Schmidt - Print workshop: hand-printing techniques + truly original projects

Copyright 2010 by Christine Schmidt

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Potter Craft, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.pottercraft.com

POTTER CRAFT and colophon is a registered trademark of Random House, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Schmidt, Christine.
Print workshop : hand-printing techniques and truly original projects / Christine Schmidt.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
eISBN: 978-0-307-96553-0
1. Handicraft. 2. Relief printing. I. Title.
TT857 .S32 2011
745.5dc22
2010022305

Front cover and interior design by MacFadden & Thorpe
Photography by Douglas Adesko
Front cover illustrations by Christine Schmidt
Technical Editor: Judith Durant

v3.1

PROJECTS

PROJECTS

PROJECTS

PROJECTS

Bills, bank statements, and junk mail arrive like clockwork, and seconds later they are relegated to a file folder or the trash. Newspapers and magazines, even those whose crisp pages we once turned with eager interest, eventually are tossed unceremoniously into the recycle bin. As the years pass, it seems that many of these items dont need to be printed at all and can be presented on screen, because the value of these pages is not the printing but the information presented. Churned out en masse by machines, most printing passes through our daily lives with little impact or notice.

But theres a flip side to that coin. Viewing a print that has been crafted by hand can be transforming. It embodies the art of printing. To behold a handmade print is to marvel at its intrinsic aesthetics, as well as the time, skill, and intention that brought the work of art into being. To go even further and create a handmade print yourself can be a sublime experience, metamorphosing your ideas into indelible images.

In this book I share the media and techniques, both ancient and modern, to create all kinds of prints: block, stencil, sun, and image transfer prints. These prints are unique works of art, interesting enough to be mounted on a gallery wall but presented in a format that can be used in your everyday life.

They say the spaces you inhabit say a lot about you. As anyone who has come to my studio can tell you, my space screams, This chick is all over the place. Rather than concentrating on one discipline, I work in different art forms to create prints in a variety of media: photography, sculpture, and textile design in addition to traditional printmaking. The line of goods for my business, Yellow Owl Workshop, includes prints, stationery, stamps, and ceramics of my own hand and design. Naturally curious but easily bored, I move between disciplines to keep interested in my work. And now that my work is printing for love and for a living, I have the enviable luxury of printing all day long. What follows in this book is basically what I would tell any interested party in a studio visit. Second to the thrill of creating work, I like sharing my tricks and discoveries. Its like spreading a more positive version of gossip.

In my opinion, beauty is just the name of an aisle in the drugstore, and it should stay that way. Its important to remember that when youre printing, beauty will always be a subjective term, and perfection can as often as not come from the imperfection of a piece. I am only a better printer because I have accepted and adapted to my printing missteps. How many prints have I ruined with an errant thumbprint or ink spill? Thousands. And my business depends on prints. So be positive about your new prints even if they arent exactly as you envisioned. Remember, machines turn out perfect and perfectly boring prints all the timeand we already discussed where most of them end up.

I have adapted all projects in this book for the home printer through years of trial and error working in my own studio. With each project, Ive tried to share a bit about my creative process, not because I think I am so interesting, but because my logic and missteps may help you dream up and create your own projects. In other words, I try to share my inspiration because inspiration is not some mystical, divine influence; it is usually just some form of logical problem solving. Sometimes the inspiration comes from an interesting shape or image that compels me. Sometimes I need a present for a birthday party that starts in an hour. Both forms of inspiration are equally important, whether you print for fun or for your own business. But these projects arent about me, theyre about you. To that end, I try (to the best of my ability) to always put forth accessible instructions and an informed discussion of materials.

Youll also notice that the book contains templates for many of the projects. But keep an open mind! Many of the templates can work for other projects besides the one indicated in this book. In fact even templates you make yourself have a life beyond a single project. Think about it: A silhouette you create in the stencil chapter would also make an interesting cyanotype or iron-on decal for a T-shirt.

The one word of concrete advice I will provide about mixing and matching designs is this: You wont be able to see a giant pattern on a really small surface. A tiny, delicate motif would be better printed on stationery where it can be examined up close, not on a giant wall where it would be lost. And it would take you a million years. So when selecting an image for printing, consider the size of the image and what you want to print it on (the substrate). Each printing process has its advantages and limitations, and I can help you see many of those. This book is intended to inspire you to create your own projects.