Session: Protest + Print, Fall 2021

Builders: 12 teen artists

Materials: Lineoleum blocks, block carving tools, block printing ink, screens, screen printing ink, paper, pencil, carbon paper.

Description: In our fall Protest + Print class, our activist artists created vibrant multimedia posters through linoleum block carving and screen printing. For inspiration and reference, our students looked to artists like Sister Corita Kent, Edgar Heap of Birds, AFRICOBRA, Glenn Ligon and Meredith Stern. The students began the project with a writing prompt from instructor Bethany Kaylor where they were asked to reflect on two (seemingly) conflicted truths in their lives. From there, instructors Emily Pilloton-Lam and HyeYoon Song helped our students screen print vibrant organic shapes onto sheets of 11×17 paper. HyeYoon then led lino-cut block carving 101, where she explained the theory and process of block carving and demonstrated how to safely use the tools. Our students carefully carved their text onto their linoleum, and in the final two weeks, they created test prints, experimenting with the amount of ink on the roller, the pressure on the brayer, and the placement of the carving. The last class was a whirlwind of inking, pressing, and transferring final prints!

The artwork is compiled in a gorgeous 2022 Girls Garage calendar, which can be found for sale here.