It’s been a year of many firsts for the leaf ghost project, but this entry is a last. I’ve decided to stop using Noodler’s Ink. I used Dragon’s Napalm, Black and Blue, and Black for this ghost, and when I was done I threw the lot of it out (along with a bottle of Sequoia Green).
My primary motivation for the move was the controversy surrounding the labeling of some of the company’s products. I was also disappointed in Noodler’s response to the problem. A lot of its renaming struck me as passive-agressively petulant. I don’t know these folks personally, so for all I know they may not actually be malicious right wingers. But at the very least this whole mess represents a lapse in taste that drags politics into the realm of art supplies.
I’m a big fan of political art. I’m even capable of appreciating the design skills of artists with whom I ideologically disagree. But when I sit down in my creative space to work on something peaceful and meditative such as a leaf ghost, I don’t want my art supplies reminding me of the tense, contentious mess all around us constantly that I’m trying to shut out for at least a little while.
That said, I admit I’ve also had technical issues with Noodler’s stuff. It’s designed for fountain pens, which might have something to do with the trouble I’ve had getting it to flow evenly using dip nibs. And though I don’t know this for a fact, I suspect it’s best suited for paper types other than the mix media sketchbook I’m using for most entries in the leaf ghost series.
If nothing else, I get annoyed with its tendency to smear. The green in particular took forever to dry. This one wasn’t too bad. I got a little smudging from the red, and the black would have made a mess if I hadn’t saved it for last and been careful to avoid getting it on my hands while I was working.
It’s a shame, too. The label art on the Noodler’s Ink I bought was what first drew me to it. The colors are good (assuming one uses it for pen work rather than applying it with a brush). This should have been much better than it was.
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