Student Collagraphs & Cutouts Resources

ABOUT THIS RESOURCES PAGE ...

STUDENT RESOURCES

This page shares information we covered during our workshop, with links to specific supplies and for further research and exploration.

I buy most of my art supplies online, from several different sources depending on who is having a sale, and what I need in my order. I look for overall value in the pricing of the item, delivery cost and quality of service when ordering.

When looking for something specific, I encourage you to shop around for different pricing and sales.

I would love to hear from you if you do source from a different supplier – I am always on the lookout for other options to share with students, and for myself.

Bookmark this page in your browser so you can keep referring back to it.
Please let me know if you think I’ve left anything out! 🙂

The information below:

SCREEN BOARD for Collagraph plates

The screen board product we used for our collagraph plates in Spicers Ace Screenboard. Specifically 1.5mm width board. It is a commercial product using primarily for screenprinting. The smooth coated surface and ability to peel the surface layer lends itself perfectly to collagraph plates. It comes in a variety of widths. Thicker and thinner board width will work.

Below are some places I found where you can buy the board online and in-store. Do some online searching for other suppliers:

CUTOUTS

We used Canson Montval 200gsm watercolour paper for the cutouts. You can use ANYTHING that will handle being inked up and running through the press.

Look for papers and light-weight board with different textures – the texture of the object you make your cutout from and the texture of the paper you print on will inform the final printed result. So many possibilities!

PAPER

We printed with these papres during our workshop:

  • Proofing paper – 200gsm acid free cartridge paper
  • Printmaking paper – 285gsm Fabriano Rosaspina printmaking paper

I buy paper from various sources, and below are some of them:

If you have any questions about paper, please let me know. Most online art stores hold annual paper sales. Melbourne Etching Supplies has a big paper sale 2x a year, with pricing up to 40% off. Most art stores will sell printmaking papers instore, where you can see the papers, the colours and textures.

I wrote a 4-part blog post series wrote about printmaking paper you might be interested in:

INKS + CLEAN UP

We used both oil and oil-emulsion water-washup inks during this workshop.

Workshop inks – Charbonnel Aqua Wash are the water wash-up inks we sometimes use during our workshop. I buy these from Melbourne Etching Supplies. Do an online search for the product to see who has the best pricing or if anyone is having a sale. Cranfield Etching Oil Inks are the other. I am slowly transitioning away from water-wash inks.

Sakura oil inks are the inks I like to use for both linocut and intaglio inking.  Affordable (approx $45 a tube), fast drying, great pigment. The Sydney Art Store is a place to buy these inks, and about the same price as I buy from my wholesale supplier.

Oil-based ink clean up:

  • Using a cheap vegetable oil or baby oil is how I clean up these inks. I use the oil to clean up my inking glass, rollers and palette knives.
  • When cleaning the roller, after using oil to remove the oil inks, use a fresh baby wipe or cloth damp cloth with a little detergent to wipe the oil from the roller.
  • We used Citro Clean to clean the glass, press bed and inky fingers – but do NOT use this on your rollers – you risk damaging the roller surface.
  • Turps has been traditionally used for cleaning up oil inks, but I avoid that as much as possible. I have a printing ink solvent that I use on occasion, when I have a build up of dried inks on my inking glass.

Tube Wringer

PRINTING PRESSES

There are several different options for printing presses – and a huge range in price and quality.

Many art stores sell presses across a wide price range. Here are some places to start your research:

If you do want to buy an etching presss, my recommendation is to buy one with as big a press bed as you can afford. The press bed being the base plate that you put your plate and paper on to roll through the press.

The little X-Cut Xpress we used is no longer in production. You can pick them up second-hand if you look around.

The X-Cut is essentially a ‘craft printer’ made for embossing and die-cutting. There are many others now on the market (ranging in price from $200-$500, some available in Australia, others from overseas). You will see a Facebook group link below dedicated to using this sort of press. Do some research to see what other people are using. Craft Online, an Australian craft supply shop, sell several different sorts – www.craftonline.com.au/pages/craft-machines

The Sizzix branded machines are what I am currently investigating as an alternative to the X-Cut.

This is a Facebook group dedicated to printmakers using these craft presses. Check it out for suggestions on which machines are good options.

PUBLIC ACCESS STUDIOS & PRINTMAKING GROUPS

Having your own printmaking press and studio at home is a wonderful luxury, and not everyone has the spaces or resources for that. The next best thing is joining a Printmaking Group … meet and hang out with link-minded printmaking enthusiasts and (in most cases) gain access to shared printmaking studio equipment. Below are a few groups and public access studios in South-East Queensland.

Printmaking Groups with studio access presses

The Studio (that’s my place 🙂 )

I don’t open my studio for on-demand-public-access, but I do run weekly classes on a term basis aligning with the school holidays. Classes run on Wednesday mornings, 9am-1pm. You can book into a term or come on a casual class basis. If you are interested, click here for more information.

REFERENCE BOOKS

I’ve not found many books focused on collagraph as a printmaking technique. Below are a couple, plus other books that include information about collagraph and crossover into it:

OTHER COLLAGRAPH ARTISTS TO CHECK OUT

I love to introduce students to other artists to explore and enjoy. Below are a few artists. if you come across new people, please let me know and I can add them to the list for others to enjoy too.

Brenda Hartill, UK
www.brendahartill.com

Clair Maria Wood, UK
www.claremariawood.co.uk

Dorothy Hanna, UK
dorothyhanna.co.uk

Emily Harvey, The Curious Printmaker, UK
thecuriousprintmaker.co.uk

Gill Thompson, UK
gillthompsonartistprintmaker.com

Jacky Lowry, Curramore, Maleny
jackylowryartist.com.au

Jenny McCabe, UK
jennymccabe.co.uk and instagram.com/jenny.mccabe

Lou Thompson, UK
wildcoast.co.uk and instagram.com/wildcoastart

Merril Davies, UK
instagram.com/merrildavies_printmaker

Sarah Morgan, UK
sarahmorganartwork.com and instagram.com/sarah.morganartwork

Stephren Shaw, UK
stephrenshawprintmaker.com and instagram.com/stephrenshawprintmaker

Su France, UK
www.sufrancedesigns.com

Sue Brown
suebrownprintmaker.blogspot.com

Susan Davies, UK
susandaviesprints.co.uk and instagram.com/susandaviesprints

Marion Haf, UK – instagram.com/marianhaf

SOCIAL MEDIA

Below are some Facebook groups that might interest you:

If you are an Instagram user, search for and/or follow these hashtags for different ideas and inspiration.

  • #collagraph
  • #collagraphprint
  • #colograph
  • #intaglioprinting
  • #contemporaryprintmaking

Below is the link to my Pinterest Collagraph board – use that as a leap off the edge of a glorious rabbit hole:

LETS GO SHOPPING 🙂

Below are links to different online stores where I buy intaglio printmaking supplies and equipment from:

RECIPES

ORANGE ALMOND CAKE
ALMOND MARMALADE BISCUITS

I have created a private Facebook group ONLY for people who have attended my workshops. The idea is you can ask me questions, we share work, and I’ll share resources and information. Click the button below to join the conversation  …

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