
I will be selling original prints, paintings and gifts at the Art All Day: Winter Edition on 20 th November 2021.
Further details: https://cottononmcr.com/cotton-on-mcr-art-all-dayer-winter-edition/
I will be selling original prints, paintings and gifts at the Art All Day: Winter Edition on 20 th November 2021.
Further details: https://cottononmcr.com/cotton-on-mcr-art-all-dayer-winter-edition/
I will be selling original prints, paintings and gifts at the Art All Day: Winter Edition on 20 th November 2021.
Further details: https://cottononmcr.com/cotton-on-mcr-art-all-dayer-winter-edition/
I have been busy this weekend working on an edition of 25 etching prints for this year’s twenty twenty hotbed press print exchange.
The print is called “The cage” and is a etching aquatint and sugar lift print.
Size: 20 cm x 20 cm.
Printed on Fabriano paper.
I currently have 3 prints in this year’s Macclesfield Open which is an online exhibition supporting the East Cheshire Hospice. The exhibition is on until 31st October 2021. Please check out: http://www.maccopen.org.uk/maccopen/Home.html
Over the weekend, I took part in a large drypoint print workshop with a small group of artist/printmakers.
My objective was to create a large map in drypoint depicting landmarks of Stockport. I had never printed anything larger than about a3 size in print form before and my last large print was a drypoint of the viaduct using a metal plate. This time around, the printing plate would be flexible plastic sheeting which was 75 cm x 55 cm in size.
I decided on the idea of a map sometime ago and knowing that a 2-day large printmaking workshop was going ahead, I ensured I booked a place as soon as I got the notice.
I began by prepping the map by creating a printed template in reverse that I had sourced a day before the workshop. I used a combination of Photoshop Elements and PowerPoint to tile the large map and print off sections onto manageable a4 paper prints so I could tape them together afterwards.
On Saturday, day 1 of the workshop, I added reversed text and images of landmarks which I etched into the plate using etching tools from roulettes to diamond point tools to get different textures and patterns.
I placed the template I had created underneath the plastic printing plate while I etched the design onto the plastic.
The process took me approximately 9 hours to prepare the plate (1.5 days). I had to carefully placed where all the text and images of the landmarks would go.
Finally, on day 2, I could ink up and print my plate with the assistant of my friend Alan Birch, using a large etching press which we had hired out for the day from an artist studio down the road in Waterfoot, Rossendale called ‘Valley Studios’ only a few minutes travel from Prospect Studios.
I created an artist proof print (AP) using cartridge paper and then managed to print off my first good print on Fabriano paper.
I reckon there are another seven prints I could produce from the plate before it wears out.
The process was long and challenging but the results were very pleasing indeed and well worth the time taken.
Here are some photos taken of the printed map.
This is an etching aquatint print I created early on in the project which I seem to have not shared before in this blog.
I used a combination of printing inks with black ink printed first, then leaving the remaining black ink on the plate, I then inked up blue ink and printed again to get the desired effect of deep dark shadows and lines with the black ink and light highlighted areas with blue ink.
Here are a set of Collograph prints based on the cage at Lyme Park using materials such as cardboard, carborundum and embossed wallpaper.
Today, I started a brand new etching aquatint print depicting the Arden Arms pub inspired by a pen sketch. This image shows the first proof print.
On Saturday, I completed my print of the Mersey river and Regent House etching aquatint. Here are two versions of the print; one in black ink and the other in sepia.
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