That happened to me this weekend, when I took "Kitchen Lithography" at The Mill Paper + Book Arts Center in Rhinelander (WI). Yes, I know lithography isn't a form of relief printing, but it's printmaking and that's good enough for me! :)
Daniel Goscha, Executive Director for "The Mill", taught the class. He's spent a goodly amount of time perfecting this technique, too! It involves using non-toxic household items, like vinegar and vegetable oil, to make litho prints (instead of bitumen and caustic paste). The results are MAGICAL!!! I couldn't believe it when he used litho crayon on an aluminum foil plate, dipped it in a vinegar bath, et VOILA!! Just amazing.
Doing these classes has also forced me to practice drawing, something that has always terrified me. But I figure that, no matter WHAT I draw, it'll at least be my own style, right?
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| Here I am, nonchalantly drawing, like I've done it my whole life. :) |
And here is one of the prints from that plate! I used blue ink, which had a different viscosity than the black ink that was also available. Not precise, but I really dig how it turned out, especially for my first time. :)
I'm going to put it out there, because I want everyone to see it and hopefully it goes somewhere - I think that this would make a GREAT book idea!! The title, "Kitchen Lithography", is intriguing as it is, but when you get into the whole DIY aspect of it, and the fact that you'd pretty much have everything you need to make prints at home without much fuss at all, AND it's all non-toxic - well, what do you think? If you think this is a great idea, let Daniel know by posting "I think Kitchen Lithography should be made into a book!" on The Mill's Facebook page. :) Maybe if enough of us printmakers persuade him to do it, it'll be a go! I'd buy that book for SURE! :D
