Nathan Eugene Carson's residency at Smokestack featured a deep dive into the world of monotypes and mono printing. Through the use of various means, unique "one-off" prints were created to build upon an ongoing series of characters.

In the studio Nathan worked with various shapes and cutouts that were produced from all kinds of scrap materials. These were individually inked and reworked from impression to impression.

The inked shapes were often times set upon a background plate which was rolled or painted with ink.

Here you can see a configuration of shapes that Nathan assembled to define the image. These pieces were cut from a smooth surface paper that could withstand the repeated re-inking from image to image.

Once the image had been configured it was run through the etching press and transposed onto the surface of beautiful printmaking paper.

Shown here is an example of the combination of assembled shapes and smoothed background plate. It was great fun to see the range of experimentation with colour from print to print.

Nathan became good friends with the etching press as we saw full days of moving between the inking area and the operation of the press.

By carefully applying ink to his cutout shapes, Nathan was able to develop a range of textures and depth within his images. Each cut out shape had the opportunity to become a larger part of the composition. As pieces were repurposed through the process, the assumed 'memory' from previous impressions ultimately led to more and more character within the inked areas.

Seen here is Nathan working the press once again. In this particular case we made use of our larger Praga etching press.

Once prints come off of the press they travel to the drying rack where they dry for a number of days. In this picture you can see two similar impressions. On the left is the main impression taken from the inked shapes and on the right we have the "ghost". A "ghost" print is an impression taken after the main impression has been made. Generally speaking, a ghost print is characterized by a lighter ink density while still maintaining the overall composition of the image. In mono printing and monotype there is usually only one ghost possible.

Much of the composing in Nathan's prints needed to happen right on the press. When all pieces are inked and ready, we carefully transported them to the press bed where they were assembled and laid into position.

Sometimes there was a need to hinge the paper under the press roller. This was helpful if the shapes had any curl. As the press bed travels under the roller, so too does the paper and image. They are simultaneously sandwiched together at the exact point of contact between roller and form and not a moment sooner.

All in all, one could say that it was an adventurous and inky time for Nathan here at Smokestack!