Meaghan Hyckie

Meaghan Hyckie has developed a recognized artistic practice with a strong focus on drawing, and in recent years, evolved integration of silkscreen printing.

As a Smokestack analog printmaking residency participant, Meaghan was presented with the opportunity to further expand her engagement and experimentation with printmaking by in-depth introduction to intaglio disciplines. Through her time in residence, copperplate aquatint etching and photopolymer gravure methodologies came to offer the ideal intaglio translation of her images’ characteristically iconographic forms.

  • Meaghan Hyckie - Copperplate - Smokestack Studio

    In the process of producing these plates for Meaghan's project we use both aquatint and screenprint to build the image. Rosin is applied and fused to the copper surface and then we screenprint an image resist before the plate gets etched in acid.

  • Meaghan Hyckie - Copperplate etching / aquatint

    Here's another example of one of Meaghan's copperplates before it gets etched in acid. Where copper is revealed will ultimately be areas on the plate that hold ink when printed.

  • Meaghan wanted to take the opportunity during this residency to experiment with colour and see what kinds of interactions we could get through the mixing of lush oil-based inks.

  • Rolling Ink At Smokestack Studio

    Most of Meaghan Hyckie's work during this residency featured the use of carefully developed gradient combinations. Seen here is an example of one of those combos. These gradient rolls were applied to secondary plates or as top rolls to image plates.

  • Meaghan Hyckie - Copperplate etching / aquatint

    In the printing process we used combinations and variations of plates to create a final image. Seen here is a base gradient that has been printed first before the key plate with the image information is printed on top. These plates are registered so that when printed in succession, they align perfectly with one another.

  • Meaghan Hyckie Smokestack Studio 2022

    In the analog studio everything is done by hand. Sometimes it's a good workout operating the presses over the course of the day! You can see Meaghan Hyckie here putting in the labour to pull the press as we worked on this collection of copperplate aquatints.

  • Meaghan Hyckie - Peak 7

    The final results of all of this hard work... "Peak 7" Meaghan Hyckie Copperplate etching / aquatint 10.5" x 12.5" 2022

A few words with Meaghan Hyckie...

  • Tara Westermann (TW): Why did you want to work with intaglio printing?

    Meaghan Hyckie (MH): Drawing is at the heart of my practice, but printmaking makes so much sense to me because of the iterative nature of my work. I’ve made silkscreen prints before but I’ve been curious about etching [intaglio]. The transparency of the ink feels murky and secretive, at odds with the simple, pattern-based iconography that I wanted to work with during the residency. I felt like intaglio would facilitate a good mix of aesthetic and fun with a bit of melancholy and ennui, materially and energetically.

  • TW: How would you describe working in silkscreen versus intaglio?

    MH: Where silkscreen ink leaves an image sitting on-top of the paper, intaglio pushes the image back into the space of the paper…there’s a kind of density to the medium. The physicality and depth of the oil-based inks make it feel like you’re looking into a portal. Silkscreen moves towards you, where etching sucks you in.

  • TW: The work in the exhibition is a continuation of your iconographic explorations of domestic architecture and notions of ‘home’. How do the etchings that make up ‘Nestled’ expand on this body of work overall?

    MH: Thinking about word associations for this series, I hit upon Nestled. I like how it relates to the idea of home and settled-ness, affection, closeness — a kind of snuggle. That’s a very different feeling than my previous silkscreens and drawings that use similar imagery, but are intended to be more overwhelming and impersonal. These etchings have an intimacy of scale that reward close looking. They’re more like portraits or cameos. I want people to stay with them for a while.

  • Rolling Ink At Smokestack Studio

    Rolling Ink At Smokestack Studio

  • Meaghan Hyckie - Copperplate etching / aquatint

    Meaghan Hyckie - Copperplate - Smokestack Studio

This project has been generously supported by:

Smokestack Studio
Ontario Arts Council