Welcome to the Bracken Press PRINT-workshop website

Intaglio (etching, drypoint, aquatint)

& block printing & wood engraving  

(lino-prints, surface printing) & letterpress


Established 1974.

Email  





Due to forthcoming commitments there will be no courses

in 2024






Lino-printing / block printing

2 day course.

9.30 a.m. - 6.00 p.m.

Day 1


Introduction to block printing, the basics.

Reversing your image.

Transferring your design to the block.

Safe cutting, the principles.

Proofing your design, quick methods of seeing what you've cut.

Making other blocks to compliment your design.

Corrections.

The principles of registration.

Other materials one can use.


Day 2


Adjusting the press.

The Albion platen press, use and abuse.

Colour printing, viscosity printing, overlays, the basics.

Printing your design.

Registration marks.

Overlaying of colours

Editioning your finished Lino print.


Care of the equipment, solvents used etc.


Other materials that can be used for block printing.


At the close of the day you should have achieved a printing of at least an edition of 10 prints.


Included in the course fee:-

A comprehensive list of current suppliers of materials.

Lino/blocks

Printing inks and consumables are included in the course fee.

Hand made paper.

The Albion Press 1889

Size:Double crown


















 

The Harrild & Sons Table top Albion Press

Fleet Works, London E.C. 1869


Platen size : 16 x 11 inches (fools cap)

Bed size:   19 x 13 inches


Tympan + frisket


Cast iron approximate weight .5 ton.

Used for text / lino-prints / wood engraving.


There are 5 platen presses to use at Bracken Press,  for  lino- printing, letterpress , wood cut & wood engraving.

All dating from the 19th Century.



Workshop view, 11 x 5.5 metres
Fully equipped to produce, etchings, lino - prints, wood engravings, wood cuts.
A compositors lay slab, used for laying out the letters in a chase before printing. Cast iron top with drawers underneath for storing full chases. Heater box for printing of etchings.
Another compositors table with assembled text
Text locked into a chase ready for printing.
Assembly of text before printing.
Panoramic photo: Etching bay, Albion (large), Albion (small), etching press
Rollers inked up prior to printing
Prepared English Boxwood blocks for wood engraving
Cases of letterpress
full fonts

Click on a photo to enlarge.

The Albion Platen Press


Leeds Foundry 1889

Platen size: 23 x 34 inches (double crown)

Bed size: 27.25 x 39 inches

Purchased in 1974.


Cast iron approximate weight 1.5 tons.


Used for all surface printing, lino cuts, text, wood engravings, colographs & mono prints. manually operated, inking by hand held roller. The sort of press that Caxton would have used ( only his was made of wood).

The backbone of Bracken Press, this press was purchased in 1974 in Wensleydale.

Recently refurbished, follow link.

This introductory course will introduce you to lino / surface printing with hands on experience.

At the end of the  two days intensive course you should have printed several proofs of your design and a limited edition of at least 10 prints which you will have printed to take home with you.

Another surface printing technique being wood engraving. Both lino & wood engraving can be experienced on the same 2 day course.


Once you have completed a course at Bracken Press Print - workshop and you want to continue with your printmaking projects and you do not have ready access to any printing equipment you will be welcome to use the facilities at Bracken Press Print- workshop on a daily fee basis with materials charged at cost.


Several artists already make use of the facilities at Bracken Press to either edition more prints of an existing image or to create new images.