“I was born into intaglio engraving, so to speak,” says Anna Leckie of Geneva-based intaglio studio, Atelier Leckie. Both of Anna’s parents were craftspeople, each in their own field, which gave her a taste for manual work from an early age. Her father was a printmaker, and she fondly remembers herself and her sister creating etchings as young children. She tells us; “One of my favourite works, on display in my studio, is an etching my sister did when she was 5 : two charming little reindeer. Simple lines etched in copper that look so good on paper when printed!” Her father went on to teach Anna several techniques including drypoint, etching, aquatint, and soft varnish, and she discovered how to take care of tools, use a press, cut paper, and handle inks along the way.
When she was 16, Anna’s father died suddenly. Her mother decided to keep his studio intact and continued to pay the rent. Anna comments; “It took a while, but I went back. Occasionally at first, just to have a look. And gradually, I started engraving again.”
She started to experiment once again with all of the different techniques taught by her father, remembering the gestures she learned as a child, and reading books. Anna brought his workshop back to life, and made it her own, naming it ‘Atelier Leckie’; a name shared by both her and her father.
“I love the process of intaglio engraving, sometimes almost more than the end result. I love experimenting with techniques, tools and materials,” says the printmaker. She continues; “Watching other printers work on instagram, seeing the techniques they use and their tips are a goldmine for me.” Anna still has a few copies of etchings printed on plaster by her father. This technique has continued to fascinate her, however she was perplexed about how to go about it. Then, one day, she came across an engraver (@viniciuslibardoni) who was showing his process for printing on cement. Anna immediately copied it, and was able to print her first plates on plaster.
Anna has been hosting regular one-day printmaking courses from the Atelier Leckie studio for a number of years now. She describes; “It’s great to see people discovering the gestures of engraving, their hands full of ink, their preference for drypoint or etching”. In 2023 she began collaborating with her former printmaking student, and now friend, Paul Ghidoni. Telling us more about the collaboration Anna states; “His drawing skills and our long-term projects have enabled me to give more thought to the final result and to deepen my knowledge of the various intaglio techniques”.
For the past year, Anna has been working with a new press that has allowed her to share printmaking outside of her studio space. Thus far, it has been used for a drypoint aperitif in a bar in Geneva, for a weekend of demonstrations during the Journées européennes des métiers d’art, and for a whole day of tetrapak engraving at the library.
Anna concludes; “By teaching printmaking in or outside my studio and working on a new joint project with Paul, I’m lucky enough to be able to continue to immerse myself in printmaking.”
@atelier.leckie
atelierleckie.ch
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