Secrets - Part Deux

So another secret project is enough off the ground to talk about.
Secret project 4 as I have said is printmaking based. Taking inspiration from (as usual) postcards and touristic imagery and using a monoprinting process called drypoint I have recreated a selection of my drawings into black and white prints.

It took a little while to hit on drypoint as a good process for what I wanted. I tried a woodcut but the result was too blocky. Trying to recreate a fine line using a relief process is not at all easy. However, drypoint is a process where you etch lines into a sheet of perspex (or metal, but perspex is cheaper and easier) using a needle like implement. The ink then sits in the grooves you have made and is transferred to the paper when pressure is applied.

Original Photograph

So why make prints of drawings? Well I love the drawings, but sometimes I'd also like to see them with colour. Now I'd never want to colour them as they are because it would dirty the concepts and reasons for them having among other things, black skies. However I was particularly intrigued by the process of printing and it's ability to recreate images on many surfaces. So taking inspiration from my drawings I created drypoint plates from them.

After thought, I hit on the idea of taking my postcard imagery back to it's roots. This meant creating postcard sized prints of drawings that were originally created to subvert the postcard image. The size aspect of my work has always been part of the subversion, the paintings are giant postcards and while the drawings probably take more from tourist posters and their scale is less of an issue, they also have links with postcards and as such are also far too large to be realistically postcards. But it was important that they really resembled postcards because I had found another way other than size to subvert the postcard.

Drawing version

My initial idea took some time to pull off. I knew that I wanted to play with the postcard itself rather than the associated imagery. I already had the imagery, but what else was there to subvert that would also fit in with the desire to take them back to postcard size. The answer seemed obvious when it hit me, material, however while printing on normal paper was no issue and produced some really interesting results printing on anything else I had in mind was fraught with difficulties. However in the end I managed to produce a good result printing onto tissue paper.

So why tissue paper? Well most importantly was the aspect of fragility inherent with it. Tissue is so easy to tear and crumple, and doesn't stand up well to damage of any kind. It would not cope with being posted, transported, put through machines or any or all weathers. It is also quite transparent and so trying to write on the back would obscure and alter the image.

Drypoint Plate

As I said I wanted to colour these images as well. I really wanted to see what effect reintroducing colour into an initially monochromatic drawing would have. It also seemed natural to add colour and make it resemble traditional postcards even more. Initially I have chosen to hand colour as I could control the colour better than I could using printing processes (I am a painter after all). I wanted to use drawing inks to maintain transparency and depth/clarity of colour however it also meant that the inks were not light fast At first I thought this was a problem but actually it added another dimension of fragility to the postcard print. I did know that I wanted the colouring to be as much as possible block colour, tone and line being defined by the print. As such the colour of the sky was an issue, do I have it black or do I introduce a stormy apocalyptic sky? However I realised that strangely these skies should be blue, unlike all my other works. Blue skies meant that block colour was easy and they looked even more like traditional postcards.

Print onto paper

Like all traditional printing techniques you don't get exactly the same print twice. With drypoint I have been getting quite a variation in strength of line. Each time you print you need to reapply the ink and prepare the plate. As such the surface sometimes has more ink left and sometimes less. No prints are the same, especially so when you also start to hand colour them.

The first attempt at hand colouring was almost disastrous as I didn't realise that the shellac based ink would dry and stick to the paper underneath the print. As such I had to very carefully peel the print off the paper. Since then I paint sections fast, move the image frequently and dry them hanging on a rudimentary washing line.

Millennium Dome Print on Tissue

So why have I only started doing prints? Well the last time I had access to a good print studio was back at university (2003-06). Back then, while I picked up a few techniques, I was also only just understanding what this obsession with postcards was and was concentrating on getting the paintings right. I can do this now because I have found the wonderful resource that is the Printmaking Studio at South Hill Park Arts Centre in Bracknell, Berkshire. I signed up to a course because I needed the experience of full time printmakers to assist me. Currently the Artist Printmakers in Residence are Chris Smith and Holly Drewett but I've mainly been working with Holly, who is a star even if she keeps trying to get me to print in colour :P

So future plans for the prints.

Well as you may have seen from the website already I have prints on there right now. I plan to release a new one every month so stay tuned. I need to look further at ways to frame and exhibit them and I am thinking about other print process other than drypoint that I might use. These would have to be processes like drypoint to achieve anything a finish that is anything like the original drawing, but could be etching or solarplate.

Final Coloured Version