Photogravure at Baldessin Studio – A Creative Reset

I’m home after a most fabulous weekend in Melbourne, where I attended a two day Introduction to Photopolymer Photogravure workshop with Silvi Glattauer at Baldessin Studio. It did not disappoint!!

I’ve been wanting to explore photopolymer plates for some time now. Photography is an important part of how I gather source material for my printmaking, and this process felt like a natural next step. I also needed a creative break, something just for me. This workshop ticked all the boxes – new skills, new ideas, new connections and a sense of deep creative nourishment.

Photopolymer plates themselves weren’t entirely new to me – I first encountered them in the late ’80s in a commercial print setting, making flexographic plates for packaging. I played with solar plates and film negatives around 2017-ish. But “photogravure” was very new to me. And the chance to learn this process from a generous, professional printmaker like Silvi, in a studio like Baldessin, was a gift I’m so glad I gave myself.

The studio is steeped in inspiration – an old stone building, added to and expanded over the years. Presses everywhere, including a beautiful Albion. Spaces carefully designed for different stages of different printmaking processes.

I stayed on-site for the weekend. The surrounding bushland was dry – a striking contrast to the wet and green of home. And a perfect “Australian moment” as we discussed the bushfire risk in St Andrews as a tropical cyclone was making its way toward home!

Australia – a land of drought and flooding rains!

I used photographs from a few trips I did about 20 years ago. The act of revisiting them stirred a lot of reflection.

I was surprised by how simple the photogravure process is once the imagery and equipment are properly prepared.

And even more surprised by the new creative doors it has opened, especially the potential to blend digital image-making with traditional and contemporary printmaking techniques.

I left with a head full of ideas and that magical “tingle in my tummy” – knowing that I have found something meaningful. I won’t be teaching this process, but I absolutely plan to explore it further. I’m carving out time in the coming months for creative development and already imagining how it could shape a new body of work.

Thank you Silvi for your clarity, generosity and depth of knowledge.

I hope to return to Baldessin Studio again soon.