Mono printing with kids

I took a mono printing workshop earlier this month, and the inks I ordered following the workshop arrived yesterday. Mono printing is a great way to get started in printmaking, and, coincidentally, so is rubber stamping! Printmaking in its most basic form is simply adding colour medium to a surface, and then "printing" that on paper. With the Gelli Plate I purchased at the workshop, a rubber brayer and the four slow drying Akua Kolor inks that I ordered, I'm all set up to start creating my own prints at home.

I made a dozen prints last night, and this morning the kids and I couldn't finish schoolwork fast enough when I told them I'd let them try making some prints of their own.

They choose their inks and rolled them evenly on the Gelli Plate.

Then they chose items to press into the inked plate, lifting off to leave an impression of that object in the ink. We used bubble wrap, feathers, lace and rubber stamps.

I have a variety of stamps that fit in a roller handle and these were especially fun to roll across the inked surface of the plate. The inks dry very slowly, and so there's lots of time to consider and add different textures. I also like that since these are watercolour inks, they clean up easily, though my hands are stained a sickly shade of blue.

A finished print. The kids found the technique so addicting, and they loved that from one inked plate they could get 2-4 images, growing progressively lighter. (They loved also that the term for this is "ghost print.")

Now we are all a team on the hunt for interesting objects to add texture to our prints!