Laser cut
I’ve created a positive and a negative in wood and Lino and will be doing the same in Perspex all using the same image so I can see how differently the materials behave and if they pick up different details.
I found it created a much deeper indentation in the Lino
Above image laser cut lino
but I like the fine and subtle detail on the wood. It seems a shame to cover them in ink.
Above image laser cut wood
I’m going to create blind embossing with them, to try and pick up all the scorch marks before they get stained with ink.
Embossing
I first discovered embossing by accident when I put to much pressure on a linocut and instead of a beautiful smooth print I got intense colour and a raised surface.
I wanted to experiment with this process using different printing plates and varying pressure. I felt it would be a good way to give people a visual idea of my everyday life.
Above image, blind embossed collagraph using 300g paper
I left my paper to soak for for 25min and left my plate and paper under the nipping press for 1min.
I used 300g paper and this gave me a medium embossed effect, so Justin the print technician suggested I increased it to 450g Zerkall paper, this has created a clear embossing and the weight of the paper holds its shape.
Above image embossed print using 400g paper, from laser cut wood
My laser cut wood and linocuts worked really well and picked up all the scorch marks and variation in tone, unfortunately I left one of my prints under the nipping press for to long and half the paper dried to the Lino. I thought I would get a better embossing the longer I left it but this was not the case but I do like the distressed look of the piece.
Above image laser cut lino, embossed print that got stuck to paper
Lino emboss and pigment
Because I had liked the effect of the ash on my prints, the printing technician suggested I try adding pigments.
I sprinkled and rubbed different coloured pigment into my laser cut Lino, I thought I had put to much on but when I printed it I got a full embossing with a hint of colour, it was surprising how subtle these prints were.
Above image laser cut lino print using pigments
I feel embossing is a technique that will be really important in my Advanced practice, They are very subtle and some people find it difficult to see any definition in the image and that’s exactly what I wanted to achieve. I want people to experience my every day life through art.
MonoType printing 1-2-1
Another artist I contacted during this module was Fiona Fouhy who creates atmospheric large scale mono prints, I like the range of tone and marks she has in her work.
I met up with her in London for 1-2-1 tuition in the hopes of increasing the scale of my work and adding more drama to my mono prints.
During the day I tried several different techniques,
The first Extender technique -
starting with what would be the lightest tone I built layers of ink on the plate using fabric, creased paper etc, I printed this and using a rag etc to apply ink I added mid tones on the same plate and printed this layer, then I added darker tones and finely rolled over the whole thing with a colour that has extender in it, I selected areas to highlight and wiped away the ink and placed small pieces of paper or fabric to lift the ink off and create interesting tones then I printed the whole thing
Above image monoprint using extender
I created four mono prints using this method. I need longer to perfect this technique but I feel once I’m at home I could slowly build up interesting layers.
I then increased the scale of my work, I inked up an A1 plate with a roller and added black with a smaller roller. I cut shapes out of paper and laid them on the plate, printed it on newsprint because with this method it was the ghost print I was most interested in.
I then took off the paper block outs and turned them over and laid them somewhere else on the plate so that I would get the ghost of the original print and the strong colour from the up turned paper but unfortunately the pressure had been altered in between prints and was not set accurately so this print did not pick up as much colour or detail as I would have liked but I did get a wide variety of marks and shades.
Above image mono type using paper shapes to block out areas
Next I worked with the reductive method where I inked up a plate and then took ink away from selected areas I started by using a variety of different sized rollers to make geometric shapes, I started to distress the piece by taking ink away, at first I was being very selective but then I picked up some scrim and made some big bold marks and printed it, I also did a ghost print.
Above image reductive mono type
I made another reductive print that had remnants of all the previous prints and I inked up certain areas then at the last minute I sprinkled degree wash and moved it around my plate, this takes away any ink where it touches and leaves you with pure white which can be worked back into the print whilst this is still wet, I liked experimenting with the degree wash and feel it has lots of potential to distress work.
Above monotype created using Degree wash
It was good to create large scale work and I would like to combine monoType and mono-printing with other printing techniques like collagraph, so you have the intense colour from the mono print combined with the texture of the collagraph.
Ive done lots of monotype printing before but this was the first time I’ve used degree wash or extender and it was exciting to be taught new techniques and I can now add more depth and tone to my monotypes.
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