The Printing Process
I start with an idea
It often pops into my head when I least expect it. I have a mass of sketchbooks full of drawings or titles and I flit backwards and forwards between them, gathering up ideas like a magpie and putting them together. Then I sketch. I like it best when an idea works straight away, not too many rubbings-out. I then trace my design and transfer it to my lino block. Some blocks are really simplistic and relatively quick, but others – especially with lots of lettering – take much longer. Then I’ll pull a proof of my block and perhaps make more adjustments. Once I’m happy I print the edition.
About limited edition prints
There can sometimes be confusion about mass produced prints, or giclee prints, as opposed to limited edition, hand-pulled prints.
All my prints are hand inked, by me, and printed using either my antique Albion press or my larger, modern, Woodzilla press. When neither of these presses are big enough, I work on the floor using a baren. You can see videos of me printing on my Instagram page.
I work mainly in editions of 30 to 50, with a few Artist’s Proofs sometimes available for purchase too. So, when you buy one of my prints you will see a number at the bottom left corner, 1/50 up to 50/50. There are only this many of that print produced, with each one printed by me. Once an edition is sold out it won’t be printed again, hence the name ‘limited edition.’
Flomp - process
I mainly use black ink on white paper, though there are some coloured prints. Sometimes I apply colour after the black – with a finger or a mini stamp-block I’ve carved. Sometimes I print the colour first with a complex jigsaw of linocut blocks held together in a jig/frame, and the black printed at a later stage to pull the image together.
