Wildacres Retreat Wildacres, North Carolina
My annual week at art camp is sadly over. I will miss my fellow artists; new friends and old friends. It is wonderful to be immersed in a rich environment of art, artists and art-making; collaborations are inevitable, and force one from their comfort zone. I have been attending Ringling College of Art's continuing ed summer program for 11 years.
My printmaking class was made up of a range of art students; young and old, professional and new explorers. By day two, we are the "printmakers"... we cut, chisel, carve, scratch, ink and press. There are four types of printmaking; Intalio (printing the ink below the surface; etching, drypoint), Relief (printing the ink above the surface; woodcut, linocut collagraph), Planographic (lithography; printing the ink on a flat surface by means of the principle that grease attracts grease and repels water) and stencil (silk screen, serigraphy; forcing ink through a design of tiny holes onto your surface). We explored 3 of them through linocuts, drypoint, and monoprints. I enjoying working with smaller projects this year which allowed for more exploration and experimentation. I must be getting old...my latest printing session this year was only till 2:30am, in years past I have found myself there hard at work till 5:00 am.
Printmaking is elusive and nearly impossible to truly control; this is what I find so appealing about the medium. One missed step or slip of the hand and your "masterpiece" might make a background for some mixed media artwork, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The next time you see art made via a printmaking process...show some love!
My printmaking class was made up of a range of art students; young and old, professional and new explorers. By day two, we are the "printmakers"... we cut, chisel, carve, scratch, ink and press. There are four types of printmaking; Intalio (printing the ink below the surface; etching, drypoint), Relief (printing the ink above the surface; woodcut, linocut collagraph), Planographic (lithography; printing the ink on a flat surface by means of the principle that grease attracts grease and repels water) and stencil (silk screen, serigraphy; forcing ink through a design of tiny holes onto your surface). We explored 3 of them through linocuts, drypoint, and monoprints. I enjoying working with smaller projects this year which allowed for more exploration and experimentation. I must be getting old...my latest printing session this year was only till 2:30am, in years past I have found myself there hard at work till 5:00 am.
Printmaking is elusive and nearly impossible to truly control; this is what I find so appealing about the medium. One missed step or slip of the hand and your "masterpiece" might make a background for some mixed media artwork, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The next time you see art made via a printmaking process...show some love!
