Ellor Derrick,
Apologies for the delay in posting (the actual workshop took place a few weeks ago) but I haven't been able to afford a replacement CF card for my camera until now. Quick thanks to Luke Bonner for letting me use his 'behind the scenes pictures'.
Right. I've made a set here on my Flickr account to hold all the pictures as I'm only going to include a few here.
This was the first ever screen-printing workshop I've ever had. For some unknown reason I didn't get any of this kind of stuff done at college even though every one else did. On the day we were told to bring two A5 images to play about with but luckily for my group many people didn't show so we got a full screen each. Even more lucky was the fact that I had four A5 images ready (as two A4), because I wanted to print big big typewriters.
First we set about learning the processes which was amazingly fun to learn. We copied images to grayscale (via a photocopy machine), and when I say we I actually mean Jo did (for me anyway) and rubbed them down with oil to make them translucent. Not oiled enough to fry, but just enough to make it look like tracing paper. We then exposed the images in this little room where 'exposing' takes place. What happens is that you put your images down on the glass inside the mouth of a giant big 50s sci-fi robot. You put your screen with some kind of UV radioactive paint stuff on then flick the robot's clunky switch (which made a really satisying 'click') and a rubber sheath above the screen gets vacuumed on top to secure the screen in place. You then flick another equally chunky switch to blast your screen with some special screen-printing shaped rays. Although I didn't one-hundred percent understand the science, I believe that the black areas on your image block the screen behind from being exposed and hardened. These soggy areas then get blasted out with plenty of water shooting from a hose. It was really fun and pretty messy which was such a great change from clicking and checking/unchecking options within software.
Once your screen has magically revealed the image (or rather, revealed the negative of the image) we got setup at our posts ready for printing. You clamp the screen in at one end, which are hinged so that you can lift the screen up without moving it about. You plonk your paper (or material) underneath,
Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
I had loads of fun playing about and kept my screen uber-clean because I wanted to use it again after the session at some point. I did many paper trials and had prepared some pillowcases to print on so had a go at those too. The main effect that I liked wasn't actually when the print was clean and crisp, but when it had mistakes and looked slightly faded. It was difficult to get this just right because too much fade and it looked like a simple bad print and too little and they just looked like a try-hard good print.
Here's a nice pic of my pillow in it's final habitat
After a full and pretty exhilerating day getting messy and learning something new I was keen to do it again and put my name down to do some more, which Jo managed to organise for roughly a week ago. I couldn't make it at the last minute because of a meeting for a live brief but she's told me on Friday that this week she's going to try and book some time in again.
I'm already formulating what to do as Jo said she could get me some magical fixer to properly fix whatever I use (was normal acrylic on cotton last time which wouldn't survive a washing machine) to material for a long and happy life. It would be really good to make a lot of pillowcases as self-promotion items to send out as even if I don't end up using them as send out items I could use them as book-covers or all sorts. The other option is to make a poster for a DIY magazine/fanzine made by my old housefriend Selina and her fella Dan. It's a total free reign as long as it's around the theme of 'I love Bournemouth' and it'd be reaaally nice to get a lush poster printed many many times and actually distribute it.
Decisions decisions.
Keep you updated as always though Derrick me ol chum.
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