Wallpapers Are Printed!

After a couple of weeks working on my designs, tweaking colours, new layouts and considering which ones could go together with my fabric print, I have chosen to print off 9 designs.

I have put them into 3 collections of 3, based on colour and how busy they are. Some are really simple, more like textures, and others more statement, one wall kind of designs.

Since I have my big print I chose just to print off the repeat square of each one. This way I can put a few in my degree show and the others will fit in my portfolio!

Here they are!

Extra Prints

Staffordshire University had an open day on Saturday and the studio was open all day for us to use, so I jumped at the chance!

I had a big print table to myself, so I decided to do some big art pieces that I can frame or stretch onto frames.

Was great to have a quiet print room and lots of space to do whatever I liked, and I'm really pleased with how it all turned out, bonus!

Back To Work!

After having two weeks off I am back in uni, already feels like I have never been away!

Over the last two days I have managed to complete the second layer of my fabric with all of the patterns printed on.

I am really happy with how it has turned out, none of the pattern detail has been lost and the colours look great.

Even better, because this has taken such a short amount of time I am going to do a second print but change it slightly, getting more use out of my screens!

Upping The Scale

I have been working on my final repeating print design and used lots of different stylised animals from my original drawings, and added all my monoprint patterns to them.

I chose one to blow up to a really big scale to see what it would look like.

This is bigger than the scale of my final print but I wish it could be this big!

Print Testing!

During the past week I have been using my test screen to try out different colours, layering colours on top of each other and trying some fabrics.

Being brave with my colour combinations and seeing what works!

The Start Of Printing

At the end of last week I had to choose the fabrics I wanted to test and use in time for printing in just over a weeks time, this meant making a test screen to see how the fabrics would react differently with the inks, especially since I want to layer up see through fabrics.

Heres an image of the start of my testing...

Research Trip And Drawings

Yesterday I took a trip over to Nottingham to go to Wollaton Hall, where they have a large collection of taxidermy animals, perfect for me to draw for my African themed project. So I took lots of pictures and did some sketches while I was there, then carried on drawing from my photos today!

This is my progress as far as my design is going, sort of reminds me of Andy Warhol prints with all the bright colours.

 

Printing, Printing...More Printing!

After starting to use some colour, I've been churning out the monoprints using my stamps.

Printing using the colours from my earlier experiments.

Will post the end result tomorrow!

Adding In Some Colour

Since I've been working in black and white for the whole project, I decided it was time to add in some colour, do a few experiments and see what works.

I painted some backgrounds and printed over them with my lino and polystyrene stamps.

Some worked and others didn't, was good to see my designs change with some colour on them.

Printing Experiments

After churning out lots and lots of mono prints using my polystyrene and lino cut stamps...

I managed to collage together one of the animals I have drawn, using simple geometric shapes.

I think this idea could be quite successful once the patterns have some colour on them!

I have also gone back a step and done some more experimenting to try and introduce some colour into my work. 

Printing on top of some loose painted pattern.

Printing colour on top of painted pattern.

Im not sure these really work yet but I will keep working on it!

Polystyrene Prints

The past couple of days I have been using lino and polystyrene to create my own stamps and patterns.

I am enjoying the simplicity of the process and the freedom, it is also giving some nice textures that reflect my African theme!