News from the print studios – 20:20 Print Exchange

21 of our members have been beavering away over the last 3-4 months to make their editions for this year’s 20:20 Print Exchange.

Last week we were so excited to get the final submissions in, and wow! What an amazing selection we’ve got this year. Last Wednesday we held a zoom ‘show and tell’ session with everyone who took part, which we haven’t done in previous years, (the wonders of modern technology!) It was really insightful to hear from each artist how and why they had made their images, and a wonderful opportunity to connect with other members.

There was a wonderfully diverse range of techniques employed this year. Julie Turner uses delicately-cut lines to create her atmospheric linocut, which depicts a Victorian fountain bathed in dappled light. The work becomes particularly poignant when we know how she came to choose the subject matter – the slowing down and taking time to notice her surroundings on the daily walks taken by her and her husband around Dewsbury’s Crow Nest Park during lockdown – a positive take on this year’s events. While Clare Grace’s sensitive work depicts two figures, physically divided by a line straight down the middle – a literal representation of isolation – uses silk as a surface to print onto, evoking a sense of fragility.
 
It was interesting, (although not surprising), to hear how many of the works were influenced by this year’s events. If not in what they visually represent, certainly in how they were produced – many of our members made their prints at home this year, using home-made presses and materials they could easily access.
 
Here is a small selection of the works submitted, with accompanying artist statements.
 
Download PDF –  2020 Presentation
 
You can find out more about the 20:20 Print Exchange here: https://www.2020printexchange.com/howitworks. If you would like to take part in next year’s 20:20 Print Exchange, you will need to be a member of WYPW. You can find more information about the benefits of membership and how to sign-up here: https://membermojo.co.uk/wypw