organisation: During the printmaking course this semester, I expanded my creative thinking and learned a range of new printmaking techniques. Many of my designs were based of nature and i got a few images for the prints of the internet. We produced prints using etching, lino, monoprint, potato print, and frottage techniques. The first print we examined was the potato print, which was created by carving out the form using cookie cutters and pressing the paint-and-paper combination onto paper. Since the mono print had to be completed quickly, we rolled black paint onto a plastic sheet, removed the paint layer with a q-tip, and then pressed the sheet of paper on top of your design. Printing the pattern you wish to duplicate first and taping it behind your etching material are the initial steps in the etching process. Make sure to apply firm pressure as you trace and engrave over the pattern using an etching tool. Proceeding to the printing station, you would apply a dollop of paint onto the engraving and use a scraper to fill it in. Roll the etching over some moist paper after bringing it to the press. The method of lino printing was enjoyable; you would select your design and use carbon paper to draw it onto the lino. Mark the areas where you were faltering with a sharpie. Next, use the lino tools to carve into the lino.
what worked?
i think most of my final artworks turned out well but for some pieces it took a few tries to make it look good. One of my favourite designs I’ve finished were the frottages, we walked around the school finding textured surfaces and using a pencil to gently outliine the surfaces. We made very interesting and abstract pieces of art out of this which ended up looking pretty cool.
what didnt work?
when working on mono prints the paint dried out really fast which created random dots on the final product so it wasn’t as clean as i wanted it to be, and finding the right pressure to apply when creating the mono prints.
what i learnt?
During class this semester i have learnt many more skills and techniques of printmaking and have improved my creative thinking to make better artwork. i also had to use a lot of patients because usually the first trial would not turn out as well and i have learnt how to improve each print so the final print would turn out well. Overall, my experience with this class was positive as i have learnt many different skills and techniques i did not have before i started this class.