Mono printing week 3

This week was working on different ways to directly use the stencil on the geli plate or use the print to finish off applying a direct stencil to an almost finished print.  I have an idea on one I want to finish off but for this posting of my blog I will just upload an exercise we did putting down black ink first on the plate, then applying the stencil.  Then using several picks ups of the black ink to remove it from the plate to leave a clean background.  This gives you several different values of a shaped image.  I then applied ink with the brayer carefully over the applied stencils. In this case, it was just local grasses but I was happy with the effect.  So i did a few to make a series of similar prints.  I personally think they all need another layer of something else to go over the grasses, but was happy with the look.  What do you think?

Making Marks for Monoprinting

This week we are making marks with found stencils and using "treasures" that may be all around us to see what we can use them for apart from their obvious uses.  I used muslin cloth, great for showing the weave of fabric, hessian stencil and netting, lace, marks from cut glass, metal, testing and trying all different things.  Some I thought would be great, were not.  Others I did not think would work, worked well, so always learning.  I will have to try to make some more marks on the weekend.  Lots of experimenting for sure.

10 Prints of Shape and Favourite 4 - End of Week 2 Monotype Printing

This print session I stuck to the focus of 10 prints of the same shape and elements and then selected my best 4.  Every session I print, I learn so much.  I have a small light brayer but it needs some practice by the user!  Lovely and light but getting the lines out of the printed geli plate is needing more work.  Still using watercolour paints at the moment until my ink and brayer order arrives.  Happy with the simplicity of these prints.  I am very happy with the lady cut-out shape and love the shadow print of her in green with the other faces watching her.  Images like this create your own observatory questions of what it is meant to mean or exhibit?  In my opinion here - nothing but a beautiful shape admired by faces with no distinguishing features - like a model on a catwalk perhaps.  Enjoy!

 

Week 2 Monoprinting in one session

Time was not on my side this week, so I sort of incorporated all the requirements of the video classes into one session doing several different stencils and elements and types of prints with a bit of thought as to composition and structure.  I had hoped the lady would work better but she kept rolling up on me making it difficult to print.  I was happy using the feather as is already has the fine shape and went well with her I thought.  Later I saw the head shape and cut that out and tried a few creative things to put in the head space and at 1am called it a night but it was fun!  I am really enjoying the processes involved and have a lot more respect for the art.  It is harder to get it looking the way you want it than it seems, trust me!

More monotype with found stencils

Had another go at my found stencils last night and decided I am not so keen on shape as yet.  Loving the detail of prints.  I will source some more interesting shapes and try to do contrasting shape on shape images, then detail with detail.  Also going to try more contrast.  Time to turn over my geli plate I think as the stencils have left some dents in the plate.  Okay for now, just learning and practicing so all good.  Still water colour artist paints in use while I wait for mine to turn up and big brayer instead of small one.  Someone on the Facebook page of our class thought that the bigger brayer would be easier and yes it does cover more area but is also heavier and not as agile as the small one.  Pictures are below -

Week 1 of Monotype Printing

Having lots of fun with the monotype printing course.  The first week we made the "geli plate" and got our studio area set up right, then learning to use the brayer (supposed to be a 2" brayer but all I could get was a 6" brayer).  So I am experimenting with what I have and not with what I should have.  I have put in an order online as our local Art Supply store did not have any of the right things I wanted.  The first print was experimenting with shapes of cut out leaves and threads.   I then tried a few found elements and had a lot more fun.  Here are a couple of pictures.  Today's lesson will be more on finding elements we like, leaves, feathers, etc.  I do like the detailed picture the best.  Basically you do a shaped impression first, then remove the elements and take a print of the detail of those prints.  I will have lots of little hand made gift wrap by the time I am finished ready for Christmas so perhaps small items this year hee hee.  I even tried a shape and a detail image on my own bush grass papers.  Pictures at the bottom of blog.

 

 

Online Monotype Printing Course

Pretty excited to have started an online course in making Monotypes run by an American printer Linda Germain.  Making a gelatine and glycerine "geli" plate tonight and learning all the tricks to mono printing without a press.  It goes for 6 weeks and each day we get one task to complete.  There are students from all over the world - Scotland, America, Norway, 3 from Australia and England.  Lots of experienced artists, bookbinders, printers and mixed media artists, so keen to learn and incorporate this into my own paper making pursuits, books and journals.  I will upload pictures as I go.  We also have a Facebook Group to share ideas and do's and don'ts so should be fun to see.  Great to see bookbinding whiz Natalie in our art store who helped me with my supplies.  Happy Creating! 

Mono-printing E-Course

Very excited to be doing a 6 week online mono-printing workshop with Linda Germain from America, at the moment.  Just started and so far have made my "geli plate" and today I got some clear boards to use for the printing and to sit the geli plate on.  Here is a picture of the geli plate.  I had to reconstitute the geli plate last night as the first attempt was too dense.  More water and heat fixed it as well as using the muslin cloth to hold back the fine bubbles/froth from clouding the mix. 

Tonight I will set up my studio space and do some printing tomorrow as there are a lot of bugs at night at our house and I don't want to include them in my prints!  Lighting is best in the day also.  I will post up some trial prints and see how it develops over the next 6 weeks.  I am getting lots of great ideas for journal covers and cards etc. 

Journal Bindings at the Daly

Had a lovely weekend at the Daly River staying at Perry's On The Daly and met up with Judi and Julie to now bind up their denim papers into leather journals.  It was a great day to teach with the wind outside the caravan gusting and us inside punching holes and stitching pages together to make their own journals.  Here are some pictures from their efforts.  So proud of them and they are as happy as ever with their whole experience.

Denim Delicacies for the Paper Enthusiast