Screen printed Wall pieces by Eric Beaulieu (Left), Triina Linde, Alison Barrett, Kaitlyn Frolek, Dani Kohorst (Right)

I gave my third year screenprinting class an assignment to print on a 9×6’section of wall in one of the hallways at TRU. Casey combined an image painted on canvas with screened images that were wheat-pasted onto the wall. The ravens were converted into a continuous tone using Rasterbator. The lower part of the figure is painted onto the wall. The figure is slightly under life size. Great work Casey!

Tips for screenprinting from the VISA 251 Intro to Screenprinting Class

• Take the time to ensure that your registration tabs are perfect at the beginning
• Don’t use thick ink
• Double check that your positives are facing the correct way before exposing your screen
• Make sure how much ink you need for the print—try not to mix too much or too little
• Do not let your ink dry in your screen
• Use the techniques you are taught—trapping will make sure there are no gaps at the end to make a nicer print
• Know your techniques and materials—try everything once (screenprinting techniques only) and experiment with how the techniques work. You will find they work better in different situations
• A well detailed plan is a must.
• Be conscious that other people also work in the studio.  Act accordingly.
• Don’t rely on your arms’ brute strength when pulling squeegees, use the weight of your upper body and maintain a stable stance
• Remember to use a flood coat so the ink does not dry in the screen
• If you keep yourself organized and clean up, it helps. Always have what you need handy and CLEAN AS YOU GO
• Double check your registration before printing on good paper, it helps to have a bunch (how much is a bunch) of Mayfair paper that you can practice on to get it right
• The more you print, the better you can get
• The frosted Mylar can be re-used–you can wash off  or re-hydrate toner washes with ammonia
• Be thorough! Register your brains out, always check to make sure everyting is lined up right.
• Always have a rag ready for cleaning up spills
• Label your inks before you forget what is in the container
• Give yourself more time than you think you will need
• Don’t forget to tape or block out the margins
• Remember to place registration tabs on the backside of the prints
• Make sure the floor wax solution container is clean before re-sealing it  because it is hard to remove the lid
• Use emulsion sparingly—it doesn’t need a thick coating
• CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF
• Always make sure your screen is securely clamped and fastened
• Focus on squeegee angle and pressure to make consistent prints
• Start with less layers planned out and ‘play’ with the image along the way. It makes for less stressful and more creative printing
• Check to see that the floor wax block-out is not breaking down—and be prepared to use tape to address areas where it doesn’t cover
• Plan and organize before printing and have a lot of patience
• Do your registration correctly on the first copy
• Always fit the squeegee to the narrowest dimension of the screen—and keep it at least 2 ½ inches away from all edges
• If you are pulling the long way of the screen, put the clamps on the narrow length of the screen and not along the edges—That way the clamps will not create a difference in height when you pull the squeegee

I would love to have this blue jay in my collection. The B&B our group stayed at in Toronto has the most eclectic and interesting collection of oddities. It made our attendance at Printopolis just a little bit more interesting and exciting.

David Hoffos’ exhibition at MOCCA was also worth the trip even though it had nothing to do with printmaking.

For most of our group, the Drive by Press evening at OCAD was the highlight of the conference.

Spread the Ink  http://drivebypress.com/aboutus/

Greg Nanney’s presentation was inspiring, as was the portfolio of prints he shared with the audience. “Drive by Press is a traveling group of Art Carneys taking printmaking to places it has never been before!” check it out on facebook.

It was an event packed day at Printopolis, printmaking conference, in Toronto. The six students (pictured in the last post with Marnie Blair, instructor) walked to Open Studio and then to the AGO, stopping to watch steam roller printing at OCAD, and then we walked back passed Open Studio to the Glen Gould Auditorium for the Key-note speaker, Jose Roca. He spoke about the tensions between technical and conceptual aspects of printmaking (excerpt taken directly from conference hand book). His talk was short but interesting, after which we drank wine and then took the street car back to the B&B (pictured above is the view of the front door from inside). I would have posted pictures from the day but I left my camera behind at the studio$%#*&^!!. I will be returning tomorrow to retrieve it.

I can’t wait to see Brendan Tang’s work at the Gardiner tomorrow.

I assigned a project for third year screenprinting students to create a print that investigates guilty pleasure. This print is executed by printing images on the front and back side of translucent rice paper. The guilty pleasure is both revealed and obscured by the veil of the rice paper.  On the left is the print as viewed from the front. The image on the right is the print as it looks on the back side of the paper.

This evening I attended an art opening in the Thompson Rivers University gallery, Kamloops, BC. Two fourth year students, Megan Gamble and Bo Yeung, have been working without much sleep over the last week to create  a very ambitious installation. They spent the last several months collecting urban cast-offs and hoardings so that they could renew the materials by building an environment in the gallery.

The smell of sagebrush and dry leaves lures visitors to the exhibition. As I walked through the door of the gallery I encountered the fanciful scene of a river constructed out of broken mirrored glass. It was connected to a playground slide that was resting flat on the floor. To my left was a cosy small dwelling with two chairs, a trunk, a jar of pencils and a pencil sharpener (there were curled pencil shavings on the floor) and a vintage radio was resting on the windowsill spilling radio talk and sound into the room (I may escape to this room for a quiet moment over the next week).

The gallery space is full of delightful meanderings and passages that invite the viewer to enact a fanciful narrative as they walk, or pause,  in and around the space.  The exhibition is titled ‘Reckon’ and will be up until Friday 22 October,  when visitors are welcome to return and offer to take materials home with them to continue the process of renewing and re-purposing.

RECKON
Bo Yeung & Megan Gamble present:
An interactive installation comprised of salvaged materials from our community.

Opening Monday September 18th at 5:30pm. Lovely treats for the eyes & tummies, bring you’re friends & bring your Mommies.

Closing party Friday October 22nd at 5:30pm for
deconstructing  the interactive installation Reckon.
Come find what can be of use to you, and celebrate!