Going beyond traditional printmaking

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS BY MARY KROETSCH

Iopened my supply kit for Printmaking III and laid all that was in the box onto my work table for my first virtual studio art course. There were new inks, papers (mainly thin Kozo, which is a rice paper), and plates that took me back to earlier days of falling in love with printmaking when all I had to work with was some home-grown printing plates made from recycled styrofoam packaging. However, some of the materials and tools to make a print that I was getting used to (and were only available in the print studio at Zavitz Hall) were missing, which threw me off a bit.

I felt confused during my first two assignments, one of which required a digitally-produced print mail exchange which left me questioning if the class was actually about printmaking. Up to that point, I had been schooled to accept that there were only four types of traditional printmaking: relief, intaglio, lithography, and serigraphy. I personally place digital printmaking into more of a photography category, minus the camera.

"Both liquids are different versions of acrylic artist mediums that can be used on their own or added to other mediums to extend the drying time in paints or change the paint texture. They are used as a final layer to seal. I just used them straight out of the bottle onto the copper plate."

Shortly after these assignments, I was introduced to Barbara Balfour, author of a discussion paper called “The What and the Why of Print.” Without going into too much detail, Balfour defined a print as being anything that comes from the standard laundry list of items required in traditional printmaking, no matter what type of print: matrix (the plate), something to make marks on on the plate, ink, pressure, and substrate (the surface printed on).

Balfour’s definition stuck with me. You had to utilize the five items in the creation process, but within each there was potential for creative adaptations. Inspired by her words, I was ready to try some new things and see what would happen.

The assignment was to create an intaglio print — a print created by carving the surface of the matrix and filling the sunken areas with ink. I was given a copper plate to carve into; however, I wanted to do more with the plate. I wanted to create many kinds of background textures using all kinds of chemicals and tools, like the ones we had access to in the Zavitz print studio.

So I approached the copper like a painter’s canvas. I have a lot of leftover acrylic mediums from all kinds of painting projects so I started painting them on to the plate.

After each layer I sanded, scratched, and manipulated. I even had a small print screen and used that to squeegee on a layer. Then it was time to carve. Using an etching needle I began to draw simple lines. It was satisfying to cut through all the medium layers to reach and mark the copper. Along the way, medium flaked off. I embraced it.

The final printing of the plate involved returning to the traditional rules for inking and running through a simple press we were required to make as part of this class.

I couldn’t resist implementing the traditional element of chin collé — a process of adding rice paper just before going through the press.

The Printmaking III virtual course helped me to loosen up creatively. I love traditional printmaking, but now I also love experimenting with new ways to utilize some of its tools to create really unique prints.

Mary Kroetsch began her art adventure around the age of 10 when she had her first sewing class. Ever since, she has been exploring her passion as a creative. A self-described studio lab rat, her method of making is all about exploration and the manipulation of the materials she plays with. She isn’t satisfied with “doing things right” and craves the happy accidents she encounters by not following the rules. Primarily self-taught, Mary is working on her studio arts degree at the University of Guelph.  mary-kroetsch-textile-mixedmedia-artist. com