Single Block Prints
Single block is the simplest type of relief print I make. The whole image comes together on a single block of lino, carved to produce the image. The real trick is in understanding how the lino I cut away will print as a negative: I tell my students when I teach this that they are drawing with light.
There are two colours in a single block print: that of the ink and that of the paper being printing on. Conventionally this is black ink on white paper, but the results can be fascinating when one or both of these is varied. I have always had a soft spot for Paynes Grey as an alternative to black, and a lot of my single block work is printed in this colour.
The challenge of single block is in mark making, and good marks can make or break an image. With no secondary colours to fall back on, mark making forms the midtone range in a single block print. In my practise I am continually striving to create new marks, to find new ways of expressing myself.
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