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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas15 YEAR

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NARRATIVE IN PRINT

People and Printmaking | Narratives Theme| Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

In the wordless book, reading sequential images requires concentratedeffort to decode features, forms and symbols that constitute thelanguage of the image within the frame of visual culture

We perceive that a work of art tells a story and we decipher thenarrative with tools accumulated through the millions of visualexperiences we all carry | Andrew Raftery | NA Time: Narrative Prints from the National Academy Museum.

| People and Printmaking | Narratives Theme| Swansea Print WorkshopSources, i nfluences and ideas

drawing as a means of narration, storytelling, social commentary andpersonal introspection.

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

The Theme for all the work created under the programme of activities forour 15 Anniversary Year is Narrative and this year, the theme extends tothe final exhibition, 15 Years, People and Printmaking, in November andDecember which is open to all members.This theme was selected because it is offers printmakers plenty of creativeapproaches and possibilities of interpretation. For example, your printmight be a reflection of a personal narrative, an interpretation of a myth orstory, an exploration of the narrative of the landscape, your printmakingjourney with SPW or even the narrative of a print process itself withmultiple layers or techniques used to build up the whole.We have collected together material drawn from ongoing dialogues withyou, our membership, and through the collective experience of theorganisation over the last 15 years. We hope this will provide you withplenty of ideas and inspire you to be part of this special CelebratoryExhibition.We look forward to seeing the work you create.

|People and Printmaking| Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas15 YEAR

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

He is seen as the greatest woodcut artist ofour time. A pacifist in World War I, he triedto make his art accessible to the ordinaryman. His works were banned by the Nazisand widely distributed in Communistcountries. But he rejected "political" artand party affiliation, condemning allenslavements, oppression, war andviolence, injustice, and the power ofmoney. We present here some of his manyworks and witnesses. The Idea (1920)Story Without Words (1920).

The appeal of this work to the contemporary artistis the range of observation and the everyday detailthat informs the storyline - from significant eventsto individual foibles and the humour of the humanconditiion.

Frans Masereel (1889-1972)

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

Walker's medium is wood engraving,predominantly printed graphic novels that tellstories without dialogue. His works are influencedby the styles of Frans Masreel, Lynd Ward andLaurence Hyde, all of whom have producedwordless novels using wood engraving techniques.2011 | The Book of Hours pays tribute in a seriesof 99 engraved prints to those who lost their liveson 9-11.The images focus on the workers in theWorld Trade Center from September 10, 2001,until September 11 at 9:02 am (when the secondplane hit).2012 | The Mysterious Death of Tom Thomsontells in a series of 109 prints the story of theevents surrounding the mysterious death ofCanadian artist Tom Thomson.Limited editionsMany of Walker's works are done in hand-printedlimited edition runs, sometimes with specificmeaning to the number of printings. TheMysterious Death of Tom Thomson was firstreleased in a limited run of 39 copies, signifyingThomson's age when he disappeared.

George A. Walker

His books demonstrate the strength of this simplegraphic process in producing powerful socialcommentary. He uses a wide variety of cuttingsyntax to express his meanings.

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

Alternative bindings and display methods forsequencing prints and found images and text providesprintmakers with a variety of structures to carry oreven create the Narrative theme.

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S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

Sally Hands | South Wales | Woodengraving Don Owen | Noah | woodengraving

Although Wood Engraving has largely fallen out of fashion, this technique has excitingpotential for the contemporary printmaker and lends itself naturally to the Narrativetheme. The work of two local artists – Don Owen and Sally Hands – demonstrate thebreadth of possibilities within the genre.Don Owen is a recognised Wood Engraver with work in V & A with great skills in design andcutting.Sally Hands has taken a fresh look at Wood Engraving in a personal (ACW) research project,bringing to it her vivid and exciting drawing and long experience in other areas ofprintmaking to make a really original contribution to the genre – culminating in heracceptance by Bankside Gallery, London and the Society of Wood engravers.

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

The narrative follows a couples’ struggle to raisetwo children on low wages whilst dealing with therealisation that their lives do not match up withwhat is presented to them.

Downsized: An engraved bookBased on the day the studio downsized and I wasmade redundant along with my colleagues ..

The National Art Library, Special Collections, Victoria and Albert Museum, London

The Cycle: An engraved book

Neil Bousfield

The art of storytelling through sequential imageryfor graphic designers and illustrators alike, isundoubtedly a practice within design that offersthe most significant opportunities for authorship -a personal journey in conceiving an imagery tale;a personal expression of choice as creator andauthor.

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

“Landscape of the heart”, “Other wayaround” and some other titles byMohammad Atif Khan depict theprintmaker’s amalgamation oftradition with contemporary life.

“I am inspired by the eastern traditionof storytelling that’s why my works arenarrative in nature,” said Atif Khanexplaining how one could findrecognisable objects and symbols inhis print works, which denotedobvious meanings.

“These can lead the viewers to findhidden messages. Images of diverseand contrasting environments arejuxtaposed in one space, subvertingtheir original contextual meaning andsuggesting new messages,” the artistexplained on the preview day alsoelaborating on the drawings andmixed media works.

Mohammad Atif KhanSPW has maintained strong links with Atif Khan since his residency with us in2006 and the Festival of Muslim Cultures project. Of all the artists who haveworked with us, he is the most adept at mining cultural references to designintriguing contemporary narratives.

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

A few new prints I've been working on thisweek experimenting with digital overprint-ing. As part of my dissertation I've beenresearching a lot about narrative theoryand new processes to use within mywork.  The idea is to create narrativesthrough layering up textures, colours andshapes. I hardly ever use digital printing fora final piece (I tend to favour hand print-ing) but I'm really pleased with the resultsso far.

This lovely fresh print is an example of anapproach that celebrates the actualsequence of printing as a narrative in itsown right but is often hidden from theviewer of the final print.

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15 YEAR

S People and Printmaking | Narrative Theme | Swansea Print Workshop

Sources, influences and ideas

Wuon-Gean Ho

Wuon-Gean Ho produces images in very narrative way, nodoubt influenced by her interest in animation.Long admired by some of our most experiencedprintmakers, she sets a great example of approaching herprintmaking with original and intriguing concepts.

http://www.wuongean.com