Maple Avenue Evening High School - Progress Yearbook (Los Angeles, CA)

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a set of blocks to print them in different color schemes and note the sur- prising different moods so expressed. ' . Block printing, briefly, consists of drawing a design and tracing it with brush and ink on tracing paper and glueing this paper to the block, or drawing directly on the block, wood or linoleum, then cutting away with knife or tools all except that which is intended to print. This is charged with color and impression made by pressure or rubbing. Woodblock prints inthe early part of the fourteenth century grew out of the need of the people for pictures. Oil paintings, water colors or minia- tures, which then were in vogue, were too expensive for most people. Another factor was the need of the churches to disseminate religious knowledge. First Biblical scenes were cut and colored by hand with gaudy colors. Then illustrations for educational books, of which at first the let- tering was done by handg next the lettering was cut into block, too, and thus whole plates were made. Albrecht Durer, the great German master of the fifteenth century, carried woodcutting to a high development with his series of blocks, all in black and white. The Italians added color blocks and increased the size of blocks to proportions of paintings. There is one extant measuring six feet by two feet. It is said to be the works of these early Italian block artists that were carried by missionaries to Japan and started the Japanese making Woodblock prints. It is of interest that the German block artists are now accused of being too much influenced by the Japanese. Woodcuts were in wide use as illustrations, gradually evolving into fine wood engravings, and as photo-engraving was invented and perfected, the woodblocks were relegated to obscurity and only -an occasional artist thought to express himself in it. Now, seven hundred years later, in the reaction against the indiscrim- inate eyes of the photoengraving process, and the far too prolific emit- ings of the multicolor presses, and in the maelstrom and chaos of the art isms, it is being revived again, to act as a stabilizer, and revive art with comprehensive simplicity and strength. Page Fifty

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blocks with lines or strong inassesg next' some black line ' blocks serve as key blocks to a set of color, blocks and serve to 'bind the coinl' position and' carry the drawingg the Japanese prints are made in this Way. Passion, a character sketch, block print Then there are color blocks in which 'masses of color and value play against one another Without any lines to bind them. It is interesting with K Q Page Forty-nine

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Gxy-Acetylene Weding and Cutting i One of the courses offered in the Maple Avenue School that has been in popular demand is that of Welding and Cutting by oxygen-acetylene process. Classes in this branch of the mietal industry are conducted every night in the week and -are always filled to capacity. During recent years this type of welding has supplanted the more la- borious form of hammer welding formerly used. Not only does it perform the function of the former method but it is used to advantage in joining plates and pipe sections where rivets were formerly employed. Like all advanced systems of operation, this method of cutting and welding makes a much better job than the old and is immeasurably faster. Another important feature is that almost all kinds of metal can be treated and difficult, partially hidden places can be repaired that would be abso- lutely impossible of treatment in the old way. The units most in demand in the school are those in steel, cast iron and aluminum. Many of the students have taken the course in order to qualify as pipe-line cutters and Welders largely employedby the oil and pipeline transportation companies. The average man who has some knowledge of metals can qualify in the unit of pipe and steel welding in twenty weeks-two hours per evening- five evenings per week. The instruction is given in both theory and prac- tice. ' Wages for pipe-line welders range from 56.60 to 310.00 per day. A About 2571 of the men who have been served in this department have attended for instruction in torch operation alone while another 25W have wanted the work pertaining to their particular lines of commercial Weld- ing. The remaining 50Z, are men who want to learn steel and pipe-line welding owing to extraordinary expansion in the development of public utilities throughout the state and the ever-increasing operations in oil. Best evidence of the thoroughness and practicability of the instruction given may be found in the fact that many of the large contractors and shop owners who have employed graduates from this department have X Page Fifty-one 3 .