Screen Printing!

I have always been inspired with process lead artwork. I took a lithography class my first semester and responded so strongly to the steps and print making "magic" that happens when all steps in the process came together! Last semester I really missed that methodical silent melody that follows print making so I declared printmaking and bookbinding my degree minor. 

When we were given the names of the artist picks we made and I saw that Kay was a screen printer I was thrilled! I had actually signed up for a screen printing class that got canceled and had felt so disappointed so I felt like a match made in heaven! 

Kay fully emerged me into the EVERY step of the printmaking process, I leave this fellowship fully confident to tackle my own screen prints in the up and coming future! I will do my best to describe every step and learning curve of my screen printing voyage! 

Step 1: Reclaiming the screens! 

• Walk down the long hall (carrying as many screens possible) to a grand bathroom that had the set up ready to go. 
• With smaller hose, wet screen on both sides.
• Put on safety gloves on and spray on reclaimer to start break down of old emulsion 
• Chill and relax for 30 seconds, then take scrub spray and start rubbing reclaimer onto screen on both sides
• With smaller hose rinse off both sides theres about to be a lot of water
• Prepare the POWER HOSE 
• Put on noise canceling head phones because boy is this power tool LOUD! 
• Note to self, do not point hose to sink corners, every piece of debris will fly into the air and onto your face
• Start cleaning screen and reveal the super satisfying inch by inch reveal of the clean screen 
• Do this for a VERY long time
• YOUR DONE
• Wait no...you just found several microscopic spots, try again
• Ok now your done, leave to dry
• Tip for next time, don't wear glasses, they steam up and you see nothing! 

Step 2: Emulsion 

• Once screens are dry, put them in dark room 
• Prepare emulsion, stirr stirr stirr!
• Pour mixture into special emulsion trough 
• With screen angled away from you, put trough against bottom leaving about 1.5 inch gap
• While pulling trough at an angle pull screen towards you and pull trough up
• Coat whole screen and scrape excess off with scrap cardboard 
• Put wet screens in light proof container and wait to dry about an hour, waiting for next step

Step 3: Burning the screen 

• Uncover magical screen burning machine that has built in UV bulbs. 
• Place drawing that is to be printed facing up 
• Get screen from light sensitive room and RUN to magical machine
• Place screen over drawing, emulsion side down
• Quickly fill back is of screen with foam squares
• Then cover with light canceling sheet 
• Put board and weights to seal contact with surface of screen and drawing
• Set time, will vary for every magic screen printing machine! 
• Do some dancing and chill with an awesome dog named Eleanor 
• Run back and turn of  magic machine
• Take screen into bathroom and with small hose wet both sides to stop the burning process
• NOTE it doesn't alway work first time do not be disheartened! 
• Only with small hose, power hose would wash out image, begin to wash out drawing 
• Be patient it will feel like nothing is happening but eventually when screen is wet enough anywhere there was a black drawing on the sheet you will start to was out the emulsion
• Once full drawing is unearthed, was off any residue from the back and leave to side to dry 

Step 4: PRINTINGGGGGGG

• Attach screen to printing table
• Print proof on acetate, this will help you to line up fabric when making patterned pieces like kay typically does
• Place fabric on table and line up/straighten using acetate proof 
• Print another proof of scrap newsprint
• If satisfied with how print looked, print on the fabric!!! 
• And then keep going, align print and move on
• Switch out screen if pattern had multiple color layers! 

Hopefully of fully covered every step, I wanted to thoroughly catalog the process and my experience so that I can always reference my experience and the birth of a love for printmaking I didn't know I had before. Definitely my special moment from the whole fellowship, a learning experience I will not forget.