Botanical Impressions – Gel Plate Monoprinting Learning Notes - 2020 Kids in Action Virtual Tour

The following Learning Notes have been developed to support your enquiry and investigation around this workshop topic.

Presenter contact details:

Kim Herringe

Website: www.kimherringe.com.au

Email: kim@kimherringe.com.au

Presenter Bio: Kim Herringe is a printmaker. She loves printmaking in all its inky, painterly, and organic forms– monoprinting, etching, cyanotype, letterpress, printmaking on clay, mokohanga, screenprinting and eco-printing.

However, Kim’s favourite form is reduction linocut printing – where she can spend weeks and months working on one piece, carving and printing and carving and printing to the final hand-printed piece.

Kim runs workshops to teach others about these different forms of printmaking.

Alignment with ‘We are Botanica’ sub-themes:

Dr Nature – plant-based therapy

Workshop Activity & Resources

Printing with gelatine plates is fun, easy and contagious! In this workshop you will learn how to play with found and organic shapes and objects to produce a series of one-off prints (called monotype).

You will learn how to take both a planned and spontaneous approach to this printing method. Kim believes there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ with this process, and there are no ‘mistakes’. It is playful and creative.

Resources needed:

Essentials:

- Gelatine plates (commercially made or home made – recipe attached)

- Brayer (roller)

- Paper and/or fabric

- Paints / inks

Other items that are useful:

- Paper – lots of paper!

- Steel ruler

- Cutting mat

- Craft knife

- Tape

- Rags

- Baby wipes or cleaning cloths

- Baby oil

Mark making items:

- Leaves

- Rubber bands

- String

- Stencils

- Paper cut outs

- Frayed thread and rope

- Lace, fabric, bubble wrap

- Anything else you can think of!

Extension Ideas: Use the Gel Plate monoprinting technique to:

- Make an herbarium of plants in your school yard

- Make unique t-shirt designs

- Create gift cards with local plants

- Make a collage of plants

- Draw, paint and add to your prints with other media including pens, paint, pencil and crayons.

Here are two gel-plate techniques to try once you’re comfortable with the basics:

Printing the mountain ranges with torn paper - https://kimherringe.com.au/printmaking/gel-print-tips-mountain-range/

Printing a while silhouette - https://kimherringe.com.au/printmaking/gel-print-tips-white-silhouette/

Workshop Notes: Gelatine Plate recipe with simple ingredients available at most supermarkets – to make at home or at school – available at the end of these notes.

Key Learning Areas:

The Arts

Science

Design & Technology

Extra resource links:

YouTube videos about exploring the Gel Plate process:

Using magazine images with Gel plate process – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUJ1JV5lGxE

Gel printing with leaves and feathers - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2aVuTOQk4g

Gel printing using paper cut outs –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9p5LdI_IkU

Creating layers with gel plate printing - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcTW2E2dj4c

What to do with all those coloured baby wipes - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEJWHN74Txw