It’s time to Snart it up with Printmaking! I’m so excited to print and stamp my way through May! Keep reading for inspirational artists and books, plus lots of activities and project ideas to keep you busy all month long.

Also, apologies for saying “little owl workshop” so many times! It’s Yellow Owl!! My brain short-circuited, but all the links are correct below.

My Artist Friend with Becky Helms is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Artists

* Landry McMeans – Uses the stencil technique to create her screen prints.

* https://www.landrymcmeans.com/shop/p/18x-24-bluebonnet-on-fawn-paper

* Renee Fly – Her linocut patterns are modern and can be used on different types of materials: paper, tea towels and fabric

* https://www.instagram.com/studioflygurl/?hl=en

* Kathleen Neely – Her relief printing has such beautiful linework and texture.

* https://www.kathleenneeley.com/

* Callie Barbas – Another relief printer, using linoleum, who makes moon phase calendars and more

* https://www.calliebarbasart.com/shop-block-prints?page=2

* Favianna Rodriguez – Interdisiplinary artist, she combines multiple techniques, including collage and printmaking

* https://favianna.com/

Books

* The Printmaking Bible by Ann D’Arcy Hughes

* https://bookshop.org/a/112122/9781797221601

* Silkscreen is Easy by Little Friends of Printmaking

* https://bookshop.org/a/112122/9781947322080

* Printmaking by Dana Meachen Rau

* https://bookshop.org/a/112122/9781633623736

* https://www.getepic.com/book/26022955/printmaking

* Yellow Owl’s Little Prints: Stamp, Stencil, and Print Projects to Make for Kids by Christine Schmidt

* https://yellowowlworkshop.com/?srsltid=AfmBOopID8_MwyAkjHa-PfphxOXpaTw_jZMzopvUApg3fMgfDf2GAY2Y

* https://bookshop.org/a/112122/9780770433642

* https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/yellow-owls-little-prints-truly-original-kid-friendly-projects-from-yellow-owl-workshop_christine-schmidt/38323253/#edition=7794921&idiq=19215057

* Cats in Ukiyo-E: Japanese Woodblock Print of Utagawa Kinoyoshi by Nobuhisa Kaneko

* https://bookshop.org/a/112122/9784756242877

* Anything Ukiyo-e. Hokusai is my favorite.

Activities

* Visit a Museum or checkout online exhibitions:

* National Museum of Asian Art: https://asia.si.edu/whats-on/exhibitions/the-print-generation/

* MoMA: https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/1153?

* MoMA: https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/1226?

* Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers: https://www.re-printmakers.com/exhibitions/40/works/

* Print together with friends! Great way to used materials and contain the mess.

* Go on a nature walk to gather objects to print with

Projects

* Carve pink rubber eraser stamps. Similar to linocuts!

* https://thisistucson.com/tucsonlife/pink-eraser-art-project-serena-rios-mcrae-cactus-clouds-art-tucson/article_52b018f2-0b9c-11ee-808a-4b04c1c49531.html

* Print with food – apples, or anything you can bisect. Make sure they’re not too juicy

* https://ideas.hallmark.com/articles/summer-ideas/vegetable-stamping/https://pin.it/P7frg09l6

* https://pin.it/P7frg09l6

* Potato printing – Use fabric ink or fabric block ink if you want to print on fabric. Great for tea towels, aprons, tote bags and thicker fabric, but totally fine for shirts as well.

* https://thegreenmadhouse.com/diy/how-to-make-a-potato-stamp-block-print

* https://thehousethatlarsbuilt.com/2020/05/diy-block-printing-with-potato.html/?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social

* Foam shapes – use premade foam shapes (or use foam strips to make your own shapes) and glue them to a hard surface, like cardboard or scrap wood and use as a stamp.

* https://www.robenmarie.com/blog/crafting-your-own-custom-foam-stamps-a-diy-tutorial

* https://thegraphicsfairy.com/how-to-make-diy-roller-stamps/

*

* Use everyday objects in your house: sponges cut to shape, brushes, plastic cutlery, bubble wrap, etc. If you don’t mind getting it messy, give it a try.

* https://lyndaheines.com/2019/04/24/printing-with-found-objects/

* Lego Printing! Use a baseplate and small, flat Lego bricks to make a design. Ink them with a roller and use a brayer to transfer the ink. This requires a few more supplies, but you can use them over and over. https://ogdencontemporaryarts.org/oca-artist-factory-the-diy-edition/

* Use wine corks and cut simple, small designs to use as stamps. I got a bunch from Scrap Creative Reuse in Ann Arbor!

* https://designmom.com/perfect-gift-cork-stamps/#more-22188

* Pencil erasers can be used for detail, or rubber-banded together to make little flowers.

* https://www.craftoart.com/2011/10/bundle-pencil-eraser-stamping.html

* Wrap a woodblock in string. That’s it!

* See what you can recycle! Tape tubes and toilet rolls make great circular patterns and you can cut them up and fold them in creative ways for even more shapes/

* https://pin.it/6Msxgektw

Links

* Newsletter:https://beckyhelms.substack.com/s/newsletter

* Previous Snart Episodes:

https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/10-becky-snart-snackart-afterschool

https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/12-snart-theme-for-february-with

https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/16-snart-theme-for-march-with-becky

https://beckyhelms.substack.com/p/20-snart-theme-for-april-with-becky

Find me all over the place!

* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebeckyhelms/

* Substack: https://substack.com/@beckyhelms

* YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BeckyHelms

* Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/thebeckyhelms/_saved/

* Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/beckyhelms.bsky.social

Thanks for reading and listening to My Artist Friend with Becky Helms! This post is public so please feel free share it!

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit beckyhelms.substack.com/subscribe