Do you remember the first print you ever made?
I was very young, five or six years old. There was an interesting piece of metal type that my brother had brought home from work, a decorative corner bit. I pressed it into plasticine and inked that using the inkpad from a John Bull printing set.
Are you a trained artists ~ do you think that’s important?
I suppose I must be a trained artist, I attended every lecture during my time at art college. I’m not sure it’s important. There again, I see people bragging about their plans to teach woodcut after minimal tuition. They don’t know why they’ve got blisters…As a student I was often accused of not experimenting enough, but playing with unfamiliar techniques was frowned upon as ‘timewasting’. I can’t remember what’s in a Dutch Mourdant (it’s in my notes somewhere….).
What type of printmaking techniques do you favour and why?
I enjoyed drawing on zinc lithography plates and seeing how the process changed the drawn image. Lino has become my preferred medium even though cutting the block takes more effort than drawing or painting tusche onto a plate or stone.
What projects are you currently working on?
Linocuts of hands. This has been an accidental project.
What drives you to make prints?
I like planning the image, the possible colour layers, preparing the lino. Peeling the paper back from an inked block is always exciting. Sometimes the results are terrible. The print can often be rescued – after a successful editing session I could always claim it was always intended to look like that.
Who has been an important mentor in your life?
A few people are (unwittingly) important mentors. My drawing tutor (Mike Garton)’s voice often appears in my head with random critical thoughts….
Which materials do you favour and why?
Grey lino. Pfeil cutters. Lawrence’s linseed oil ink, which smells nice and prints well. I like the idea of all the materials being flax related. I use a Slama hand press so I can print wherever the sunniest part of the house is at the time.
Thank you for contributing to Print Day in May Berry Daines! What will you be printing and sharing on 4th May? Take a look at her work at: www.berrydaines.co.uk
Her instagram feed is @berrydainsia, you can find her on Facebook at Berry Daines and her Twitter handle is @Berry_Daines
