Monotype Printmaking Activities for Children with David Begley
An Online Demonstrations With David Begley
Tuesdays 29th April & 6th May 4-6pm GMT
JOIN LIVE OR WATCH THE RECORDING
A monotype is a unique print made by applying ink to a plate and transferring from this to paper. In this workshop David will demonstrate how to prepare paper for printmaking and how to use non toxic ink in a range of techniques to create monotypes with children.
Introduction to Monotype Printing:
What is a monotype?
Preparing paper: Cutting, soaking, and blotting paper for printmaking.
Mixing ink: Getting ink ready for use.
Types of plates: Foam, acetate, metal, and recycled Tetra Pak.
Inking up your plate.
Printing methods: Using a press or printing by hand at home.
Health and safety: Best practices for working with non-toxic materials.
Techniques will include mark making exercises, using recycled materials, including:
Tonking: a technique where excess ink is lifted from an inked surface using paper or cloth to create tonal variations and texture in printmaking.
Wipe out: where ink is selectively removed from a plate to create highlights, textures, and details before transferring the image to paper.
Direct Painting: where ink or paint is applied directly onto a plate using brushes or other tools, without the use of traditional printing methods.
Collograph: where textured materials are glued onto a plate, inked, and then pressed onto paper to create prints with rich textures and depth.
Sandyundum David’s child-friendly carborundum technique using beach sand to create textured prints,
Trash or Treasure: activities like sifting sand to find “treasures” (microplastics, coins, etc.) for printmaking.
Print collage: printed elements are cut and glued onto a surface to create a layered, mixed-media composition.
David will give exercises for working from imagination and from observation utilising line, tone, texture, and pattern.
Who is this for?
This workshop is ideal for artists, facilitators, parents, and teachers looking to explore creative, child-friendly printmaking techniques.
Resources:
An instructional PDF will be provided for participants.
About David Begley
David Begley is an Irish artist, film maker, writer, and arts educator. He has exhibited his animations, drawings, paintings, monotype prints and films, nationally and internationally since 1996.
In 2020 David was commissioned by Wexford County Council to create The Monk’s Garden, a visual art, heritage, and gardening project with St Edan’s National school, Ferns. This project gave the children the opportunity to grow and harvest food, dig an archaeological excavation, explore medieval ink making, and by using the garden as source for visual art workshops, create an exhibition of paintings and drawings. Inspired by this work, David made his short documentary The Keepers highlighting the importance of art and gardening for children. The film has been screened at film festivals in Czech Republic, Greece, Ireland, UK, and US.
Immersed in ink making, David created a short film and series of paintings titled Small finds exhibited at St David’s Cathedral Refectory, Wales, and Wexford County Council in 2023.
David facilitates workshops for adults at Chester Beatty, Dublin, Irish National Heritage Park, Wexford, mentors professional visual artists, and contributed to Making Charcoal for artists by Kate Boucher, published by The Crowood Press (September 2024).
David will provide an instructional PDF for this demonstration.
See ink paintings by David Begley at
Want to give this class as a gift?
The best way is with a gift voucher.
Simply give the voucher, and the recipient can use the code to sign up for the class. They’ll then register with their email to access all the resources.
This is the best way to maintain the element of surprise but ensure that they get access to all the resources directly.
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Thank you for your interest in our programmes. To ensure a high-quality experience and to respect the intellectual property rights of our teachers, we ask all participants to adhere to the following guidelines:
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We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in these matters. By following these guidelines, you help us protect the intellectual property of our teachers and ensure that all participants have a fair and enjoyable learning experience.