On the 24th September I was in transit through London on my way back to Italy. I took a couple of hours for myself and visited the National Original Print Exhibition at Bankside Gallery. The gallery is on the the South Bank of the Thames right next to Tate Modern and the exhibition was free of charge. Below is the statement from the gallery website about the exhibition which is an annual event and about the organisation which holds it - The Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers.
"The National Original Print Exhibition, established by the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers (RE), is an international open submission exhibition celebrating the best of contemporary printmaking. As an art organisation run by artists, the RE is constantly working to create long-term opportunities for artists and promote printmaking to a wider audience."
I did a first look around the room and then went around with my notebook and concentrated on certain works which attracted me as well as looking specifically for examples of monoprint.
The catalogue can be viewed online by clicking Here. However, in many cases the photographs in the catalogue do not do justice to the real prints as they are small in scale and also sometimes miss some of the subtleties of colour and layering of ink.
I had an emotional response to 'Not Even The Crumbs From My Table' a drypoint by Derek Mawudoku. (page 10/11 in the online catalogue - second image from the the bottom). This is a haunting image. Figures with sunken eyes (skeletal -looking) are behind a larger figure sitting at a table with a plate and a wine glass. The seated figure is large and spreads himself wide to block the clawing hand of the figure behind him who is desperately trying to get at the glass or plate on the table. The larger seated figure looks defiantly and directly out at the viewer making us complicit in the action. The blackness of the image suits the darkness of the subject and the scratchiness of the line work suits the clawing action of the hand of the starving man. This can be interpreted as a metaphor for the larger phenomenon of first world greed and third world poverty.
I especially liked the light effects in Grainne Dowling's etching and aquatint '7am Dublin'. (page 26 in the online catalogue) The combination of the silhouetted figures and shadows of the bridge with the very bright light reflecting off the pavement brilliantly capture the atmosphere of a chilly but bright morning light.
'Passing By' a wood engraving by Peter S Smith (page 9 of the online catalogue - bottom right) interested me. Although small in scale, it effectively conveyed the image of a human shadow passing the kerb and pavement by using abstract shapes each made up of tiny marks. The variety of marks employed in such small piece was impressive. Wood engraving allows for precision. There was stippling, hatching, meshing, parallel wavy lines.
Laura Rosser's woodcut 'GD*1Kanazawa' (Page 16-17) is a much larger scale work and is constructed almost entirely from vertical lines of varying thickness, spacing and overlap. It is a night scene - mainly black but with vertical lines of the architecture catching the light in places. The interior of the house is illuminated and the light escapes through vertical slatted blinds at the windows. The architectural features and the title suggest that this scene may be set in Japan. There are four figures in the interior. Three are grouped around a table - I cant quite make out whether they are having a meal served to them or whether they are playing a game. The fourth figure is further back and off to the right and has their head turned towards us - do they see us looking in or are they looking back towards the other group? There is also the impression of a fifth figure further back in the background which can almost but not quite be made out. The skill and planning which must have gone in to planning and executing this image are terrifying! However whet is also skillful is the manipulation of the viewer - looking at the scene I feel voyeuristic - like a stalker peeping in to someone's private world- or someone who has been excluded and looks longingly in through the window. The feel of this reminds me of Edward Hopper's Nighthawks or the feeling I got looking at some of Patrick Caulfield's illuminated interiors (from the outside).
In a small white rectangle to the right of the series of windows there is a series of marks - this may be a Japanese word - however to me it looks rather like the face of a cartoon teddy bear. This somewhat breaks the tension of the piece and once you notice it you can't un-notice it! I wonder whether this was intentional?
Another print which I was drawn to was 'Life Lines' by Ross Loveday (page 19 of the online catalogue). This was a monochrome abstract print of medium size (24x24cm) using a combination of drypoint and carborundum. I love the deep velvety blackness of the print and the fine wispy scratchiness of the lines. It almost looks like cranes at the mouth of a port. I am inspired to try out some drypoint and also playing about with some carborundum as I like the darkness and quality of line and texture in this print.
Impressive for its sheer size was the linocut 'Wild Awake' by Ade Adesina This can be viewed here on the artist's website and on page 8 of the online catalogue. This print measures 110 x 160 cm. It depicts what looks like a post-apocalyptic landscape with a parched, dried out earth some formations within which resemble the stones of the giant's causeway. There are Baobab trees dotted about and there appear to be whales flying in the sky - perhaps they have taken to the sky because of the lack of water in the seas? This could be a moment about environmental issues and man's destruction of the landscape. The scale of this piece made me think about the practicalities of printing something like this. It would have required great patience first of all to carve the lino by hand. Inking up such a large surface evenly would also be a challenge. You would need a very large printing press to print a piece this size - did he use a steamroller?
So far all of the prints I have commented on have been monochrome - I seem to be drawn to the dark velvety blackness of the printing ink. Now to move on to something a bit more colourful and search out the monoprints in the exhibition:
'Sea Forts' by Theresa Gadsby- Mourner uses a combination of monoprint and etching - the photograph in the catalogue does not do justice to the subtlety of this print. It looks as though the monprint has been built up in several layers in subtle gradations of grey and yellows and I think it has been printed on handmade Japanese paper. The etching component is brought in for the architectural features of these strange forts on legs out in the sea - I have since discovered that these were structures used during WWII and were then largely abandoned - they look a bit like the aliens from the war of the world about to stride onto the shore and claim it for themselves. Despite being a small and unassuming print I spent quite a while looking at this one - I love its subtle colours and textures.
The largest monoprint in the show and occupying a commanding position at the end of the room was 'Orange September' an abstract monoprint by Morgan Doyle. Its colour scheme had a lot of impact with orange , red, grey and black its main colours. As a whole I am sorry to say that I found it a bit overwhelming and it wasn't to my taste - However, I did spend quite along time up close to it trying to decipher the many different ways of mark making that the artist had employed. There were areas that looked like decalcomania where something flat was applied t thick ink and pulled away leaving a characteristic texture. Marks were made by scratching and scraping into the ink and by wiping ink away. There were spatters of ink and possibly some backdrawing on top. Lots of things to try here.
The catalogue can be viewed online by clicking Here. However, in many cases the photographs in the catalogue do not do justice to the real prints as they are small in scale and also sometimes miss some of the subtleties of colour and layering of ink.
I had an emotional response to 'Not Even The Crumbs From My Table' a drypoint by Derek Mawudoku. (page 10/11 in the online catalogue - second image from the the bottom). This is a haunting image. Figures with sunken eyes (skeletal -looking) are behind a larger figure sitting at a table with a plate and a wine glass. The seated figure is large and spreads himself wide to block the clawing hand of the figure behind him who is desperately trying to get at the glass or plate on the table. The larger seated figure looks defiantly and directly out at the viewer making us complicit in the action. The blackness of the image suits the darkness of the subject and the scratchiness of the line work suits the clawing action of the hand of the starving man. This can be interpreted as a metaphor for the larger phenomenon of first world greed and third world poverty.
I especially liked the light effects in Grainne Dowling's etching and aquatint '7am Dublin'. (page 26 in the online catalogue) The combination of the silhouetted figures and shadows of the bridge with the very bright light reflecting off the pavement brilliantly capture the atmosphere of a chilly but bright morning light.
'Passing By' a wood engraving by Peter S Smith (page 9 of the online catalogue - bottom right) interested me. Although small in scale, it effectively conveyed the image of a human shadow passing the kerb and pavement by using abstract shapes each made up of tiny marks. The variety of marks employed in such small piece was impressive. Wood engraving allows for precision. There was stippling, hatching, meshing, parallel wavy lines.
Laura Rosser's woodcut 'GD*1Kanazawa' (Page 16-17) is a much larger scale work and is constructed almost entirely from vertical lines of varying thickness, spacing and overlap. It is a night scene - mainly black but with vertical lines of the architecture catching the light in places. The interior of the house is illuminated and the light escapes through vertical slatted blinds at the windows. The architectural features and the title suggest that this scene may be set in Japan. There are four figures in the interior. Three are grouped around a table - I cant quite make out whether they are having a meal served to them or whether they are playing a game. The fourth figure is further back and off to the right and has their head turned towards us - do they see us looking in or are they looking back towards the other group? There is also the impression of a fifth figure further back in the background which can almost but not quite be made out. The skill and planning which must have gone in to planning and executing this image are terrifying! However whet is also skillful is the manipulation of the viewer - looking at the scene I feel voyeuristic - like a stalker peeping in to someone's private world- or someone who has been excluded and looks longingly in through the window. The feel of this reminds me of Edward Hopper's Nighthawks or the feeling I got looking at some of Patrick Caulfield's illuminated interiors (from the outside).
In a small white rectangle to the right of the series of windows there is a series of marks - this may be a Japanese word - however to me it looks rather like the face of a cartoon teddy bear. This somewhat breaks the tension of the piece and once you notice it you can't un-notice it! I wonder whether this was intentional?
Another print which I was drawn to was 'Life Lines' by Ross Loveday (page 19 of the online catalogue). This was a monochrome abstract print of medium size (24x24cm) using a combination of drypoint and carborundum. I love the deep velvety blackness of the print and the fine wispy scratchiness of the lines. It almost looks like cranes at the mouth of a port. I am inspired to try out some drypoint and also playing about with some carborundum as I like the darkness and quality of line and texture in this print.
Impressive for its sheer size was the linocut 'Wild Awake' by Ade Adesina This can be viewed here on the artist's website and on page 8 of the online catalogue. This print measures 110 x 160 cm. It depicts what looks like a post-apocalyptic landscape with a parched, dried out earth some formations within which resemble the stones of the giant's causeway. There are Baobab trees dotted about and there appear to be whales flying in the sky - perhaps they have taken to the sky because of the lack of water in the seas? This could be a moment about environmental issues and man's destruction of the landscape. The scale of this piece made me think about the practicalities of printing something like this. It would have required great patience first of all to carve the lino by hand. Inking up such a large surface evenly would also be a challenge. You would need a very large printing press to print a piece this size - did he use a steamroller?
So far all of the prints I have commented on have been monochrome - I seem to be drawn to the dark velvety blackness of the printing ink. Now to move on to something a bit more colourful and search out the monoprints in the exhibition:
'Sea Forts' by Theresa Gadsby- Mourner uses a combination of monoprint and etching - the photograph in the catalogue does not do justice to the subtlety of this print. It looks as though the monprint has been built up in several layers in subtle gradations of grey and yellows and I think it has been printed on handmade Japanese paper. The etching component is brought in for the architectural features of these strange forts on legs out in the sea - I have since discovered that these were structures used during WWII and were then largely abandoned - they look a bit like the aliens from the war of the world about to stride onto the shore and claim it for themselves. Despite being a small and unassuming print I spent quite a while looking at this one - I love its subtle colours and textures.
The largest monoprint in the show and occupying a commanding position at the end of the room was 'Orange September' an abstract monoprint by Morgan Doyle. Its colour scheme had a lot of impact with orange , red, grey and black its main colours. As a whole I am sorry to say that I found it a bit overwhelming and it wasn't to my taste - However, I did spend quite along time up close to it trying to decipher the many different ways of mark making that the artist had employed. There were areas that looked like decalcomania where something flat was applied t thick ink and pulled away leaving a characteristic texture. Marks were made by scratching and scraping into the ink and by wiping ink away. There were spatters of ink and possibly some backdrawing on top. Lots of things to try here.
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