Francis Bacon, Three Studies for a Self Portrait, 1983 Lithograph on Arches paper, 1990 94.5 X 52cm Signed and numbered from the edition of 60. Published by Michel Archimbaud for the Librairie Séguier, Paris and printed by Art Estampe, Paris Courtesy: Winwood Gallery.

What’s happening during Print Month?

Galleries and institutions celebrate artistic prints and print making - entry is half price to Phaidon Club members!

The woodcut might be almost as old as oil painting, yet the medium, using old-style wooden blocks or the latest photosensitive emulsions is still employed by today’s artists to produce vibrant editions of works.

This April a group of London galleries and institutions are celebrating printmaking in a city-wide series of events called Print Month. The key engagement is the London Original Print Fair, which runs at London’s Royal Academy of Arts, London Thursday 24 – Sunday 27 April, bringing together around 50 international exhibitors. The fair remains a commercial event, it’s also an opportunity to examine the uses of print making, both historically and among contemporary artists. Even better, if you're a Phaidon Club member tickets are just half price. If you're not yet a club member it takes just a few seconds to join Phaidon Club here.

 

Adriaen Collaert, c.1560-1618 Lobster, sole, crabs and hermit crabs against a coastal background Engraving from the series Piscium Vivae Icones, 24 plates, FIRST edition, 1598 Courtesy: Christopher Mendez
Adriaen Collaert, c.1560-1618 Lobster, sole, crabs and hermit crabs against a coastal background Engraving from the series Piscium Vivae Icones, 24 plates, FIRST edition, 1598 Courtesy: Christopher Mendez

Meanwhile,  the RA’s own show, Renaissance Impressions: Chiaroscuro woodcuts from the Collections of Georg Baselitz and the Albertina, Vienna, is also on display until 8 June, showing a series of 16th-century prints based on the exquisite designs of the Renaissance masters.

Not to be outdone, the nearby Alan Cristea Gallery shows a series of twelve new screen-prints by Michael Craig Martin, entitled Objects of our Time, and featuring well-known art world items, from Duchamp’s urinal to Gerrit Rietveld’s Red and Blue chair.  

 

 Paul Nash, 1889-1946 Void 1918 Lithograph, signed and dated in pencil Paul Nash 1919, lower right, and inscribed Void, lower left, printed in black ink on warm grey Ingres paper. 7 x 9 inches (18 x 22.9 cm) sheet 18 1/2 x 24 inches (47.3 x 61 cm) Courtesy: The Fine Art Society
Paul Nash, 1889-1946 Void 1918 Lithograph, signed and dated in pencil Paul Nash 1919, lower right, and inscribed Void, lower left, printed in black ink on warm grey Ingres paper. 7 x 9 inches (18 x 22.9 cm) sheet 18 1/2 x 24 inches (47.3 x 61 cm) Courtesy: The Fine Art Society

There are talks too. At midday on Friday 25 April, John Mackechnie artist and Glasgow Print Studio printmaker and RA Summer Exhibtion prize winner, will discuss the collaborative process of printmaking in the RA’s Tennant Room.

And in the evening of the 25th, contemporary artist and print maker Harland Miller will discuss his view of print making in the Reynolds Room at the Royal Academy. You can get an impression of both Miller’s artistic considerations, and the industrial process behind such fine-art prints, in this enlightening short film. 

 

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Find out more about the event here. For greater insight into print making’s recent history, take a look at our book, The Prints of Stanley William Hayter, one of the 20th century’s greatest print makers; for more on an earlier master, consider our Durer monograph, and for more about oriental print making, consider Japanese Colour Editions. You can buy them both from the people who made them here. And if you plan to attend the fair and you're a Phaidon Club member apply the promo code you'll find in the members area when you book tickets here. If you're not yet a member join Phaidon Club here and take advantage of all the benefits the club offers.