Creative Spark Artist Residency - Part One

The exciting thing about writing during a residency, rather than after it’s finished, is that we are both in the same boat. I have absolutely no idea what I will create, you have no idea what I’ll create. I have plans, I have pre-visualisations but I have no idea how my mono prints will turn out or if I’ll sell any hand pulled screen prints at the print fair in Belfast this weekend.

Will I still feel trapped in the process at the end of the residency? Or will I develop the skills to break free from the process. I always believed in trusting the process, and that works well when we have deadlines or print orders to fill. With a trusted process we can produce work through a tried, tested and reliable system. But it is suffocating and hard to sustain long term.

Anyway, after my first week to settle in an plan a shoot for International Women’s Day, the following two weeks went like this…

Monday 11th March

First things first, the batch of ‘Love’ photos I worked on over the weekend needed re-sizing for social media. They turned out really well and it was a good starting point. I organised them all into a big square contact sheet ready for Stephen to share on social media and tag Artur (Signs by Artur) whose beautiful sign all the women were holding.

Tuesday 12th March

In at lunchtime, I had decided over night that I need to focus on new skill building before I ever tackle new subjects. So using an already existing piece called Golden Crown, I decide to disassemble it and to put it back together using print making techniques. With advice from Gráinne I plan layering mono-printing for the background with possibly a screen print of the main subject on top.

First task is to make a hairline trace of the subject for the Epilog laser in the Fab Lab using illustrator (inscape works well too). With help from Oscar and Carl to check I’ve set up the laser cutter correctly, I work away on producing black card silhouettes of my subject that will help me to block out the mono print ink on some of the layers.

Wednesday 13th March

I arrive in early and spend the whole day mono-printing. Firstly, the two large sheets of paper have to be divided in two to produce four sheets of paper. I tear all the edges.

Secondly, a large piece of acetate, larger than the sheets of paper is cut to size. I am going to print onto the torn edges for a very unique effect, hence why the inking acetate has to be a little larger than the sheets.

Thirty, rollers and ink come out. First layer will be an ombre with pink and white. I make clouds using torn rag, sponge and cotton buds. Later, after lunch a second layer of sky blue goes on. But during lunch my fellow artist in residence and I head off to a lunchtime talk at An Táin featuring the work of the Bridge Street Studios artists in exhibition called, Shed. Orla and Sarah give a very informative talk and we chat about all things art, especially the enormous quantity of mistakes required to create work.

After much I return to my mono print clouds and I’m very happy with the results. Using the silhouette to block out the second layer of blue ink works well, leaving a ghost of things to come on the print. It will take a week for the ink to dry.

Thursday 14th March

Work from home. Prepare files for another mixed media print to begin.

Friday 15th March

To keep the ball rolling and build on what I’ve learned on Tuesday and Wednesday I prepare a new file for the laser machine and nearly get it right! Luckily Carl is very patient with me and finds a step I’ve missed in converting the image to a vector to produce the hairline trace. Once I have my silhouette I’m back upstairs to the print room, cutting paper, using my acetate on the wrong side, cleaning it off and using it on the correct side. This time I’ve created an ombre effect with lemon yellow and pale pink. I get the first layer printed and by the time I’ve cleaned up it’s nearly 3pm so I decide to call it a day. I’ll leave the blue layer for another day.

Bank Holiday Monday

Tuesday 19th March

In at lunchtime. Klee compostable packaging order arrived; backing board and transparent film that looks like plastic, but it isn’t. Box weighs a ton, thankfully there’s a lift. Print fair coming up in Belfast at the weekend, creative spark print studio is taking part of along with other studios. I can’t believe you’ve read this far, good on you.

My five CMYK Silkscreen prints of Celestial Body need trimming to size and packing for selling. They are already signed and numbered, edition of 5. Luckily I’ve got some spare artist prints to test potential dimensions, I finally settle on 40cm x 34cm. I don’t delete photos and now I’m continuing this practice into my printmaking. I’ll never know when I’ll need an image/print of a black ink splat but believe me, when that time comes, I’ll be ready!

I am literally haunted by black ink at the moment. It appears out of nowhere on a perfectly clean roller or in the middle of a beautifully ombred mix of light coloured inks. This is the life of a printmaker, this is the life I’ve chosen. So I have to be philosophical about it all. The black dot on my acrylic sheet of lemon yellow becomes a marker, the place I’ll make a cloud with a crumpled rag. There’s a lot of clouds.

After Creative Spark I head over to Monaghan Camera Club to give a presentation of my work. Really lovely club with a nice layout for displaying prints and screen for my presentation. Lots of great questions and conversations.

Wednesday 20th March

Focus today is on my workshop in the evening. I brought my Mac in from home but it was an ordeal I would not like to repeat. Once it was all set up though, it was great and the members of An Tàin are a lovely bunch. I went through some editing with textures and masks and then we looked at editing images members brought in. I’m thinking a facilitating a monthly meet-up, a Photoshop/Lightroom support group where we all help each other in a relaxed, friendly way.

Since my Mac Book Pro died after an update it couldn’t handle I’ve been left with a difficulty with creating work away from home. I did apply for support from my local arts office to acquire a refurbed laptop in time for my residency, but my application was unsuccessful. I’m a digital artist who uses a digital camera and computer to make my work. A laptop means I can create on the go, during a residency etc but the feedback on my rejected application was; they didn’t see how the money to buy a refurbed laptop would support my practice. Since I can’t explain any clearer how I make my work to the grant funding gatekeepers and unable to create any new digital work in Dundalk, my focus is on exploring printmaking techniques with digital images I have already created or I have to stay home for a day to process digital files. It’s working out very well though and if I get some of these prints sold the money will go into my laptop piggy bank! I figured not many of you would have got this far so it was the perfect spot to vent and have a rant.

Thursday 21st March

I catch up on writing my blog. I’m planning to finish the mono prints I started last week but it depends on if I can make a screen in the morning. Watch this space!