by Sarah Malone Carnline, US Sales Manager for Cranfield Colours
I was talking with colleagues about how Print Day in May brings together so many people and highlights the differences between printmakers and other artist!
Painters and sculptors are generally a solitary breed whereas printmakers seek out the company and fellowship of other printmakers. At heart printmakers genuinely believe there is something special about their discipline that makes it worth sharing in a collaborative way – setting them somewhat apart from the rest of the artistic community. Printmakers love being together; whether by meeting through shared studio space, at events, in printmaking clubs and conferences or meeting virtually through the many online printmaking platforms. Printmakers love to share their experiences!
At heart is the belief that printmaking matters. Printmakers use their media to express all manner of emotions with passion, imagination and commitment. This however most certainly does not mean that printmakers are all alike. Some approach printmaking with the fascination and delight of the engineer. The engineering printmaker will analyse plate etch depth, printing pressures, paper formation and the structure of the ink with an almost clinical attention to detail. Adjusting a little here, fine tuning a fraction there, to the point that there is sometimes no time left in the working day to actually make that perfect print!
Then there is the group of printmakers whose natural melancholy means they would always be disappointed by some aspect of their work. Such is their desire for perfection they would naturally find the process a frustration and discouragement were it not for the great boost they receive on hearing and discovering that others too have faced an overcome similar challenges.
Then we have the alchemists of Lithography battling with what (to my mind) remains a most temperamental process. A further set of personality traits are perhaps required for the largest sector of Relief printmakers and special respect is reserved for those with the nerve and all-weather attitude to take urban Rauberuckerin prints from drain covers on busy roadways!
The fact that this coming Print day in May is set to be the most popular yet reflects the tremendously encouraging reality that our disciplines are in very good health.
Twenty five years ago, with justifiable fears of toxins and finger squashing methods (not to mention the high costs of plates, presses and materials) printmaking was undeniably declining. One Canadian University tells me that 15 years ago their entire printmaking studio was destroyed by University management on health and safety grounds and in the misguided belief that ‘printmaking was dying anyway’! How wrong they were!
Printmaking is not simply enjoying a reprieve but an entirely new lease of life. I’ve just returned from a Printmaking event in Texas where over three days of the fair, I enjoyed many wonderful conversations with printmakers from across the US, Europe and beyond. Equally exciting and perhaps promoting even greater admiration were the conversations with delegates from communities where the cost of printmaking is a very real challenge. A delegation from Lima, printmakers from North Africa, a party from a college in Mexico and a solitary representative from Ecuador! These printmakers sharing ideas on presses made from a car jack and ply wood or a clothes mangle given new life!
Printmaking is undoubtedly changing, and the evolution is exciting. And it’s a privilege to be part of the journey. How many more sleeps?
For more information about the amazing non-toxic printmaking inks from Cranfield Colours CLICK HERE.
To purchase Cranfield Colours printmaking products in the US CLICK HERE
For the UK and Europe CLICK HERE
Love this post! And let us not forget the printmaker that simply delights in seeing what happens when the blankets are thrown back. Like John Cage lighting a fire on the press bed and delighting in the resulting ashy print , many of us just love to be surprised!