Variations : Masks and Multicolours - simple multilayer prints

At last a chance to experiment and have fun after the frustration of the previous exercise. I did this first batch of prints at Leeds Print Workshop using an etching press and Hawthorn 'stay open' inks. I used the process colours, yellow, cyan and magenta as well as indigo. The beauty of the process colours is that they are translucent so colour mixing occurs as layers are overprinted. They also don't tend to go muddy and make sludge brown after several layers of mixing. 

I started off by creating some masks by cutting figures out of magazines - I only had one of each figure so that limited the possibilities somewhat but I enjoyed moving the masks around and reversing them in a haphazard fashion and this created some exciting prints. I got so absorbed in the process I wasn't really recording what I was doing - just reacting to what was on the print when positioning subsequent layers - I would not be able to repeat these images again without putting a great deal of thought into how I had layered them the first time. However, I really like this way of working spontaneously rather than meticulously planning. 

Registration for subsequent layers of overprinting was achieved using a registration sheet marked with the size of the plate and the size of the paper. However - the accuracy of registration is variable from print to print - it seems no matter how careful I am in trying to place the paper I still can't consistently achieve accurate registration. I suspect this will take a lot of practice.

Overprinted masked print in process
yellow and indigo - the mask of the dancer
moved slightly leaving a white area

Overprinted masked print using only
process yellow - ghost print of
the first layer and then reversal of the
masks from the yellow and indigo print
printed using the yellow transferred to the
reversed mask

Multilayer print with the same masks in
process yellow, process magenta
and indigo with areas of white paper
showing

Multilayer print using the same colours
as above with ghost printing in indigo
achieved by reversing masks

On some of the images, oblique lines started to appear on the figures. It took me a while to work out where these had come from. Initially I thought tat I must have creased the mask as I placed it on the plate - but this was not the case. In fact, the lines had come from the ink on the magazine paper - the model in the photograph was standing behind a series of  mets railings on a staircase. This was an interesting development - adding an extra dimension to the masked print. 

A less successful print - the mask stuck
and had to be torn away (too much ink
for the thin magazine paper to cope with)
Oblique lines on the standing figure are
from the original magazine photograph 

I really like the texture on this print and the halo around the figures (although
this might actually be considered a less successful print precisely because
of what I like about it!) - these are 'ghost' images (not first pass prints) on
coated paper. 

Great colour mixing on this print - multilayering the translucent process colours
yellow, cyan and magenta

Next I played around with texture a little bit (more about texture in the next section). As I was using oil-based ink, when cleaning the plate I did not wipe it completely dry so that when rolling ink onto it the wet patches resisted the ink (in effect the opposite idea to a wax resist when using watercolours) - this created some interesting effects. I also tried wiping away ink and drawing into it - although this was less successful on this occasion - the ink was extremely tacky - it needed an additive to make it wipe better.  

Multilayer print with texture from
partial wiping of water resting oil based
ink plus masking and multilayers

Experiment with wiping, texturing and drawing into ink

Rolling a second contrasting colour directly onto the plate with the patches of ink from the resist after the water had dried gave a pleasing texture. I subsequently used masks in simple geometric shapes when overprinting. Reversing the shapes and overprinting several times resulted in some interesting effects with the edges of some shapes appearing more prominent than the body. Again with the process colours being designed for overprinting, the underlying texture showed through. 

Multilayer textured and masked monoprint. Registration is poor but I really like the texture from the
'water resist' (inculpate wiping away of water when cleaning the plate) and direct rolling of a second colour
(yellow) over this first layer

Multilayer masked monoprint - there is less texture on this one but I like the
red/cyan haloes of the geometric shapes on the yellow achieved by multiple
reversals of the masks and 'ghost printing' - registration is not great unfortunately

What I learnt

• I enjoy working in a spontaneous way with monoprint and developing the print in response to each layer
• Incompletely wiping water from the plate before rolling oil based ink creates an interesting 'resist' texture
• Multiple reversals of masks can create interesting effects
• Hawthorn 'stay open inks' really need an additive to wipe easily
• The ink from a printed mask (such as magazine photos) can transfer to your print
• Process colour inks are great for colour mixing with over-printing

Things to work on

• More ways of creating texture
• Registration still needs more work - designate one corner and always register to this or find another way of registering prints. 

Two Coloured Masked Monoprints: attempt 3

I still wasn't quite happy with my attempts at the two coloured masked monoprints - the last lot were reasonably well aligned but they were not even prints as I hadn't adjusted the press correctly. 

I chose to use the heron image again because it was smaller and I thought I would be more likely to be able to get even pressure over a smaller area. I was working at WYPW and they had some samples of hawthorn stay open inks in indigo and chartreuse green which I tried together and found that they gave a good contrast. I managed to get a more even print but because the ink was quite opaque I couldn't see where to place the masks relative to each other - it was of no help to create a registration sheet because the heron mask did not contact the edge of the plate at any point. I was still making offset prints. At this point I was getting quite frustrated and thinking that this was a ridiculously difficult exercise for the start of a level 1 course. 

I realised that I needed some help with this so I asked another printmaker for ideas. Mick suggested placing the mask on print - then positioning the plate on top and flipping the whole lot over to print while hoping that nothing moved. Eureka! Why didn't I think of that? This was a much more accurate way of lining things up - obviously there is always the risk that something will move while trying to flip the plate/paper/mask sandwich over but the results were much much better:

This print is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. The chartreuse background is not quite even and there is a finger mark in the corner. However at this point I had spent so much time on this particular exercise I really needed to move on so I decided to accept this one. 

I played around with a few ghost and multilayer prints and then cleared away to put a lid on this frustrating exercise. 

What I learnt:

• Ask for help if you need it !!!!!
• It is acceptable to position the plate over the paper then flip if you are struggling with alignment
• The indigo ink is lovely to work with - It can produce a very dark blue but in ghost prints it produces a lovely steely blue reminiscent of faded denim

Leeds Print Fair

On 6th November I visited Leeds Print Fair. There were numerous printmakers exhibiting and selling their prints. I looked at all of the stalls but spent relatively less time looking at the work of the screen printers and the letterpress stalls. I concentrated on printmaking techniques that are directly relevant to my course and other techniques which attract me such as etchings. Some of the artists were quite open and friendly others were more reserved . I enjoyed chatting to some of the artists and picking up tips.

There were some good examples of collagraph work by Jane Duke and Suzie MacKenzie. With Jane Duke's work the star-out feature was the fact that the plates seem to have been trimmed to a shape in keeping with the subject rather than using rectangular plates. 

Suzie Mackenzie's work construed of landscape with animals present. The textures she puts into the work are great as well as the colour combinations. However both of these artists were quite reserved and didn't really want to chat. I had a good chat with another artist (Robert Battams - I think although I didn't note down his name) He was working one. some very industrial looking collagraphs - it was a work in progress and he shared with me a bi about the process and showed me a couple of his collagraph plates which are things of beauty in their own right. I am filed with enthusiasm now to get on to the collagraph section of my course - although I am sure it isn't as easy as it looks. 

Cards Illustrating Collagraphs by S Mackenzie

I also introduced myself to Janis Goodman because I had stayed with a mutual friend of ours the night before and she encouraged me to do so. Janis started off as a printmaker by attending evening classes and fell in love with the technique of etching. I love the stark blackness of etchings . Her subject matter us often birds in the landscape - I particularly liked the design and composition of her prints depicting murmurations. 

Cards of etchings by Janis Goodman and
Lino cuts by Helen Roddie

There were also several artists working with lino cut at the fair, including Helen Roddie who produces complex linocuts with a botanical theme and Rachel Knowles whose lino prints also originate from a botanical theme. I was able to pick up some tips on how to get multiple layer lino prints to dry quicker between layers as after several layers they do seem to stay tacky for a very long time. 

Cath Brooke was the artist whose work I found most intriguing and she was very generous with her time in explaining her process. She is currently working mainly with industrial landscapes and her prints use a combination of drypoint, chine collé and monoprint. She is presenting a 'printmaker's toolkit' session at West Yorkshire Print Workshop in the near future which is a demonstration of her techniques so I have booked to attend that to get more of an insight into her process. 

Two Coloured Masked Monoprints : Attempt 2

My first attempt at this exercise was not a success so I tried again on my next trip to WYPW. This time I used the A3 sized cut out of a female figure. I chose purple and yellow to give a good contrast. 

I thought I was being clever by rolling a thin layer of ink and placing a mask under it to act as a guide - however I forgot to remove the second mask when I put this through the press and there was a second ghost image as the mask was thick enough to displace the thin monoprint plate. 

I tried again. The alignment still wasn't great and I felt that the purple background was too thin and uneven.

The next attempt was better although there was a halo of lighter purple around the figure - It is quite effective but I'm not sure whether that was the result of uneven inking of the plate or the result of me not adjusting the pressure on the press to a high enough level.

I tried reversing the colours - the alignment on this print wasn't as good as the one before - it is still a but 'hit and miss'. I prefer the purple background/yellow figure combination out of the two colourways.

As usual I played around with multilayer ghost prints before packing up but I was starting to feel despondent with this exercise and worrying that I would not be able to complete it to an adequate standard. 

First day at West Yorkshire Print Workshop

I had my induction session at West Yorkshire Print Workshop last week. Today was my first session in which I was 'let loose' to get to grips with the equipment without an instructor.

I had limited time as this was a morning session of two and a half hours before work. I decided to keep things simple and do some subtractive monoprints using only black ink (hawthorn 'stay open' ink). I used a thin perspex plate and, because I was not anticipating producing any masterpieces today I chose to print only onto newsprint to keep the costs down.

I first attempted a subtractive print based on one of my 'immigrant' sketches from my small sketchbook. The result had some interesting passages but there were some problems - I felt I had subtracted too much ink on one side and the print was quite light. Not as powerful as I would have liked for the imagery used.

I tried selectively re-inking certain areas and re-printing a ghost print. The ghost print was not impressive. It was really too light but would potentially serve as a base to work back into with other media.

Having had little success with the figurative drawing I decided to just go abstract with mark making for my next attempt. I re- inked the plate all over and splashed what I thought was white spirit onto the plate. Waited a while for it to eat into the ink and then blotted it off with more newsprint. It was only later on when talking to another printmaker that I realised I had used Lincoln wash by mistake. Nevertheless, the marks on the plate were quite exciting. I drew into the areas around the solvent marks and did some repetitive lines. I printed this onto dry cartridge paper. The result was far too light and the marks made by the solvent just weren't visible.

I tried again and this time I but a thicker layer of ink on the plate and printed straight away after blotting off the solvent rather than hanging around and drawing into the plate. The result was darker and there were some more interesting marks. However, it was only at this point that I noticed that it had printed much lighter on one side of the paper than the other. I realised that I had adjusted the pressure on the small etching press incorrectly and the pressure was much higher on one side than the other. I adjusted the pressure and tried again - this time I inked the plate and just drew a rapid continuous line drawing based on one of my sketchbook drawings of a sheep. The print showed that I still had not got the pressure equal.



I took the pressure completely off the press. Adjusted the printmakers blankets and re-established the pressure as high as I could manage, attempting to get the pressure even on both sides (this has to be done by feel on this particular press as there are no numbers on the bolts). I re-inked the plate and did another quick line drawing of a sheep which I printed as a bleed print (on paper slightly smaller than the large plate). The pressure and inking at the edges was much better but the print was still a bit thin at the centre. I don't know whether this was because there was insufficient ink in the centre or whether a bit more padding is needed at the centre.

Unfortunately, by this time I had to clean up so I came away somewhat frustrated that I had not produced any presentable prints. However, I was also satisfied that I had got more experience and was able to identify some press-related problems and find solutions without having someone standing by to advise me.

What I learnt:

• Pay close attention to the adjustment of the pressure on the etching press
• It would be good idea to print a trial print from an inked up plate of the same thickness as the one you will be using to check the pressure on the press is even
• The amount of in on the plate and the pressure of the press make a great deal of difference to the final result.

 

 

Project 3: Two Coloured Masked Monoprints- Attempt 1

I was due to participate in a workshop on drypoint at Artison in Masham on Friday 4th November. Unfortunately, the tutor Hester Cox was unwell on the day so the workshop was cancelled. I have rebooked for another one of Hester's courses next year. 

I had already travelled to Masham before the cancellation occurred so Gaynor and Sue at Artison invited me to use the printmaking workshop for the day. They have a small etching press and (oil based etching) ink, plates and paper were made available to me. So I thought I would take advantage of the offer and work on some of my coursework. 

I started off getting to grips with the press by doing some smaller versions of the refugee mother and child image I had worked on previously. I repeated the same motif in both an additive and a subtractive painterly fashion. I also took ghost prints and then worked into them with a drawing pen. These versions were somewhat more successful that when I tried working on a larger scale with these images but there is still room for significant improvement. 

I then moved on to make an attempt at the two coloured masked monoprints. 

What I did:

Unfortunately, there weren't any plates available that were large enough to take the templates I had made for the single colour monoprints. However, I had brought some images of birds with me because the subject of the cancelled workshop was 'beautiful birds in drypoint '. I quickly cut out masks based on a photograph of a heron because I loved the curve of it's neck which made for a strong silhouette. 

Before starting to print I drew around the positive and negative masks on a piece of graph paper as I thought that if I placed this template under the plate I would be able to decide where to place the masks on each plate. 

I placed the positive mask on one plate and took an impression of this in red. The red ink was quite lumpy and despite working it with a palette knife I couldn't get it to roll smoothly. However this did mean that when I placed the plate over the template I could see where to place the positive mask. 

I inked the second plate with a sap green which rolled out much more smoothly and was quite opaque. It was only on placing the negative mask on the second plate that I realised that the two plates were not exactly the same size. There was approximately a centimetre's difference in their lengths. My graph paper template was of no use when placed under the plate because the ink was opaque and I couldn't see through it. I ended up just having to take an educated guess where to place the masks. The resulting prints show varying degrees of offset and are not the smooth prints I was aiming for with the press because of the blobby red ink

Results:

What I learnt:

• Dodgy ink can sometimes make for interesting effects
• Eyeballing two coloured masked monoprints is not accurate
• Make sure you have two plates of the same size before you start
• Using a template under the plate to decide where to place you mask is of no use if you cannot see through your inked plate.

Things to learn and try:

• Try this exercise again but plan better and use plates which are the same size as each other
• Learn how to register the plates and masks better for this exercise

Gallery Visit: Jerwood Drawing Prize

On Sunday. I visited the Jerwood Drawing prize exhibition at the Jerwood Space in London.

I thoroughly enjoyed this exhibition and have picked out a few of the drawings to comment on. 

The winner of this years Jerwood Drawing prize was Solveig Settemsdal with a piece called 'Singularity' Click Here to Link to an excerpt from the video on the artist's website

The work is a video installation of white ink in gelatin of 9 minutes 27 seconds in duration. It is mesmeric. I usually find I want to walk away from video installations quite rapidly but this one drew me in and I lingered to watch it. The artist puts white ink into the gelatin and manipulates it on the opposite surface to the camera - so the action of the artist is only seen as movement of the ink. 

The suspension of the ink in the gelatin made it seem almost trapped. Vigorous movements were made and thus white lines were created in the three dimensional matrix making a constantly evolving form. The movements make the amorphous blob of ink look like something organic - a creature trying to escape from being trapped in the sticky gelatin. It also brought back to me memories of a film I recently saw called 'Under the Skin'. In the film an alien disguised as a beautiful young woman (Scarlet Johannsen) hunts her prey in Scotland. The prey are men who are lured in and end up suspended alive in a sticky gel while they are slowly digested. Quite a disturbing memory for this piece of work to evoke! However, despite these rather creepy associations in my mind, I found the three dimensional patterns of the white ink suspended in the gel very aesthetically pleasing and somewhat reminiscent of glass paperweights. 

At the end of the video sequence, the white ink appears to be sucked out of the gelatin into a black hole which fits along with the astronomical reference of the singularity.

This is what the catalogue says about the piece:

' A point appears in a perceived void. Slowly expanding, it's articulation grow increasingly deliberate; lines are created, crossed and bisected. The form is never still, never sets. Singularity explores a temporal and sculptural process of drawing in a fluid three dimensional space through the suspension of ink in cubes of gelatin. In constant transformation, the white mineral ink and the biological gelatin lattice initiate a balance between conscious intention and unconscious material process.'

I think that 'Singularity' is a truly deserving winner of the Jerwood Drawing Prize.

Two other works that evoked an emotional response in that they both made me do a 'double take' were 'Unsolemn Rituals' Amelie Barnathan and David Gardner's untitled piece. 

'Unsolemn rituals' was a winner of the student awards this year. It is a large scale drawing measuring 60-475cm executed in watercolour, coloured pen and acrylic ink. At first glance with its colour scheme of reds, baby pinks and lilacs and its illustrative style it looks like something that might be suitable for a children's book - however the subject matter is more disturbing. The interplay of the sugary pink colour and drawing style with the subject matter gave me jolt. 

Click here to link to an image of a section of the drawing

The drawing depicts young girls or women in various activities. They are pierced by arrows, they cut each other, serpents emerge from their vaginas, There is a pile of apparently dead young females emerging from the hollow of a tree. There is bondage and violence and a pool of red liquid (menstrual blood?). All of the people in the drawing are female. Some of the images are bizarre and nightmarish. I thought this drawing was about female sexuality and the nightmares of adolescence and coming of age. It was quite uncomfortable to look at. In fact the piece is about mass psychogenic illness. Here is what the artist says about it:

'My project is a study of mass psychogenic illness (MPI), a modern phenomenon of hysteria characterised by more than one person spontaneously developing hysterical physical and emotional symptoms. Cases of MPI are predominantly found in groups of pre teens and predominantly occur in segregated and secluded spaces like boarding schools. 

Symptoms include twitching, fainting, and other neurological symptoms. the schoolgirls present in my drawings evoke the ecstatic rituals of the Maenads madwoman of Ancient Greece, to the processions and Sabbaths of the witches. My work investigates the nuances of the female collective and the pressures of conforming in social environments. It explores female identity and sexuality, its common psyche set in adolescence with the different types of illnesses and disorders that can occur at that age.'

David Gardner's untitled work gave me similar jolt but for different reasons although I found the work ultimately somewhat less interesting that that of Amelie Barnathan's work (perhaps because I am female).This is a relatively large drawing 120 by 126.5cm in coloured pencil on paper.  As I walk around galleries I often get very close to to the drawings to try to see how they are made before I step back to get an overview. In this case I was looking very closely at the coloured pencil shapes which appeared to be very finely burnished. It wasn't until I stepped back that I realised that the shapes I'd been examining closely were phallic symbols some of which were shown ejaculating. I had an automatic reaction of distaste which may have been what the artist was aiming for. There were also various other graphic style drawings on the paper including a smiley face so looking very much like graffiti  or doodles on a school exercise book.

This is what the artist says about it: 

'I'm interested in how an idea behind a symbol can change completely over time. The Ancient Greeks and the Romans celebrated the image of the phallus, believing that it kept away the evil eye. It was adorned all over their cities. Today the image is loaded very differently, mostly avoided and hidden behind prudish embarrassment. However, we are all enticed by this image - even as school kids, we scribbled it on walls and textbooks.Through a simple line, we have communicated ideas about the phallus over 2000 (plus) years - my work seeks a dialogue between the ages.'

Despite this worthy aim, I can't help feeling repelled by the image (I am a clearly a product of my time and Victorian prudishness is an involuntary reaction!). However I also get the feeling that this isn't in fact really pushing any boundaries as the phallus is a recurring theme over the centuries. 

I am interested in different techniques of mark making so I spent quite some time looking at  Helen Thomas's Eight Day Draw No. 1 with my nose very close to the paper, trying to work out how it was made.  This is a very large scale drawing 150 x 238cm in graphite on paper. The drawing is dynamic with vigorous mark making. I looks as though a variety of graphite materials have been used including graphite sticks, graphite powder and water soluble graphite. There is also evidence of erasure and restatement. I love the energy of the mark making in this drawing.. The drawing seems to be based on natural forms and plant life I then read the entry in the catalogue by the artist:

'Eight day draw No.1 is one of two large scale drawings that are the result of a self initiated, time based drawing project that took place over eight days in March 2016. The materials are graphite powder, 0.5mm propelling pencil, various pencils, graphite sticks and erasers on paper. The exploratory and cumulative drawing process involved a series of exercises including: Marks informed by sketches made on the walk to the studio, drawing left handed, increasing and decreasing scale, lines spanning the paper etc.'

While we are on the subject of mark making I would also like to mention Richard McVetis' drawings. There are at the opposite end of the scale from Helen Thomas's work. I am attracted to Helen's work because of the energy of the mark making and I am attracted to McVetis' drawings for the opposite reason. They are small and quiet pieces and I can imaging myself going through the process of making something like these as a meditative process. I find repetitive mark making a soothing activity. The drawings consist of a square and a rectangle created in ink on squared paper. They are created from tiny marks made very close together to give an irregular density and a feeling of texture. McVetis says:

'My work reflects a preoccupation with the repetitive nature of process, exploring the subtle differences that emerge through ritualistic and habitual mark making. In addition, the mapping of space and marking time and form are central themes. Ideas are often developed in response to, or created specifically to a moment. The drawings created explore how objects, materials and places, through the action of hands, bare (sic) witness to the passing of time.'

Click Here to view one of McVetsis' drawings

Jade Chorkulab's video combined the audio of people being interviewed about what they would do if they only had an hour to live with real time rapid line drawings representing their answers alongside. This was a simple idea but quite compelling. Click here to view a still from the video . The artist herself is Thai and the work is a reflection of Buddhist philosophy that by preparing for death by meditation to reduce earthly attachments we can approach death with equanimity - without anxiety or an unquiet mind. 

Rachel Bacon's 'Emotional Landscape' looks like a beaten and manipulated piece of metal from a distance because of hits shiny surface scored with black lines. In fact this work is composed of a crumpled and scored piece of paper which has been intensively covered with graphite. The thickly covered paper thus takes on a metallic sheen. By working in such a fastidious and prolonged manner on crumpled paper - something that would normally discarded, she transforms it into something that resembles a more valuable commodity (metal) and it becomes a piece of work worthy of display in a gallery. Her work therefore plays with the idea of what is valuable and what is not.