Ben Fast Prints
A hobby further pursued, printmaking is now my thing! I first fell head over heels for printmaking in the fall of 2023 (thanks Instagram…) and immediately signed up for a print exchange and workshops with Anne Jones. A year later and I still love exploring it, learning, and trying new techniques. Enjoy a look at what I’ve been making recently!
Fisgard Lighthouse Reduction
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This reduction print (a process where you carve more of the original block each time you add a colour, resulting in a block that cannot be used again) is my first proper print. It was made - with much assistance - in a workshop led by Anne Jones in Nanaimo, BC.
“A Self-Portrait of the Printmaker as a Young Man”
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When I start something new, I jump right in with both feet! This print was made for the Alberta Printmakers Society's 2023 print exchange, and for my mom as a surprise birthday gift.
The idea was to have a print "holding" another print, representing me holding an image from my past. I used Tetra Pak as a drypoint etching medium for the smaller print, replicating a picture of my mom and I when I was about 5 years old. Then I made a block of my hand using traditional linocut processes. I didn't know this at the time, but I used a sort of Chine collé technique to print the hand while gluing the other print to the main page at the same time.
An edition of 13 was made of this print: including one for my mom, one for a friend who also learned linocut for the print exchange, and 10 for the exchange itself.
“Aurora at Ruckle”
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This jigsaw print (each colour is a separate piece cut from a main block) was for Sally Caston's 2024 print exchange with a "My Backyard" theme. The print was inspired by seeing the Aurora Borealis at Ruckle Provincial Park on Salt Spring Island earlier in the year while on a camping trip. Edition of 10.