A blog about Stockport landmarks by artist/printmaker Neil Robinson which follows a printmaking project depicting the diverse architectural styles of my hometown both new and old.
I have just updated the layout of my printmaking blog on WordPress and am now using the “Independent Publisher 2” theme. The new layout displays archived posts by month and is easier to view. I really like this new layout and can now display the site logo.
Today, I have been reviewing prints I have worked on in the last year and added them to my catalogue. I will be updating the gallery pages soon on this blog.
By the way, here is a list of the remaining subjects I will be creating prints for in 2022;
I had a good day at the Art All Dayer on Saturday 20th November in Manchester. There was a steady stream of visitors throughout the day around 800 I believe in total visited the event. I sold two etchings and also had a chance to visit some of the other store holders that were present in the hall at Hallé St. Peter’s, Ancoats. The day gave me some ideas on displaying work and also what prices I should charge for my work.
Next month, I will be taking part in a Art fair in Rochdale.
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.
Printing plate 75 x 55 cms
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.
Map of Stockport (Proof drypoint on cartridge paper)Map of Stockport (close-up)Map of Stockport (close-up)Map of Stockport (close-up of title)
Stockport In Print 
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