THIS BOOK SERVES AS THE ARTIFACT of a hands-on analog experience where through the monoprint printmaking process, participants were able to express their reaction to being a Millennial (digital natives, and the first born into a world completely infused with digital communications technology) with a completely hand-process. Fueled by contemporary music that inspired them, each individual selected objects that were artifacts of their natural world and their technologically accelerating world to document in these prints. Using a shared spectrum of colored ink, they worked individually but with a common palate in a two hour time block that suggested the compression of the digital age.
Re t r o g r a d e Aidan Kaufman This print was made up of scratchings and imprints of leaves and gauze. The crackled lacy leaf print in orange is used to resemble a widow’s veil, in contrast with the blue; just as the background presents similar contrast with green and red. The outline of the face and shoulders of the figure are empty white lines. Without much else to distinguish a figure, the woman blends into the background; reflecting the monotonous drone of technology and the song that inspired the piece.
Inspired by Star Shopping (Lil Peep).
Tr a n s p a r e n t B e a u t y a t Ra n d o m Heidi Way I used man made delicate materials for this piece, consisting of lace, tulle, and thread. Also paper that was pierced through multiple times to give it a frayed organic look. I enjoyed the randomness that these items gave to my monoprint, the paper with the punctured holes gave it a very interesting feel, and the delicate fabric helped give my piece a dimensional appeal. The folds and ripples in the Stonehenge paper used for this monoprint helps draw the eye through the entire piece.
Inspired by On Thin Ice by Hans Zimmer
Vi b r a n c e Mckenzie Leishman I really enjoyed making the monoprints. I thought it was really cool how the process was so natural and unexpected, even with planning what you wanted it to look like, you still would not know what was going to come out of the press. It uses all technology based materials such as wire, and a metal sheet.
Inspired by Power Jazz Beat by Andrea Costantini.
Fe a t h e r e d T i e s Caroline Schaefer-Hills Things that are tied to our place on the planet, that remind us of our humanity and relationship to nature are what I based this print on. We are so trodden upon by technology and the speed in which it grows, almost out of control. Time spent with animals and natural sounds and the breeze of the earth air is like a remedy to this rush.
Inspired by Reunion (The XX).
Untitled Sam TwoCrow One Year ago I turned in my resignation from my previous accounting life. I listened to family and friends tell me what’s best for me but never took time to really think about what I wanted. Everyday I wake up thankful, and with so much gratitude for life. I finished this piece and loved it! Seriously can’t wait to see where my arts journey takes me.
Inspired by #doingwhatilove
Fa vo r i t e T h i n g s Joshua Paul This song and picture are all about love. This song is very energetic and fast, with hints of purple and red in the song. I used string to create white lines throughout the image. I cutout images of hearts and music notes that seem to go with the counter note to technology. I used a purple background to go with the theme of the song.
Inspired by My Favorite Things By Outkast - Andre 3000.
Ma z e Chelsea Dunham I didn’t have a plan for this print so I made something up on the spot. I used a mechanical pencil to draw in the lines. It wasn’t until I was done with it that I realized It looked like a circuit board. The song is very upbeat but the colors don’t express that.
Inspired by OMFG (OK).
Night Sarah Jones The technological artifact is the man made scrapbook tape, the natural artifact is the leaf. I chose not to clean off the plate all the way for this print and it left a really cool natural looking effect on the back ground.
Inspired by Latch by Sam Smith.
Slithering Night Heidi Way The experience of doing my monoprints was incredibly enjoyable. As a viscom student there has been little opportunity to do much hands on art. Being able to physically place the color on my paper and visually see and choose my color choices was like a breath of fresh air. Although I truly enjoy creating art in technological programs, nothing comes close to physically creating your own one of a kind creation. The ability to have the use of our senses is a incredible thing. Technology is all around us, and for many circumstances it needs to be that way. Although I often find it to be exhausting, physically and mentally - jet lagged is the best way to describe it. So any opportunity to step back and be in the “real world� I take it.
Inspired by 04 Gray Matter Composed by Dave Porter.
Day Dream Mckenzie Leishman I really enjoyed making the monoprints. I thought it was really cool how the process was so natural and unexpected, even with planning what you wanted it to look like, you still would not know what was going to come out of the press.
This print uses natural elements of grass in the design in contrast with leftover holes of a paper punch. Inspired by I Hope You Dance by Lee Anne Womack.
M i l e - D o w n Fo r e s t Aidan Kaufman As the title suggests, its bubbly and spacious sound reminisces ocean life. The materials I used in contrast, leaves and pine, are imprinted in vibrant colors to resemble coral. The figures scribbled at the base of the “coral� are there to suggest a more androgynous space, hence the title: MileDown Forest.
Inspired by Ocean Floor Kisses by Galimatias.
Le a v e s Chelsea Dunham For this I used dental floss and leaves, man made material with nature. The print didn’t come out as intended, but the end product looks neat.
Inspired by Manners by We Fade Like Dreams.
Ta ke o f f yo u r c o o l Joshua Paul This song is very acoustic, and soft. I wanted to create landscape in this image. I used a blue background to simulate a sky. Green to look like grass, and what could be construed as a fence. I used a cutout of a girl in a dress, and straight lines of paper to simulate rays from a setting sun. The colors are all somewhat soft colors that match innocence.
Inspired by Take Off Your Cool By Outkast - Andre 3000.
Fa c i n g S o u t h Hayden Comstock Oak leaves serve as the print’s natural aspect, while the technological parts are twine and these sort of U-hooks I found in my family’s junk drawer. To me this sounds like summer, but it also has a sense of anxiety-- the reason I chose orange for the color of my print. I hope the look of orange leaves doesn’t give too much of an autumn association, but if it does, we can credit it toward the feeling you get when you see summer going by far too fast. The physical act of mono-printing brings us back to a time before so much of our work was done on computers. There is something very personal about creating something with simple materials and your own hands. Since our prints are also one of a kind-- they cannot be duplicated, each embossing is its own-- we can really appreciate what is in front of us.
Inspired by Southern Point (Grizzly Bear).
Lo s t Sarah Jones The technological artifact are the man made plastic letters I used to spell out lost, the natural artifact is the leaf. This was the first time I did monoprinting and I really enjoyed it, the way you don’t know how it will turn out until the very end makes the process exciting and raw.
Inspired by Crave You by Flight Facilities.
Untitled Sam TwoCrow Everyday I wake up thankful, and with so much gratitude for life. Stick pins, string and glitter, how can you get more man made. Seriously can’t wait to see where my arts journey takes me.
Inspired by #doingtechnology
Summer Night Thomas Barley This piece was the first time that I had attempted monoprinting and I really didn’t know what I wanted to make until I actually had the materials in front of me. I picked this song because I wanted to make a piece that reflected my love for summer and for nature and the song is perfect for a day on the beach or just bumming around with your friends. For the background I blended red, blood orange, and yellow but I blended it in a way that created a sunburst effect in the bottom right corner underneath the leaves because I wanted to draw the viewer’s eye to that area of the piece. I then used plant life that I found around campus to make a sort of beach scene, and using burlap I tried to create the image of the fencing that protects the beach grass around the sand but I think I didn’t use enough paint on it because I doesn’t show up as well as I thought it would. In the top right I used pennies, dimes, and quarters as the stars in the sky, because every once in awhile you see stars right after a sunset and seeing that is one of my favorite parts of summer. This definitely challenged me to step out of my comfort zone and I’m glad that I did it because, for the future, I now know that I should have more of a border on the paper so that the roller can grab the paper early on instead of wrinkling the paper.
Inspired by Summer Whisper by Tomppabeats.
Wr a p p i n g s / Tr a p p i n g s Caroline Schaefer-Hills My goal with this print was to pass on the monoprinting experience in a demo. Using bandage gauze, such a fragile material to make us well, as a metaphor for the delicate balance we operate in when surrounded by digital realities. I am so proud of the work we produced in a fleeting few hours together in a printmaking studio talking about nature and technology as one.
Inspired by Run Run Run by Feat.