Drypoint Printmaking- Landscape and Weather

What to expect

At last we have persuaded the wonderful Agnes Treherne to return to Long House Studios, this time to introduce you to one of her passions - Drypoint printmaking. During this course we will make drypoint prints from drawings made in the landscape, emulating Bonnard, who wrote, "The most important thing is to remember what most impressed you, and to note it down as quickly as possible." Each day will start with a slideshow, looking at work that expresses how landscape moves and is animated by weather; the movement of water, a rain squall, wind, or cloud shadows across a hillside. The Kentmere valley has all these elements, with a lake at its heart. Taking drawing materials into the landscape, we will build a record of impressions, and events that catch our eye, bringing them back to the studio where we will develop them into Drypoint plates for printing. This technique allows one to experiment with shifting alternate impressions of the same view, depending on how you ink the plate. Drypoint is perhaps the most straightforward printing technique, consisting of drawing or scratching with a sharp stylus into a plate - traditionally copper or zinc, but more economically acetate, or even tetrapak. Akin to drawing, the marks you make hold the ink and print as black lines or marks. During this course we will use acetate, useful for its transparency when transferring an image directly from a drawing. The joy of this technique is that you do not need to use chemicals or a printing press (although we do have one). You can make a drypoint with basic household appliances – using the back of a spoon as your press, and a sharp nail as your incisor. The results are always magical and unexpected. Do not be put off by thinking that printmaking is somehow complicated or difficult. It is FUN and the results are amazing. You will return home with some beautiful prints and the knowledge to make more! You will need to bring suitable clothing and footwear for sketching outside.