Screen monoprinting is an innovative new printmaking technique. Brilliant fabric dye is painted onto a silk screen in a fluid manner. Once dry, a squeegee is used to pull a clear medium over the screen, forcing the dyes into the page. The colours and unique surface textures are spectacular and cannot be achieved through painting on paper. The process satisfies both the painter and the printmaker. Previously tight painters are encouraged to loosen up and be more spontaneous. Students previously intimidated by the technical aspect of printmaking, find the simplicity of screen monoprinting a delightful surprise, yet the innumerable possibilities are challenging even to the seasoned artist.
Painting on the fabric of the screen forces the artist to expect the unexpected, relax around the painting, enjoy the process and anticipate the finished results that are not revealed until the last moment. Painting with transparent dyes on fabric, results in surface textures, beautiful layering and the bleeding of one colour into another, not possible by painting directly onto a surface.
Two day workshops combine screen monoprinting with relief prints. Carving the Softolium is a most enjoyable experience. The soft colourful nature of the monoprint combined with the strong, solid lines of the relief print, create a unique contrast in visual texture.
During week long classes, students will learn the basic principal of screen monoprinting and then expand the creative possibilities through the use of paper stencil masks, layering, triptychs and the combining of the monoprints with lino cuts and / stamps of their own creation. Printing on unique papers and collage techniques will also add other elements to the monoprint experience.
