Monoprint Experiments

What is a monoprint?

A monoprint is a form of printmaking in which the image is made only once. The initial steps are quick and engaging. Paint or ink is placed on a plexiglass or a ‘gel’ (gelatin) plate. Paper or cloth is placed on the inked plate and rubbed. With your hand or ‘baren’ (Japanese rubbing tool), you apply pressure to be sure the ink permeates the substrate (paper or cloth). The printed material is then pulled up to reveal the print image.

After the initial printing, I respond. Do I like it? What more does it need? Texture, color, line? My attention is riveted. I incise into the paint on the plate, add texture, or do both. I also have the option to put ink on a stencil and press that into the paper. What happens? Add another layer. Add cut or torn shapes as a resist. Use something textured underneath for a rubbing: so many possibilities! If I add two or three colors of ink onto the gel plate and let the last layer dry, what will happen when I place paper on it? When do I stop?

I’m following and listening to myself and to the ‘voice’ of the line, gesture, shape, color. Might my next action be a mistake? Then, be sure to try it out! I’m interested in what “happens to be there, rather than what I wish were there” (Ann O’Hanlon). This is the beauty of the monoprint process.

I created these monoprints in a workshop led by Candis Cousins at the O’Hanlon Center for the Arts in Mill Valley, CA. We begin with a reading to set a mood. A demonstration in which we all participate reminds us of the possibilities of the technique after which we work for three hours. In the end, we take sufficient time to look at everyone’s pieces. Our task is to look carefully, to find the quality of beauty, surprise, comfort/discomfort, and essence in each person’s work and to support the artfulness of each participant.