Department Store Printmaking Product Publication

Pressing Matters: Issue 8

posted by Robyn Pitts August 29, 2019

The independently-run publication, Pressing Matters magazine, is back for Issue 8. The magazine hones in on the people, passion and processes behind the artform of printmaking, hoping to inspire newcomers and give a voice and a face to the increasingly vast number of people calling printmaking their thing. From curious beginners to those exploring the world of fine art editions, there are all sorts of people who are making their mark out of printmaking.

Issue 8 sees the featured artists working with print to do just this; be it Desiree deRuiter creating the blackest of blacks, Lauren Curl adding sculptural qualities to her work through laser etching, or Claire Harrup exploring what printed mark-making brings to her illustrations. This issue hears of their creative journeys which are often ones of surprise, happy accidents and hard work.

“Through making this issue, I’ve encountered more and more makers keen to share their knowledge, to push themselves and their co-conspirators forward” states John Coe, Pressing Matters founder and curator. Issue 8 looks at printmakers using screenprint, woodcut, Riso and more to ask questions, and those working at the very edge of their techniques to explore what’s possible, engaging with their communities and further afield. It was in this spirit that John said yes to an invitation to the Letterpress Workers Summit in Milan, throwing himself in at the deep end technically, “but coming away with a better appreciation of the technique and some firm friends too“.

This issue also looks back in order look forward; delving into the work of Romas Visuelas, the Grosvenor School of Art and Geoffrey Wales, who all produced exciting and dynamic works in the past but had very modern approaches and created prints that could easily have been made today. “It’s exciting to hear about these artists from those who knew them and take away the best bits to feed it into our own work” concludes John.