Ad-Free Blog
Last summer I shared with you the Mather Institute art program that was available for residents in Illinois.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
This year they introduced a second kit for Printmaking which I signed up for last Fall. These kits are for releasing creativity, learning, and sharing in a senior environment. I know I'm happiest when I'm doing something creative at anytime...and this is the program's goal, creativity and well-being for seniors.
Here's the kit for 7 weeks minus my colored pencils which I dug out and some stuff from my junk drawer: screws, string, q-tips, toothpicks to add to the collection.
Contents of the box:
Instruction sheet for 8 projects
Sketchbook of paper
plastic sheet for inking
a brayer
Speedball water-based acrylic ink in black
craft paint, red, blue, and yellow
plastic gloves
paintbrush
packets of gel (like jello) for mixing for a later project
I also added to my table:
A spray bottle of water, tissue, paper towels, a plastic placemat to work on, tin foil for braying ink plate, colored pencils, string, screws, nails, toothpicks and lots of q-tips, for today's project of Mono-prints.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
I got ahead of myself and brought out my soft/crayon type pencils, knowing these would not break down under the water based ink.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
Here's a closer look at some of the supplies. The paper isn't totally smooth, but with a very light texture.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
Coloring some of the paper was an ambitious idea....a scribbled scene vaguely tropical.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
The right one was just blocking out colors ...for what I thought could be Pansies.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
The clear plastic square in the middle is the 'printing plate' which can be either glass or plastic for this simple project. This has a nice smooth surface that grabbed the paint. You put a dab (fingertip size) of tube ink on this plate and then use the brayer to spread the paint evenly across the surface. The ink easily covered the surface.
Then you carve, etch, brush, dab the ink away or totally off the plate in your chose design with the brush, q-tips, nail, toothpicks, whatever. The effects can be varied and that is the fun of doing mono-prints. Each is very unique.
You get one shot for a print---once you have completed your design in the ink, you place your paper onto the ink plate and completely rub the back to transfer the ink surface to the paper.
Sounds simple?
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
As you can see there is a wide variety of success here.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
My first piece I had trouble working all the lines in---the q-tips removed the wet ink quite well in the beginning but the thinner lines from the brush didn't really show up. My paint became quite sticky and resistant sooner than the 5-7 minutes we were supposed to have to work.
I work fast, so I was really scrambling.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
I thought I had accented all around my flowers, perhaps the rubbing on the back covered some?
My second attempt was the flower drawing in colors.
LOL...IF you work on paper a pattern that is irregular, in design, you have to remember to reverse the same design when drawing into your ink...which I didn't do.
So... my leaves are in the flowers and my flowers in the leaves, and lots of color was under the black and not showing at all...this is a learning process(I mumbled)
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
This is coloring on the paper design...
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
The plate is all the black part and you can sort of see where the shapes are reversed...another lesson...but sort of interesting in a discom-boozeled way.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
Okay----this time I thought I had it figured out...but the ink dried so quickly, I spritzed a little bit of water mist...and when it printed the black spread here and there. The bottom pier and boat are totally off the paper...so we will see what this looks like matted.
Our hour of visiting, instruction, and playtime was up...so I thought it was time to clean-up.
I started thinking back to my old days (1967-8) when I had Printmaking in college (never my medium) and thought about adding some sort of retarder to the acrylic ink.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
I went downstairs and dug out an old bottle of craft paint (water based) gel-medium (which is a retarder) and extends dry time and a blender (on the label,)
and added an equal part gel to an equal part of ink to the plastic for one more try.
Mixing the ink and gel really went well together, I did seem to get better/more even coverage on the plate and a thicker application of the combined ink/retarder gel. I still planned to work fast..not knowing how long I had.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
This gave me a little more time to play---enhance, and do some detailing on the bleeding heart stem. This with color behind it--in the right place, would be quite nice.
I like the textures and shading I got here and there...my working time was still only about 5-7 minutes.
I may try this or a similar design again with more subtlety, and even more retarder.
This was printed on the plain piece of paper and rubbed on the back, and I also used a smooth bottomed (no edges) metal creamer-back and forth and all around smoothly. This gave a more even pressure to get my print.
Another: Second time around..print or ghost print
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
There was lots of ink still on the plate, so I did this second or ghost print with one spritz of water added. I think this will make a fun background for another project.
Below, I cleaned up the plate with a water spray and swipe of paper toweling, halfway through I printed the plate again with the remaining ink left on the plate.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
Again, perhaps a starting point for something else.
 |
| oldnewgreenredo |
Another one of my cleaning off prints with a spritz or two of water, a dirty paper towel schmere (inky towel balled up and swished on the wetter surface)
and then I printed.
I'm totally loving the etching like look of this...
definitely a starting point for something else.
All this with just a few materials, and limited instruction, lots of experimentation and...
Six more weeks of Printmaking
is going to be so much fun.
Here's a video I made discussing my different prints...successes, failures, and surprises.
Special Thanks to the Mather Institute for such valuable resources and experiences for Illinois Seniors.
If you enjoyed this post please follow this blog by blogger or
FOLLOW IT which you will find in the upper right hand corner of this page.
Thanks always for visiting.
I will try and respond to every comment and answer every question.
I will be sharing at these fine Parties!
The photos in this blog are my own or I have permission to using them from family. Any others will be attributed to source if possible.
I have not been paid or reimbursed in anyway for my opinions, posts or any products shown. Please do not use photos without linking back to this blog
without my permission.
Thank you for your cooperation,
Sandi
 |
