Rear view mirror: monotypes in reverse
I've been creating monotypes for more than 30 years - since my early days at art school but I still keep making discoveries for new methods and interpretations of my favourite themes of landscape and seascape. Our Northumberland castles are the perfect subject for a Romantic, expressive interpretation with the rapidly changing cloud-scapes that are a feature of the North East weather
What exactly are monotypes? Good question! If you're new to my blog, you may not have seen my videos that show my process. This is the best way to get a handle on how I create monotypes. Scroll down to see a recent one or check out my YouTube channel.
A monotype is a one-off printed painting created on a smooth surface (I use a white acrylic sheet) then transferred onto paper through a printing press. It's very low tech and wide open to experimentation. If you want to know more, you might enjoy my blog post The Mystery of Monotype.
It's not quite as straightforward as that because I print in layers of colour, incorporating stencils, textured materials and a wide range of different marks. Mark-making is usually negative - taking away ink - but I can also make positive marks.
In my little world of printmaking , a revolution has been taking place! All my career, I've worked from light to dark which means the palest colours are printed first and subsequent layers get gradually darker. This has always seemed a logical progression to me. But recently, I've been experimenting with transparent inks and I've made a discovery that it changing the way I think about my process.
It's a bit technical, so bear with me! When the paper is new, it's very absorbant, but as layers of ink are printed, it gets less and less absorbant and it's actually quite difficult to get strong marks to take on the final dark layer. So, I've turned my working method on it's head and I'm printing the darkest layer first then adding veils of transparent colour. What this means for the image is that I can get more expression and delicacy in the marks, expecially for the skies.
It feels a bit like starting over as an artist - it will take a while to feel any mastery of my new process. But I'm excited at the prospect of creating some powerful Romantic skies that have a strong sense of atmosphere and changing weather conditions. "Romantic" refers to an art movement that was interested in the natural world and the expression of personal feelings - think big stormy skies, windswept landscapes and Byronic hero!
On Cloud Nine and Upon Reflection (blog posts) shared my first attempts with this method. The completed panaorma format monotypes shown here are the latest results. Actually, both strategies (dark to light and light to dark) are represented here.
The video above shows me printing the Bamburgh monotype. For this one, I used the light to dark method that I'm more familiar with. I'll make a video of the dark to light method soon!
There's two colour palettes shown here : the moody, predominantly grey colours with a hint of gold and blue, and the warm sunset/sunrise colours with magenta being the dominant hue. I really must settle down and stick to one instead of bouncing around! In my excitement about the possibilities, I keep starting new projects!
The finished monotypes are now available for sale. Just get in touch to make a purchase by phone (+447717256169) or email info@rebecca-vincent.co.uk as these are not yet listed in my online shop. We can discuss framing options: these northumberland coast paintings are currently unframed and can be shipped to USA, Canada, Australia and Europe as well as the UK.
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