EXERCISES
AIM
Tomakea monoprintinspiredbythe
modernistpainterWilliamScott.DURATION
Around 10 minutesperprintplus
preparatorydrawingtimeMATERIALS
Fortheprepdrawings,youwillneeda
pencilandlightweightpaper.Forthe
print,youwillneedmorepaper,a
water-basedink(weuseda GBWater
WashableReliefPrintingInkfrom
LawrenceArtSupplies),aninkroller,
a paletteorothersurfacetouse
asaninkwell,anda printingplate–
a sheetofacetateorglasswilldo.WHATYOUWILLLEARN
Monoprintingis anidealplacetostart
whensimplifyingyourcompositionas
it requireslookingfortheessential
linesofyoursubjectanddoesn’tallow
youtosketchorrubthingsout.Your
lineshavetobelooseandconfident.PROCESS
Beginbysettingupa stilllife
composition.TheobjectsthatWilliam
Scottusedforhisstilllifepaintings
weredeliberatelyinnocuous–
hecalledthemhis“meansofmaking
a picture”astheywereusefulas
shapesandlines,ratherthansubjects.
Selecttwoorthreeoftheplainestobjects around you; pears and plain
white mugs were favourites of Scott.
Arrange them on a plain surface,
like a tablecloth, to focus the eye and
define the outer shape of your objects.
Make sure the arrangement is well lit,
though some shadow areas can be
useful to introduce tone.
Make preparatory drawings. Take
your time with these, familiarising
yourself with the key lines of the
composition. Start by just drawing the
outer edge of the objects, keeping to
a single line. Next add more detail of
the interior, noticing which lines are of
particular significance. Then begin to
incorporate light and shade by varying
the pressure you apply to your pencil.
Prepare the ink by squeezing a
small amount onto your inkwell and
dabbing the roller into it lightly,
coating the roller evenly on all sides.
Roll the ink out as thinly and evenly
as possible onto your printing plate.
Make your print by floating the
paper over the ink, taking great care
not to touch it as this will create
marks on your print. Using your pencil,
draw your design onto the paper,
using different intensities of line to
suggest tone, as practised above. The
result should be a velvety line drawing
with an immediate, naïve quality to it.
Monoprinting is a technique many
artists use for finessing a composition
for a painting, as the image comes
out in reverse and immediately
reveals if the image is off balance.BELOW William
Scott-inspired
monoprints made
by St Ives School of
Painting’s students
EXERCISE 1