A little burst of printing inspiration....

I was lucky enough to have a child free day on Saturday so I took full advantage and made a much needed and well overdue visit to an exhibition. 

After a quick search I decided to check out the East London Printmakers exhibition at Embassy Tea Gallery on Union Street and I was so glad I did. Being just off the beaten track it was lovely and quiet, the sun even shone which makes all the difference in London! 

The exhibition is amazing and it was lovely to see so many printmakers exhibiting together. It's running until the 27th September so you still have time to check it out.

Here's a few of my favourites..... I'm attracted to the lino prints and screen prints as I love the style they produce but there were very clever things such as mono-prints on leather and ethereal etchings.

Some clever printing onto a plaster slate and bowl.....

Mixed media with etching and stitch.....

I loved this collection of drypoint prints made from people's broken phones complete with very funny personal stories.....

Giving printing a magical and whimsical edge. 

For the full catalogue of the exhibition click here.

I then headed over to the Tate modern after stopping off at Intaglio print shop to treat myself to some more lino and a much desired soft rubber roller (can not wait to start using it after admiring it for so long : )

Loving the construction work on the side of the Tate modern and cant wait for its completion. The scaffolding is a work of art on its own!

I made a bee line for the war posters in the Tate as I love their style, passion and how easily they portray movement, these were my favourites.....
 

Then with some weary legs homeward bound I went, inspired to get working on some new prints! Hope they provide a little inspiration your way too.

Kirsten

Gotta love......

 a bit of peace! Especially in a house with little ones whose new favourite habit is slamming doors! So I finally got round to finishing a door stop I have been meaning to make, killing two birds with one stone; firstly to stop slamming doors; and secondly to make something from Poppy Teffry's "Free & Easy stitch style" book.

I got the book as a Christmas present a few years ago from my mum and have finally got a little free time on my hands (thank goodness for playschool!). 

So here's the doorstop I made.....

I wanted to try out screen printing using wax printing paper. So I drew my design onto the paper, cut out using a craft knife and stuck it down onto my screen. I then set out about a few test prints on calico and once happy I went for it on my material which to be honest wasn't the best choice. I used an upholstery fabric which I'm not sure had been treated as my paint bled slightly as you can see in the pics......

It's a great immediate process and great for people like me who are time limited and want to get something finished quickly. So no waiting around for images to be embedded onto screens and hardly any cleaning up, bonus!