stencils

Recently, I was on my way to a doctor’s appointment in Boston. It was a new adventure for me, train travel, subway and city navigation. But it was a sunny day and I was open to the adventure.

The granite wall of the Boston Children’s hospital caught my attention. After my appointment I crossed the street and got a closer look. It is a grayscale garden in granite. According to this article it was created with a sandblasting technique. Read more about the process in this article.

Mikyoung Kim Design is the designer of the playful graphic. The idea is “Playful nature in the City”

One reason I was so taken by the image is that I am working on a image for a collaborative book. The theme is What’s in Your Garden? I am an apartment dweller and enjoy other people’s gardens.

I like:

• simplified silhouettes
• lots of layers
• monochromatic images

I have been noticing the cast shadows on the road of my daily bike ride. I was thinking about layering this cast shadows of roadside vines, flowers and weeds into “My Garden.”

I had been imagining something very similar to the granite wall at the Boston Children’s Hospital. I love the complex layers and the way it draws the viewer in for a closer look.

I think I will use a camera to capture my silhouettes.

Are you ready to capture inspiration that crosses your path?

I hope so.

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I got several small fabric samples, at the local recycling center, extras for creative reuse.

I did some sketches, drawings and doodles with reference to some of the patterns. This is an easy way to draw something if you really don’t have a passion for drawing. It gives you a starting place. Of course you do not want to create exact copies of someone else’s design.

Today I cut a few simple trees and circles and used them as masking stencils while printing with the gelatin plate. Monotype printing on the gelatin plate is always unpredictable.

I have been exploring this process for several years and still l manage to discover new approaches. Today, I played with surprise ink on the stencil and releasing it in different ways on to the plate and on to the paper.

If you have not tried gelatin printmaking with the homemade gelatin and glycerin plate and you like working to discover new ways of making marks, then wait no longer. Get the FREE recipe and try it this week.

The Make Stencils Workshop start March 6th and it is the only time it will be offered in 2017. Stencils can be the foundation for so many different types of art making.

Enjoy  a video of some student stencils and work from the last session of the Make Stencils Online Workshop:

More people are loving Make Stencils Workshop with Linda Germain:

Thank you Linda for another really wonderful class full of new ideas and great inspiration!

If you haven’t taken Linda’s other classes, particularly Make Monotypes and Pulling Screen Prints, I highly recommend you do! I have taken both and Linda is a consumate teacher, artist, inspirer!

That’s the beauty of Linda’s classes, having full access to all the videos and information for a while after the class ends and being able to download them to have forever:) JM Robb, US

I have taken all of Linda’s classas and have come away with something every time that has enriched my practice.  Honestly, can’t recommend Linda’s classes enough!!! Marny Stevenson, Canada

Summary of Make Stencils Printmaking Workshop

Week 1: Image building  and subject matter development. Explore traditional stencil, tools and materials. Use free software to help change photo to high contrast image and great stencil. Choose printing surfaces and appropriate inks. Optional project – one time use paper stencil pillow

Week 2: Use the masking stencil. Expand the types of materials to make the stencil – consider the texture. Create a set of masking stencils to use together. Consider design elements and principles of variety, repetition and scale and unity. Optional project One box gelatin plate play.

Week 3:  Focus of this week is multi-color portrait or other image. Tweak and revisit images. Explore folded and then cut stencil. This could be something out of your usual comfort zone.  This is meant to inspire and show off your new skills.

Week 4: Repair, restore and revisit. Let’s take care of all these new tools we have made. Are there free or ready made, found “stencil” options? Explore natural stencils and alternatives to paper and plastic. Are there library or community tools available to you? Pause and work these new skills into your regular art making.

Check out more info on the workshop page and register today.

Check out this short video and get some ideas and inspiration for making stencils for your art work.

Start to See Shapes and shadows.

Check out my stack of stencils

Want to make a stack of stencils of your own? Join us in this session of the Make Stencils Workshop, the online art class starts March 6th. Check out the details on the workshop page and register today.

Stencils are an easy way to make prints without having a printing press.

The prints above were created with stencils in combination with the gelatin printing plate. The words and figure are created with what I call traditional “hole” type stencils.

This was a print made from a magazine image. The purple image on the lower right is the stencils. You can see that the “holes” are where the ink is gently pushed through to the paper. See more images screen printed with stencils here.

The abstract stencils above show you the “hole” stencil on the left and the cut out masking stencil on the right. I use the masking stencil in combination with the gelatin plate to make  monotype prints.

This cityscape is an example of how I use masking stencils with the gel plate for printing on paper. Enjoy more gelatin prints made with masking stencils here.

I have even worked with a couple of other artists in my town to use stencils to make a few creative crosswalk in our downtown area.

So as you can see stencil are versatile. They are all about see and creating interesting shapes.

I bet you can make and print with a few stencils today!

• Maybe you have a few stencils in your studio???
• Could you cut simple paper stencils on a fold, like hearts and trees?
• What about an alphabet stencil?
• Now use a cosmetic sponge and gently dab, up and down, to “push” ink through the stencil and on to your paper!
• Less is more with the paint.

Enjoy!

If you would like to explore making stencils, then stay on the mailing list and you will get notice of the next session 2018 of the Make Stencils Workshop, online art class. Read all the details and sign up today.

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