Daria Starostin and her partner Diede van Ommen at Studio Vlinderboom recently hosted a Riso-Monotype workshop at the Amsterdam 750 festival. But this was no ordinary workshop in the studio space, as the event took place took place on a highway! Around 200 people participated in their workshop where they produced a monoprint card using used Riso-masters. Children especially had a lot of fun scraping the ink through using all kinds of weird and unusual tools, such as toothbrushes, rollers, and little hammers.
Illustrator and Risographer Daria opened Studio Vlinderboom with Diede after graduating from the art academy in Rotterdam. During their second year of studies, the duo were randomly paired up to work on a project. “It was such a fun endeavour that it sparked the idea of creative partnership,” says Daria. The pair were also joined by the third member of their studio, their Risograph printer named Rita. The Risograph used to be a part of the printmaking workshop at the academy, and they came to a deal that if they could carry it out of the building, it was theirs. They didn’t just carry it out of the building, but transported it all the way to Amsterdam where Studio Vlinderboom is located!
After getting involved with Amsterdam’s 750 Festival following an open call for artists, the pair were invited to host a workshop on the motorway around the city. The festival marks the 750th Birthday of Amsterdam, with events taking place across the city dedicated to the festivity. The biggest celebration took place on the longest day of the year, 21st of June, and was located on the highway. Daria describes; “It’s a very unique occasion that the city was practically closed for the cars for a whole day. and people were walking, biking and rollerskating on the highway!” It was unusual to host a workshop in such setting, so, of course, they weren’t able to bring their Riso printer to the location. This prompted them to be creative, and use discarded Riso masters as a tool instead.
Usually hosting workshops in their studio for small groups of 6-8 people, this was an exciting step up for Studio Vlinderboom. Daria tells us; “There are always people in the group who are more familiar with the art of printing and those who are experiencing for the first time. It’s always inspiring to see what kind of discoveries participants make during the workshop. And the joyful faces of child-like play bring us happiness.” Most of the participants in this workshop were children, but no matter the age, participants showed great interest and dedication to scrubbing the ink through using peculiar tools.
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