Transport Themed print afternoon at Toitu

Sunday afternoon was spent with a creative group of people at Toitu Settlers Museum printmaking. I didn't have time to make a handout before the class so here are some notes on materials etc....

INK - we used oil based Flint Ink and Charbonnel Paynes Grey. We also used some cheap oil paint - Maries brand - Prussian blue - as our blue. Oil paints can be used to tint etching inks. I got the tube we used tube from Pete's Emporium in Wellington.

  

For adding graphic lines and extra colour we used water soluble caran d'ache crayons.

We used MULL, (Art Zone) which had been washed to soften it a little to wipe the ink out of plates. Some websites/books refer to this as tartlan. I also experiment with other fabrics to try and save $ - some washed cross stitch fabrics seem to work ok. Alternatively you can starch baby muslin.

 Imagery was sourced from the Toitu Settlers collection, from old patents and the wonderful airship was from http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.co.nz/  If you are not familiar with this site I am sure you will be amazed at the work Karen Watson puts into it and how generous she is.  We used solar plate and images had been pre -exposed onto these from imagery lazer printed out on OHP.  Tone was added to the plates by the double exposure technique - using a dot matrix screen for 90 seconds.

Margaret printed up the ink palette at the end of the day

Janeen addded collage elements

  

 Background plates were made by 1.inking up a flat surface roller using ink which had some transparency ink added. 2. Intaglio printing (wiping up with mull) plates made of a cardboard base, painted with gesso and sealed with shellac. I often apply gesso over 'failed' solar plates and they make for fantastic backgrounds as some of the original matrix shows through and adds interesting surprises.

Plans of the train Josephine

Clean stuff - baby oil. If you accidently get some ink on your hands dust your hands with talcum powder, it helps stop transferring the ink onto paper. Oil residue can be cleaned up with a spray of water with a dash of detergent in it.
Baby wipes - ever handy in the print studio.

We used 'doofers' to handle paper with - these are just small pieces of heavy mylar folded in half. 

Want to know more about printmaking in NZ?  http://cpcanz.org.nz/   http://nzprintmakers.blogspot.co.nz/

Some suppliers:
Flint Ink, gesso and shellac - Art Zone http://www.art-zone.co.nz/catalog.php?cat=11
Heavy mylar (I think it is not actually called mylar but cannot remember the actual name. The heavy weight has good spring and can also be used for drypoint etching) - Miller Studios, Dunedin
OHP  Warehouse Stationery I buy it by the pack full 3M Transparency Film but it can also be purchased individually from Print Shops.
Sheet Mounting adhesive (acid free)- Jac - and printmaking paper available from Kaia at Southern Papers http://www.finda.co.nz/business/listing/qv5t/southern-paper-products/
Printmaking presses - Chris Fersterer