search party. 14 He had a bad feeling .. What had his best friend become? He went home and searched Doctor Night’s books for answers. 15 Maybe .. just maybe … thought Max as he gathered ingredients. This will fix Herman. Max starting packing for the long journey.
16 He hurried into the darkness as the search party was returning. Were there fewer of them ..? 17 Deeper into the forest, Max looked for the tallest tree. 18 He climbed to the very top and blew the conch horn he had brought. Herman appeared. 19 “Herman, this will help!” Max threw the potion into Herman’s slightly open gigantic jaw. 20 Herman lunged at Max. Herman tripped. His belly hit a large rock as he fell. 21 Max jumped as Herman’s body shook the ground. He heard a loud gurgle. 22 “I don’t feel so good, Max.” groaned Herman. And then he opened his mouth and everything came out.
“Rocky!!” shouted Anna as she ran over to her brother. 23 Max jumped out of the way and watched as Herman shrunk.. smaller.. and smaller. “Herman? Are you feeling better?” Max approached carefully. Herman rubbed his tummy and smiled. “I do. I feel much better.” Max helped him up. 24 “I knew you’d come back,” Max said. And then they went home.
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I learned to be a better editor.
There were many hurdles to go through. Guest critics really helped to filter out the unnecessary and clarify drafts. All were very helpful and different. Some helped with artwork more than with text. In the end, I realized that having the story concrete was the most important first step. And all the edits were worth it. It is possible that the story will have more changes in the future and I want to make it as best as possible. As the book reached its final stages, production had to be taken into consideration. Initially, a print-on-demand option was planned. However, at the risk of receiving something that I was unsure of lead to choosing other options. In the end, I handmade my book and it came out to be much more satisfying.
Of course there was a lot of trial and error with materials.
Drafts
After the thesis exhibition, another reproduction process had to be considered for the upcoming MoCCA festival. The book was reformatted into a mini version and became even more precious. They ended up being well-received at the festival.
Fox Tales
surface pattern series The Fox Tales surface pattern design collection was a side project. It stemmed from the stress of constant narrative revisions and was meant to be a small break. This play with exploration of visual and conceptual advantages to patterning lead to a series of another narrative work form. By combining the idea of traditional toile patterning and the pop of digital color with really happy animals, I ended up creating another world with this character. I was looking at Mary Blair, Grandma Moses, Maira Kalman, Yelena Bryksenkova, and several other well-known and new contemporary illustrators who used paint to great effect. They were inspiring in their use of selective color palettes to convey an atmospheric mood which attracted a strong narrative element I was looking to enrich my personal work with. The way they used various shapes and exaggerated composition was so imaginative.
This style of patterning revolved around characters I would draw for fun. It was meant to be a playful project. The doodles of happy life-loving animals were finally put to some use! On the daily they appeared and stories began to develop. It was then that work inspired by these characters developed into the cohesive series called Fox Tales.
Thesis Exhibition The show was from March 27, 2015 - April 13, 2015 and during those days I discovered yet another fascinating project. There were two large murals in opposite corners planned. Somehow, the thought of never having done large drawings / paintings before didn’t cross my mind. I guess I was too excited at the opportunity to work with the large space. I created an environment for each body of work. For The Story of Herman, Max’s room became human-sized proportions. I drew Max on the wall to activate the space and attract viewers. This experience was perhaps one of the most rewarding moments I will take away from MICA. It lead me to discover that I also love working on huge pieces! After creating Max, I worked on the Fox Tales wall and that was another great moment for me too. I had been painting the fox all year
long digitally. Being able to take up a brush with thick wall paint and lay it on was amazing. There is something about the tactile feel of paint that cannot be replaced. Even though I painted everything in the same flat style, just using by using wall paint added an extra dimension. It felt as if the fox was physically on the wall, in the place, and people could touch it. If I had not attempted these murals, I would probably never have this experience in our small studio space.
As this year comes to an end, I am still changing. Now I am looking to combine and expand. Something old, something new. I am very excited about the future. There have been opportunities coming up and great reactions from people who have seen my work. A great experience was being able to participate at the MoCCA fest where I started testing the marketability of my work. Initially I didn’t plan to create 40 small books but the reception was very positive. This truly became a possibility, a venue for me to share my stories. Now I am looking for a press to produce my work so that I can spend more time on stories. In the meantime, I have opened up an online store. On the side, my new work is slowly being introduced to a great following that has been with me for a few years. There are people I have met through the internet who have been truly gracious and inviting. Future collaborations are in the works and more things will be sent out. The internet is a great and ever expanding place. There are no limits.
Currently I am: - featured on Baltimore Contemporary Art and Brown Paper Bag - working on another Light Grey Art Lab gallery project that will be up in a few months
- will be featured on Season 3 of Artworks by the Maryland Public Television - looking for a printing press for The Story of Herman (it has sold over 50 copies!) - starting a new book tentatively named Tom and Red - working to get freelance as well as teaching opportunities.
Thank you Dad, Mom, Brother, and Alvin for everything. Many thanks to Chad Beckerman, Chip Wass, Ed Briant, Kelly Rand, David Plunkert, Marcos Chin, Neil Swaab, Guiseppe Catellano, Jude Buffum, Harry Campbell, Rachael Cole, Kim Hall, Calista Brill, and Shelly Spector for their priceless advice and insight. Countless thanks towards Whitney Sherman, Jaime Zollars, Daniel Krall, Rebecca Bradley, and Sam Lacombe for the endless support and guidance. Thank you to my classmates for their gracious help not only in desperate times of need. It will be greatly missed
Now on to the next chapter...