Print International

This Winter I was selected to show some of my prints in Print International at Ty Pawb in Wrexham, Wales. Over 85 printmakers from 10 countries were selected & the calibre of work was fantastic. In its final week I made a trip to the space to take a look around. My selected prints are, Goldfinger House on Monarflex in Black with Fluorescent Red Backing & Barbican on Monarflex in Black with Fluorescent Green Backing. Both of these prints are from a set of 9 & are printed on reclaimed Monarflex, a plastic sheeting used on scaffolding. These prints are designed to be shown in this raw form, with clips, exposed edges & no barrier from the viewer. During my visit I saw a viewer curious enough to touch the print, which I didn’t mind at all, printing on this material is supposed to expose its quality & uses. However after seeing them in this show I do wonder how they would look in a frame.

Here are 2 other works that really stood out to me. A complex geometric print by Lily R O’Connell which immediately jumped from the wall because of the colour. Then after spending some time in front of the work there was a fanatic illusion quality that seems to play with the idea of screen print registering. The centre of the print looks ordered but as the pattern moves to the edges there is a blurring as the lines start to separate & expose gaps. Printing in this way must have caused a headache or 2 but the success of the ordered disorder is exceptional.

I was also taken by Lindsey Moran’s Photopolymer Etching. This monochromatic image possesses qualities that are difficult to explain. Its almost as though this image has grown organically, there is a sense of biology taking place before us on the paper. Shadowy parts & light flares alter the surface beyond the image creating an effect of texture on the surface. This is a quality I like to play with when printing onto plastic by attempting to suggest concrete weather staining. To me it has been raining at night, a shadowy gleam sets a strong mood.