Lesson video

Hello, my name is Mrs. Tipping.

And I'm really looking forward to learning with you today all about insects through drawing and printmaking.

We're going to do lots of thinking, talking, and exploring together in this lesson.

So shall we get started? Let's go.

By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to create an insect block print.

Before we start, I would like to introduce you to some keywords.

We'll be using these keywords during the lesson, so it might be a good idea to write these words down.

The keywords we'll be using today are print, roller, carving, negative space.

I'm gonna say those again, and I would like you to repeat them after me, print, roller, carving, negative space.

Good job.

Now, let's think in more detail about what these keywords mean by taking a look at their definitions.

Printing is a way of making a copy of something.

A roller is a tool used to spread ink evenly.

Carving means removing parts of the surface to create a design.

And negative space are areas carved away that remain unprinted.

Pause the video here to make a note of these keywords.

And when you are ready to continue, press Play.

These are the learning cycles we'll be working through together in today's lesson.

Carving the polyfoam plate and printing a clear block print.

In this first learning cycle, we're going to have a go at carving a polyfoam plate.

What is printing? Printing is a way of making a copy of something.

Can you think of any examples of printing? Pause the video here and have a discussion with your partner, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? What examples of printing could you think of? Well, printmaking has been around for centuries.

And some of the earliest examples of prints are from the Han dynasty in China.

Patterns or images are carved into a printing plate, and then ink is rolled onto the plate and transferred from one surface to another.

You can see an example of a linoleum printing plate here.

Many surfaces can act as a printing plate.

Woodblock and linoleum are examples of traditional relief printing plates.

And you can see the woodblock printing here in this image.

To create your print, you'll use polyfoam as your printing plate.

You can see an image of some polyfoam here.

You'll be creating a print inspired by insects.

You'll begin by drawing a chosen insect.

And you may have examples of insect images or drawings in your sketchbook.

See this example of a butterfly here? Now you can refine your design as you go along.

Jun wants to transfer the design below.

What advice would you give? Pause the video here and have a discussion with your partner, and press Play When you're ready to continue.

What did you think? What advice would you give him? Well, it's best to keep the design simple.

A smaller details may not appear in the print, so some of that detail on his butterfly, some of the dots, wouldn't have shown up very well, so it's better to keep the details simple.

To transfer your design to the foam printing plate, you need to place your sketch paper of an insect on top of the foam.

Use a pencil to trace over your design, pressing firmly.

This then creates an indented design on the foam.

And be careful not to press too hard, as the foam plates can break.

To carve your design into the foam printing plate, go over your lines.

Use a blunt pencil or wooden tool to deepen the lines.

Avoid pressing too hard, though, as this could tear the foam.

Remember, lines that are too shallow may not print well.

So can you see in this video here, the artist is using the pencil to make those lines on the polyfoam a bit deeper.

And once you've carved your plate, you are ready to apply ink to the surface.

Block printing is a form of relief printmaking.

This means that only the raised parts of the polyfoam plates will pick up the ink and create the image on the paper.

So can you see on this polyfoam plate here of the butterfly which bits are raised? Those are the bits that the ink will take to, and that will create the image on the paper.

The carved areas do not hold any ink, so they will stay white or the colour of the paper when you print.

These carved areas are called negative space.

Can you see there, the negative space? So where you've placed your pencil to create those carved deep lines, that's the negative space.

Now, can you see, when the ink has been applied, how those negative spaces have remained white and free from ink? Here is Jun's plate.

What could be improved here? Pause the video and have a discussion with your partner, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think, looking at this plate, what could be improved? Well, we can't see it that well, can we? Pressing too lightly will not create a deep enough impression.

So Jun needs to make sure that the lines are clearly indented, carving it well with a wooden tool or a pencil.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

What happens to the carved areas of a polyfoam plate when you print? Do they hold the most ink and appear darkest? Do they remain white because they do not hold ink, or do they print in a different colour automatically? Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to think, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said, "They remain white because they do not hold ink," you are absolutely right.

Only the raised parts of the polyfoam plate pick up the ink and create the image on the paper.

This now brings us to our first learning task.

I'd like you to carve your insect design onto the foam printing plate.

First of all, sketch your insect on paper, keeping it bold and simple.

Then transfer your design by placing the paper on top of the foam plate and tracing over the design with a pencil.

Press firmly to create clear indents in the foam plate.

And go over the lines again to deepen them, but be careful not to tear the foam.

And make sure you take some time to reflect, are your lines deep enough to show up when printed? So pause the video here and give yourself enough time to have a go at carving your insect design onto the foam printing plate, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

How did that go? Well, shall we take a look at an example? So you should have carved your polyfoam plate, it might look a bit like this butterfly.

Hopefully, your lines are bold and deep, but you've not torn them, and that these clear indents will help create a bold print.

Your design should be simple and strong, and this will help make it easier to see when you apply the ink to the surface.

So well done for having a go at carving your own poly plate.

This now brings us to the second part of our lesson.

We're going to be printing a clear block print.

Why might an artist choose to cut around the shape of their insect instead of leaving the plate as a square? How does this change the way the print looks? Pause the video here and have a discussion with your partner, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? Looking at the top one, that remains the square, and then the bottom one, the artist has cut around the butterfly.

Why might that be a good idea or not? How does it change the way the print looks? While cutting the plate to match the shape of the insect makes the design stand out and helps to make a distinct shape.

It also gets rid of extra background space that would otherwise pick up the ink.

You can carefully cut around your insect shape whilst an adult supervises you.

Try not to cut too close to the indents, or the plate might snap.

So can you see here, using those scissors, cutting carefully, you might take a little bit off like in that second picture, and then carefully go around a little bit more.

But making sure you leave a gap, so that it doesn't snap or tear the plate.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Why should you be careful when cutting around your insect shape? The scissors might get blunt when cutting.

It will take too long to print.

It might snap if you cut too close to the indents.

Pause a video here and have a discussion with your partner, and press Play when you're ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said that, "It might snap if you cut too close to the indents," you are absolutely right.

Cutting too close can make the shape weak, and it might snap, so you need to be careful.

Before printing your block print plate, you'll need the following equipment.

You'll need block printing ink or paint.

You'll need a printing roller and a flat tray, or a flat plastic surface, such as an acrylic sheet.

Once you've created your printing plate, you can roll ink onto the surface and transfer to create your print.

So can you see here? We use the roll in that middle image to apply the ink, and then you can transfer it, and you create your print, like the third image here.

Now, rolling the ink or paint, use a roller or brush to evenly spread ink or paint over the surface tray, like in this image here.

Avoid using too much ink, you only need a small blob in the middle, and that will spread quite well.

A sticky sound should indicate the correct amount of ink.

So listen carefully when you are rolling your ink out.

Inking the printing plate, you need to use a roller or a brush to evenly spread ink and paint over the foam surface.

Avoid using too much ink, though, as it may smudge, or the ink may fill the indents, and we don't want that.

Then transferring the ink, keep your fingers clean for a neat print and newspaper towels to wipe your hands.

Place the plate ink side down onto the paper, and then apply even pressure to the back of the plate, being careful not to move the plate, or the print will smudge.

Then revealing your print, lift the plate carefully to reveal your print.

You could repeat the process to create a pattern, or you could experiment with different colours of ink.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Which stage comes last in block printing? Is it A, B, or C? Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to think, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said, "It's B," you are absolutely right.

The last stage is when you reveal your print.

Jun is reflecting on his printing technique.

He says, "I pressed harder, but I'm not sure if that made a difference." Even pressure creates the best result, not necessarily pressing really hard, and making sure that you apply pressure to all the different parts of your plate.

Let's take a moment to pause and check our understanding.

Pressing very softly helps to make your prints look clearer.

Is this statement true or false? Pause the video here and give yourself a moment to think, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

What did you think? If you said, "That's false," you are absolutely right.

It is important to apply even, firm pressure to the back of the plate, which can help you make sharp and neat prints.

Pressing too softly, it can make it difficult for the details of the print to show up.

This now brings us to our final learning task.

I'd like you to print a clear block print.

Use scissors to carefully cut around your design.

And remember, do not cut too close to the lines because this helps your plate stay strong and not snap.

Add some ink or paint to your plate using a roller or a brush.

Press your plate firmly onto the paper, and try using even pressure, so the whole design shows clearly.

Then once you've printed your block print, reflect and discuss with a partner, is the print sharp and clear, or what could you change next time to make your print even better? Pause the video here and give yourself enough time to have a go at both of these parts of the learning task, and press Play when you are ready to continue.

How did you get on? Were you able to apply even pressure to get your print clear and sharp? Well, let's take a look at an example.

First of all, you should have created a clear block print of your insect, like this butterfly here.

Hopefully, the ink has remained on the raised parts of the plate, and the carved negative space has not picked up the ink, and it stayed white or the colour of the paper.

Can you see in this example here of this butterfly, we can see where the ink has stayed on those positive areas of the plate, and the negative carved spaces, they've remained white.

So well done if you were able to do that with your block print.

But on reflection, you might have thought about your print being sharp and clear.

And maybe, like Sofia, you'd say something like, "My print is sharp, I can see all the lines clearly, and the ink didn't smudge, and everything looks neat." But maybe yours went a bit like Andeep's, and you say something like, "Some bits of my print are missing, and it looks a bit smudgy.

Next time, I'll clean my hands first and make sure I don't move it when printing, so it doesn't smudge." There's always a chance to have a go at it another time.

So well done for having a go at printing, a clear block print and reflecting on the process.

Before we finish this lesson, let's summarise what we've learned about insect printmaking through a block print.

Block printing is a form of relief printmaking.

Carving a design into a printing plate creates a reusable stamp for block printing.

Applying ink evenly using a roller and pressing the inked block onto paper creates a clear and bold print.

Thank you for joining me in this lesson today.

I hope to see you in the next one.

See you next time.