What will I be doing?
Carborundum is great for exploring colour printing and overlaying different colours to achieve complex and creative texture and colour combinations. The acrylic plates are relatively cheap and so you can work on a larger scale if you like without breaking the bank!
You will look at and discuss a range of print examples, including the work of one of our studio members, James Anderson, and Rob’s own work in the medium. You will make some small test plates to explore and evaluate the effects of different painting mediums, carborundum grit etc.
You will then move on to make multiple carborundum plates designed to overprint to make a complex colour print from your source material. In addition, Rob will show you how to print ‘a la poupée ‘ in effect, inking each plate in more than one colour.
This course is ideal for printmakers looking to expand their repertoire and wanting to learn more about colour mixing and inking, but it can equally be a fun starting point to learning a new printmaking technique. Carborundum plates can be made at home – they are made with acrylic mediums and grit, avoiding heavy chemicals and solvents, so it is a good technique to know about that is more sustainable.
About your tutor
Rob White is an artist printmaker who has over twenty years of experience working in the biggest print studios in London, firstly working at Thumbprint Editions on projects for Antony Gormley, Anish Kapoor, Damien Hirst, Marc Quinn, Richard Deacon and many others.
Rob wanted to add to his skill set and moved to Paupers Press where he’s worked on projects for Grayson Perry, Tracey Emin, The Chapman Brothers, Peter Blake and others. Alongside this Rob has had a working relationship with Tom Hammick working on many print projects over the last twenty years. Rob works mainly in etching using many different techniques including sugar lift, spit bite, chine collé working with multiple plates and colours.
What should I bring?
Please bring a selection of paintbrushes of different shapes, sizes, types and other painting tools that you would like to use. It is useful to bring an apron and rubber gloves for cleaning up.
Bring a sketchbook or notebook, pencil, pens for making notes and of course an image idea to work from. This could be a drawing, painting or photograph. As you will be working on more than one plate to combine colours, think about images that will allow you to plan and make multiple plates in different colours.
Our south London printmaking studio in Stockwell has a small kitchen with a microwave and fridge, plates, cutlery and mugs. Tea and coffee will be provided.