Sketch Book

I decided to revisit some ideas from a few weeks ago, I drew out the phrase “do you wonder”.

Playing around with colour and placement and ideas for own lettering.

Which then became this. I like the simplicity of it and the naive quality that using coloured pencils brings to the piece.

I then put it through photoshop, layering and multiplying

More layering and manipulating colours and sizing.

I do like mixing the hand drawn with digital, and I think this is a process that I want to do more of. The same with print, I like taking the print into digital and making the handmade qualities a feature.

Letterpress Workshop

I recently attended a letterpress workshop at The Letterpress collective here in Bristol. I was in my element, in this working studio based in Bristol’s old city. Also I knew I was in the right place when I spotted the record player and massive collection of vinyl! The team are very knowledgeable about print and Bristol’s rich printing history. They were able to tell me things about my Grandad’s (a former printer) employers that I hadn’t heard before. With so much type to choose from, it was an exciting day of printmaking. I also enjoyed hearing about where some of the type came from and the printers they previously belonged to. I got to set lead type and use an Adana press for the first time. I have been eyeing them up on eBay ever since! In the afternoon I was let loose on the woodblock, what a treat that was, I used a Swiss press which is very similar to the Vandercook. Here are some of my prints.

The Letterpress Collective studio and some of their recent work.

Setting the type for the Adana.

Scenes from the studio

Woodblock action

Prints.

Prints from the woodblock. On reflection I don’t like the question mark. There were very few question marks available, I had to look hard to find some. I think they were expensive, so I will potentially cut them out of my poster.

View from the studio part 3.

More sketchbook work playing with old letterpress prints and repurposing them. I decided to add/play with some colourful shapes, this lead me on to thinking about what I could do with the finished piece? I decided to work on it digitally in photoshop, layering, enlarging playing with colour and texture. I like to take the prints into digital, I want to see those original handmade qualities/textures and imperfections come through. I really like the outcome, I think it is a design I may revisit and see where I can take it. Could it be used as a pattern for a product, maybe something linked to play equipment?

Letterpress print, paper tape and coloured paper.

The image worked on digitally. I love the colours and the textures.

Thinking about where else I could take this design?

The view from the studio part 2.

Some more of my recent makes.

Cutting out letters from some of my previous prints. I wanted to play around with placement and the wall space. I like how the colour changes on the white wall, I also like the idea of using a corner wall as part of the composition.

Again thinking about how I can use text within this space. Thinking about text outside of the poster format.

Sketchbook

Here is a little sketchbook tour of some recent makes/works in progress. Some ideas I was working on in preparation for taking into letterpress.

Making use of studio time, playing with old prints. Does lettering/text have to be legible?

I listened to a talk given by musician/producer/artist/theorist, Brian Eno from 2015. It was that years John Peel lecture for the annual radio festival. I remember hearing it at the time and wanted to revisit it for this body of work. Having worked with children much of it resonates with me. I typed a tiny section up with my typewriter looking for bits of texts I could pull out for printing. I used wax crayons to write “let’s imagine”. I chose crayons as they are used manly by children when they first start mark making and drawing. I was thinking of the different interpretations of “let’s imagine “. We could imagine and go into a pretend world, or we can think of progress and better things to come.

Some notes/workings for letterpress printing ideas.

Level 3 ; The view from the studio.

Building on my work from the end of level 2, I want to continue exploring ideas around play and art and how the two can intertwine. I am interested in text as the raw material, how I can use text and where I can take it. Here are some things I have made so far.

Repurposing a letterpress print from last years work. Turning it into a collage, back to basics allowing myself to play.

Taking the image into photoshop and playing around with it. Playing with space,colour and layers.

Another letterpress collage, playing with space. I went back to old prints as I’ve been thinking a lot about how I make art and the impact on the environment. I don’t want to be wasteful and I want to think carefully about how I can make things in a considerate way.

Working on this one digitally too. It reminds me of a puzzle. I’m really interested in space and the impact it can have on a piece.

Summer Sketchbook

Here are some makes I have been doing away from my course, but they also link to my work for uni. Planning ahead and keeping things ticking over during the summer, when I have no access to print facilities or a studio. The work is very much on the Lo-fi, but no less enjoyable.

Collage playing with colour/textures, ripping paper instead of cutting. Inspired by raw art/street galleries, that ripped billboard aesthetic.

Incorporating text, again looking at ripped billboards/fly posters for inspiration.

More text/ colour and movement

Making stamps and printing. Vey low tech.

Using bits of old prints and collage scraps then working on them digitally. This is something I love to experiment with, taking the analogue and mixing it with the digital.

Riso Workshop

After trying some riso at home kits, I was excited to be able to attend an in person workshop at Spike Print run by artist Jess Bugler. Jess is very knowledgeable about the process and was able to show us some experimental approaches. Here are some pictures of my prints.

Creating collaged layers for the print using tracing paper as the top layer and white paper as the bottom layer. Checking the work lines up.

Prints on the drying rack. I loved experimenting with different coloured paper to see how this changes the look of the print.

Those textures !! Love the subtlety of this one.

This is one of my favourite prints. The textures and colours worked really well.

Back to playing with shapes! Such an inspiring workshop and I’m keen to do more riso printing in the future.

Concepts Part 3

Idea for a children’s playground, an invitation to play.

I really like the idea of incorporating art into children’s spaces. A positive prompt for children and their grown ups.

Mock up for billboard in the community. Spreading positive invitations to play, using text to prompt conversation.mock up of skate park. Initially I was thinking about ideas for a gallery setting, but the idea behind this work is about making it more accessible to a wider audience. Messages and positive prompts that I want to be seen in the community to prompt ideas and conversation.

Concepts Part 2.

Following on from my last post here are some ideas for my public table tennis tables.

Keeping it simple, collage lettering and interesting colours/palette. An invitation to play.

Table tennis using my letterpress design.

Changing the colours of the table. Thinking about making equipment less intimidating and more inviting particularly to people who aren’t really into table tennis!

Using text in a playful way.

Blown up letters and pattern to make the table more appealing.