This week we thought we would share some fun facts about lino cut as we are spotlighting our new lino printing workshops.
Firstly, I should begin with a little description of what lino printing is, so here goes… Lino cut is a type of relief printing where you carve into a sheet of linoleum, apply ink and then press onto paper. You can create beautiful prints with either single-coloured inks, or layer them to create multicoloured works.
There are a few tools you need to get started, but I will start by explaining what linoleum actually is. You may be familiar with lino as a floor covering, but not what it is made of; it is a mix of linseed oil, ground wood and organic binders backed onto burlap. So the base materials are actually very eco and sustainable.
To cut into the lino you use gouging tools, getting different shapes and effects by changing the shape and size of the gouges. In lino print it often feels like you are working backwards to many other types of artwork, as the parts that you work on and carve are the parts that will not appear in ink in your final image, and your picture will be a mirror image of what you have carved.
You apply the ink using a roller and then press the paper onto the lino cut using a tool known as a baren. Your baren can be a specially made tool, or you can use a household item such as a wooden spoon, flat bottomed jar or a porcelain door knob! All it needs to be is smooth and easily held so that you can put pressure down through it.
If all this has inspired you to give lino cut a go pop over to our COURSES tab to book your place on one of our workshops for 2022.
Goodbye for now and we will be back next week x