Setting up for my lino printmaking classes is always a ‘pinch me’ moment. After all, it wasn’t so many years ago I was the student myself, keen to master the craft that had very quickly stolen my heart.
As I lay out lines of carving tools, place a fresh new block at each place and heave my antique Nipping Press onto the table, I feel incredibly lucky to regularly host and teach these workshops, full of people who are inspired, as I am, by the beauty and honest simplicity of a lino print.
When we moved home to Cornwall in January 2025, I wondered how many people would be interested, or able, to travel all the way ‘down South’ to take part in a workshop in my studio. Well, it turns out, quite a few! As well as wonderful local visitors from all around the Cornish coast, I have hosted plenty of lino enthusiasts who are combining their seaside holiday with a crafting session, which I think is just a fantastic idea.
In fact, some people have even built a holiday around a workshop which is incredibly flattering and I’m so delighted they are going to experience the beauty of Falmouth and my home county because of lino.
My Cornish Linoprint workshops are held in the 1st floor of my studio where I carve, print and package all of my work. A simple, beautiful space with a rustic feel (reminiscent of a traditional Fisherman’s hut in fact) I have a large table in the centre which can seat around six people while still leaving plenty of elbow room to get creative.
I ask that my workshop participants bring along a photo or a sketched idea with them, perhaps of a favourite view, a treasured item or something that evokes a memory that they’d like immortalised in print form. I love seeing what they have chosen: a plant, a house, a pet even, everyone is different. My workshop is perfect for those who have never picked up a carving tool in their life or for those who want to hone their skills, we cover all bases and I take things right from the beginning, no pressure.
One of the real beauties of lino printing are the relatively quick results, once you’ve carved your block, it’s just a matter of inking and putting it in the press. That too is a skill and has a certain amount of technique to it but if a print is a little under on the pressure or over on the ink, it’s no problem, just re-ink and start again. To be honest, I love that two prints of the same block are never quite the same.
As a professional printmaker, I work very hard to try and get uniformity but it’s such an analogue process, with lines carved by hand tools and colour applied by an old fashioned roller, no two are ever going to be identical. Those honest, slightly naïve results are very much what drew me to printmaking in the first place and in no small part why the art form is so suited to beginners’ workshops. And no matter how your prints turns out, there will always be plenty of warm conversation, connections made and a delicious homebake by my talented wife Becky.
At the end of the workshop, it’s nothing but a huge joy to see people’s faces as they proudly hold their print and I always take photographs of every one as a record of the day. Whether they have just enjoyed their time and taken away a memento to treasure or they have started a life long love affair with printmaking, it’s always a total pleasure working with and chatting to such a wide variety of people, each with a fascinating story to tell.
If Cornwall is a little to far, I’ve been lucky enough to be asked to hold workshops in other locations to: back in Oxfordshire, I’ll be at Howe Farm Flowers in early June for two carving workshops among the beautiful blooms. I’ll also be making a return visit to Shrewsbury with Master The Arts in November, a place I thoroughly enjoyed my last workshops with some fantastic printmakers and stunning results.
And of course, if you’d prefer to learn at your own pace in the comfort of your own home, why not try my online printmaking course which I launched in March this year. ‘A Simple Guide to Linocut Art - From Process to Print’ is an all you need to know beginners’ guide to linocut prints, written, presented and put together by yours truly.
An online class is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time and I have put my heart and soul into it’s creation. About process and enjoyment, not speed and perfection, this online printmaking course is designed to lead you, step by step, through each stage so at the end, I hope you will feel confident and inspired to carry on with your own creations.
However you choose to learn, I can’t recommend this craft enough. Lino printing has given me the opportunity to slow down, to learn a traditional art that uses hand tools and time honoured techniques combined with the ideas in your head and heart.
Printmaking is a joyful occupation and the perfect practical hobby to pick up in your spare time. You never know where it might lead……!