Monotype Printmaking at Home Video using a Gel Plate: Expressionistic Nude Figure
I have been working on school, homeschooling, and working so much lately I have not had the time to actually print! So I was very excited that school work gave me a little break in order to do some monotype printmaking at home. I used a Gel Plate and created this expressionistic Nude Figure.
I filmed the whole thing and am excited to show you the process and how I went about it.
The Video
Note: The figure is nude so if this is offensive, please do not watch. Thank you.
The Process
I decided to use the Speedball Professional relief Ink and try it on my gel plate. I have used this large gel plate before with other inks and I did not like it much. However, I think it was due to the ink I was using. The kind I tried before was a water based ink which dries very fast, especially in the dry desert of California.
So in order to try it again, I used the oil based ink. Granted, every kind of ink I use at home is meant to be safe to use. The inks can all be washed with soap and water.
I am glad I tried it again. The Monotype Printmaking went much better than the last time I tried this specific gel plate and as you can see printed very nicely. I did have some problems with it drying too quickly, but I think it added to the effects I got in the art piece.
Materials List
All of the materials in this list were used in the video. Monotype printmaking at home is very fun and can add a very playful and experimental element to your artworks.
I tried Bristol board for the paper this time instead of my normal printmaking papers. It compared nicely to the Jack Richeson papers I write about in this post about printmaking papers. I liked the Bristol board, it was very smooth and worked very well for handprinting.
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Speedball Professional Relief Ink
Soft Rubber Brayer
Strathmore Bristol Board Paper
Gel Press Printing Plate – 12” x 12”
The Results
I thought the textures achieved were spontaneous and very fun. I would highly recommend it to anyone starting out in printmaking or the veteran printmakers.
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