‘Impressions of Nature’ Printmaking Competition Winners

‘Impressions of Nature’ Competition Winners

The decisions have been made! Our judge has chosen a winner and the public voting finished yesterday.
Thank you to everyone who submitted an original print. It was interesting to see then all.

First Prize: Clive Riggs with ‘Spring- The Leaping Hare’
selected by our judge, artist printmaker Nick Morley, will receive £250 of Caligo Safe Wash Inks.

Nick Morley tells us about his choice:
“For me Spring means the arrival of colour and there were some brilliantly colourful prints submitted. However, in the end I chose a black and white image: Clive Riggs’ mezzotint The Leaping Hare.

This print just blew me away as soon as I saw it. It has a timeless quality to it and the hare draws you in with its startled look. At the same time there is a powerful sense of movement and, despite the close cropping, an illusion of depth created by the trees and the glow of light in the distance. It is technically brilliant – mezzotint is one of the hardest printmaking techniques to master – but it retains a feeling of fluidity and life.”

Clive Riggs
Spring- The Leaping Hare
Mezzotint engraving on copper.
The plate is initially completely roughened with a rocker producing a deep burr in order to produce a the black tones. By scraping and burnishing away the burr to greater or lesser degrees, the grey and whiter tones are then produced. No preliminary etching was used for this print.

People’s Choice Prizes selected by public vote

People’s Choice First Prize: Bob Seal with ‘Spring Planting Day’
will receive £150 Jackson’s Art vouchers

Bob Seal
Spring Planting Day
Woodcut
Cut using a scalpel and miniature chisel U gouges and V tools
Hand burnished using a wooden spoon on Wenzhou paper
35 x 23.5 inches (900mm x 600mm)

People’s Choice Second Prize: Alexandra Buckle with ‘Stoke Wood Bluebells’.
will receive £50 Jackson’s Art vouchers

Alexandra Buckle
Stoke Wood Bluebells
A reduction linocut with 5 colours, printed on somerset satin paper.
“This scene is from my local woodlands, a favourite spot where I like to walk my dog.”

People’s Choice Third Prize: Alison Deegan with ‘Newt Love’.
will receive £50 Jackson’s Art vouchers

Alison Deegan
Newt Love
Lino print
Inspired by the springtime activity in a Peak District pond. The design was carved into a single block of linoleum. The block was first inked with an even layer of the lighter green using a roller and printed onto a mid-weight paper with a nipping press. Once the first layer was dry the block was selectively inked with darker shades of green using a stiff brush: stippled in some areas, blended and wiped in others and then printed over the lighter shade.