ETCHING WITH DEVON
Here are the images from the most recent private etching workshop. Devon took a three part etching workshop from Chrissy where she learnt how to do ‘hard-ground’ and ‘soft-ground’ etchings and the basic chemistry behind the process. Here are images of Devon inking up one of the plates she produced using the ‘hard-ground’ method.
SQUARE2 LAUNCH PARTY
Join us for a night on the town! We will bring Prince Edward County’s newest arts & culture magazine to life June 10th starting at the Regent Theatre at 6 PM.
Performance art, poetry readings, live music and visual art will be occurring throughout down town Picton.
Participating locations include:
Spark Box Studio
Purchase a numbered limited launch edition of Square2 that night!
Event will be free of charge.
Sponsored by Angeline’s Inn and Restaurant
RSVP: info@sparkboxstudio.com
LETTERPRESS AND TYPOGRAPHY
In the mid-15th century the printing press was invented and with this piece of machinery came the first rapid production of mass-produced books in history . It is not uncommon now for someone to either have a relative or know someone that has worked with type and a letterpress. Type is used in the printing industry to describe individual lead letters (a key component in letterpress printing). In this form of printmaking hundreds of individual characters are arranged, making up the final printed book, newspaper, essay, etc. Between each printing the characters would be washed and a whole new set would be arranged for the next page.
In the past two weeks I’ve met nearly half a dozen of people who had actually hand-set type at one point. Emerging from this labour heavy printing process came the automated printing press. These mechanized machines further increased productivity by introducing plate printing techniques apposed to hand-set type. They have become more complex over the years and are still in use at commercial printers.
I highly suggest taking a tour of a commercial print studio, you’ll probably find a few old and wild looking machines. Generations today will likely not get to experience lead type used for an off-set printing press or a clunky typewriter. Unfortunately, like many things today I feel the inkjet version of type just isn’t as fascinating as the original handmade, hand-set, hand-inked, hand-printed quality of letterpress.
We’re proud to announce the most recent addition to the facilities at Spark Box Studio a 1928, 3″ x 5″, letterpress and three font sets. Set the font yourself, mix your own ink, hand-print every piece and feel the power of type.
SHADOW CABINET
This week Spark Box Studio hosted an etching workshop for a group of gentlemen. The workshop started in the late morning and finished in the mid afternoon. Seventeen individuals came to the workshop, 9 participated and the others watched. The morning was spent transferring images and drawing into the hard-ground covered copper plate. While the men ate lunch at Currah’s restaurant Chrissy and Kyle etched their plates and got ready for an afternoon of printing. When they came back from lunch Kyle demonstrated how to ink a plate, clean the plate, and print he plate. Soon enough it was gloves on and the men were inking their plates. It struck us that we probably should have mentioned to the men to wear or bring some old clothes they did not mind getting ink on, as the men came dressed up and were looking quite dapper. Luckily no one got ink on themselves and everyone who participated had a chance to print the plate they had created and left with at least 2 hand printed images. We had a great time running the event and the gentlemen had a fantastic time as well.
ETCHING WITH LOYALIST COLLEGE
This week we held an etching workshop for the Art Fundamentals class at Loyalist college. Last week we visited the class and discussed the principles of hard-ground etching; how the process works, how to draw into a plate, what things to avoid etc. A copper plate is coated with a thin ground, traditionally wax or at Spark Box we use an acrylic ground. Using a sharp needle the ground is scraped into and the underlaying copper is exposed. You draw your image into the ground and when finished the plate is submerged into an etchant. The etchant will begin to corrode any exposed copper and leave V shaped trenches in the copper plate that later will hold the ink. In addition to talking about etching, we left each student a coated copper plate and a few tools. A week later the class was to visit our studio to print their copper plates.
The students plates arrived a few days before the students were to come so that we could have ample time to etch and prepare the plates for printing. On a Tuesday morning Into our studio marches 20 students along with Robert Kranendonk (their professor). Organizing the large group of students into a cohesive group was not difficult, they were all eager to learn the next steps on the process and we gladly proceeded to demonstrate them. We showed the students the steps of plate preparation and moved on into how the ink the plate and how to print the plate.
Quite quickly students were inking up their plates and getting into the line up for the press. Everyone managed to ink up and print their plate several times. The students really did enjoy themselves and were all quite pleased with being able to produce an etching. By the end of the session everyone’s hands were covered in black ink and surprisingly only a few students got printing ink on their faces.
Photos shot by Kelly Taylor.
RESIDENCY AWARD: JUSTIN STEINBURG
Our second recipient of our 2009 residency award was Justin Steinburg, fourth year BFA (bachelor of fine art) student at Queen’s University. Justin came to stay with us at Spark Box Studio for a weekend in mid January 2010. He arrived with a car full of waterless lithography plates and woodcuts ready to print. When attending a residency it is always best to try and maximize your time printing by preparing material ahead of the determined residency.
His first day of the residency was spent printing plates and printing a three color separation woodcut. Using little ink to a fair amount of transparent base Justin’s woodcut shows the potential for color change when using transparent inks. This woodcut is from his thesis year at Queen’s university which focuses on color theory.
The second day of Justin’s residency with us we experimented with powdered pigments that he had bought from a supplier in Ottawa. He brought with him a wide range of different pigment colors, everything from primary colors to metallic bronze, silver, gold and iridescent pearl white (which was comically named ‘super sparkle’). We spent the day mixing up pigments into transparent base and testing the results. The basic colors mixed and print really well and printed just like inks out of a can. The metallic colors were a different story. We tried to mix the bronze and everything seemed to go alright but when it was printed it ended up printing splotchy and transparent. The obvious result was to add more pigment and stiffen up the ink, this produced better results. Out of the metallic colors the ‘super sparkle’, iridescent pearl, worked the best, producing a tinted white that had a great shine was we considered a success.
KIDZ PRINTMAKING
This past weekend we hosted a kid’s printmaking workshop. The first of what we hope will be many others of its kind. The class went really well with several kids signing up, ages ranging from 3 to 12. We begun the class with food stamping and painting. The kids also drew images onto lino blocks and carved out the blocks themselves, with a little supervision of course. Afterwards the blocks were rolled up and the kids printed the blocks using the etching press.
CHRIS SABA AND LAURA CLAYTON
This past weekend our good friends, recent Queens University BFA grads and fellow printmakers Chris Saba and Laura Clayton came to stay and work in the studio. Chris traveled from Hamilton, where he has been participating at The Print Studio, and Laura Clayton came from Pickering. The weekend brought a lot of printing, Chris worked on a hard-ground etching while Laura braved the soft ground.
We are learning from the artists coming to the studio that community studios are uncommon and Ontario residency programs even more rare. It is with great pleasure that we are able to share our studio space.
MIDNIGHT ETCHING
In the dead silence of our living room our current housemates Paul and Hannah work diligently on their etching projects along side Kyle. For nearly an hour the atmosphere was focused and nothing could break their concentration, not even their grumbling stomachs. Both Paul and Hannah had never done etchings before and in the end they turned out fantastic looking prints. Paul drew the image of the crow while Hannah drew the heart image. After working in the living room we adventured to the studio and printed till midnight.
PRESS MAINTENANCE
At some point all presses will need to be maintained. Be it grease, sanding, painting, alignment, or one of the many other tasks. This week brings the beginning of my long journey of press maintenance. Our press bed had become a lovely dark grey color, stained with rust, and dirt deposits. Starting in one corner, with 50 grit emery paper, I began to sand… and sand… and I am still sanding two days later. However, it is quite satisfactory to see the glory hiding behind the dirt when the steel starts to shine.
For any printmakers out there that want more information about the process here are some tips:
-ensure the safety stops are in place, and that you wear the recommended PPE (personal protective equipment): respirator, googles, gloves, and an apron.
-Sand the press bed by going with the grain of the steel.
-An orbital sander can be used, but be careful not to over sand sections with this power tool and avoid gouging the bed with the grinding wheel. A belt sander may be used, but personally I’d prefer to use an orbital sander because of its control.
-Ultimately the best method and the one that yields the best results with the littlest effort is to send the press bed to a machine shop that can re-tool the surface to a perfect state
~Kyle,
Studio and Operations Director
FALL/WINTER ARTIST RESIDENCY AWARD 2010
Applications are being accepted until Sept. 30, 2010
Awards will be announced in early October, 2010
Beginning your career as an emerging artist can be tough, which is why Spark Box Studio is offering FREE RESIDENCIES to fine art students and emerging artists. This residency opportunity is a unique way for young and emerging artists to cultivate new ideas, access a rich library of arts resources, learn about career-building opportunities, and develop an understanding of the art world from a business perspective.
About the Award
Four emerging artists will receive a one-week residency, 10 will receive a two day residency and 30 will receive one day at our Open Studio in Prince Edward County. The selected applicants will be able to work in the studio using Spark Box Studio’s equipment and resources, and have access to career guidance from local community members.
Spark Box Studio has created these awards as a career building opportunity for young emerging artists.
Participating in a residency is of value to you as it builds on your artistic career, gives you time to focus on a project in a professional artist studio and allows you the opportunity to connect and learn from other artists.
Getting Started:
Below is what should be included in your application:
- A current Curriculum Vitae
- An Artist Statement – 1-2 paragraphs explaining your work
- Digital samples of your work – Please provide 10 images of your work. Please include with the images a list which includes the title, medium, dimension, year of each one.
- Images should be MAC compatible in JPG, TIFF or PSD file.
- Images should be no smaller than 200 DPI and should measure 8” x 8”. If sending through email please compress files.
- Writing samples should not exceed 12 pages and should be sent with cover page stating your name and title of work.
- $15.00 CAD application fee payable to Spark Box Studio.
Check out our Emerging Artist Guide for information to help you prepare these items.
Once these items are ready:
-Complete and submit the Application Form below
-Pay your Application Fee. You can mail a cheque, or PAY ONLINE. Note: you must pay your application fee in order for your application to be processed.
-Send you Application Package to us.
By email: email your package to us using the email subject line “Residency Application – your full name” to info@sparkboxstudio.com
By Snail Mail: Mail your package to: Spark Box Studio, P.O. Box 9002, #7 Bridge St., Picton, ON, K0K 2T0
Making your Application:
Once you have prepared the items above you are ready to fill out the application form below.
Please note that we will use the information you provide to process your application and will not share your information with any other companies.
