Mad Mari

So as well as working on a copper mezzotint plate at Andrew Baldwin’s weekend course at Trefeglwys Studios last weekend, there was also time to prepare an aluminium plate with coffee lift and spit bite. I used another of my drawings of the traditional Welsh Mari Lwyd from one of my sketchbooks. The Mari LwydContinue reading “Mad Mari”

The Double Drop

And the last thing I did with my mezzotint plate last weekend was a Double Drop! Trefeglwys Studio tutor, Andrew Baldwin, wanted us to get some experience of doing different things with our intaglio plates, not just printing in black. The Double Drop is a way of overprinting one colour over another to achieve aContinue reading “The Double Drop”

The Final Proof

I worked on my Mari Lwyd mezzotint plate again, after doing the first state print on the second morning of the weekend course I did at Trefeglwys Print Studio. I needed to burnish the highlights a lot more and lighten the Mari’s feet. Then onto another proof print which turned out to be the finalContinue reading “The Final Proof”

The First State

    I spent the first day of my weekend etching workshop at Trefeglwys Print Studio developing a mezzotint plate. With two other printmakers, I worked until quite late and got up early ready for day 2. I was ready to print the first state – which is the very first print off a plate,Continue reading “The First State”

Scraping And Burnishing

I spent a very busy and creative weekend with two other printmakers from Swansea at Andrew Baldwin’s Trefeglwys Print Studio in mid-Wales, studying his non-toxic intaglio printmaking methods. We started with the ‘faux mezzotint’ technique, using his own make of etching ground to create a pitted surface, like a mezzotint plate and then, after transferringContinue reading “Scraping And Burnishing”

Doodlenotes

Husb and I recently went to a talk at Swansea’s excellent Galerie Simpson by Owen Hatherley, journalist, author, social commentator and an inspiration behind the recent Austerity Nostalgia exhibition. It was fascinating and I wanted to make notes to remind me. I had my red-embroidered-covered-lined-notebook with me and a nice Faber Castell drawing pen. I thinkContinue reading “Doodlenotes”

Coffee And Spit Bite

I’m going to be at Swansea Print Workshop tomorrow and I’ll be preparing some aluminium plates ready for some coffee bite etching, using some of my drawings of Neolithic stone monuments for inspiration. Here’s a blog I did a while back about this technique, which was invented by Andrew Baldwin of Aberystwyth University, an expertContinue reading “Coffee And Spit Bite”

Copper And Stone

I etched two plates at the recent course at Swansea Print Workshop with Andrew Baldwin of Trefeglwys Print Studio, one aluminium, one copper. I’ve just done a first proof from the copper plate. I used a hardground and the traditional technique of drawing into it with an etching needle than adding aquatint. Andrew demonstrated howContinue reading “Copper And Stone”

The First Proof!

I spent this afternoon at an Open Access session at Swansea Print Workshop, ready to take a first proof from my coffee-lift-spit-bite aluminium etching plate, developed at last weekend’s BIG Etching course with Andrew Baldwin. I chose a soft textured Somerset paper from St. Cuthbert’s Mill and Intaglio Printmaker’s Drypoint Shop Mix etching ink. It’sContinue reading “The First Proof!”

Coffee And Spit Bite

More geeky printmaking stuff from last weekend’s B.I.G. Etching course with Andrew Baldwin at Swansea Print Workshop. The aluminium plate was degreased with whiting and soy sauce to get it ready for drawing on with instant coffee solution. I forgot to take a photo of mine being drawn, but Andrew Baldwin has kindly lent meContinue reading “Coffee And Spit Bite”