Blake Printmaking Workshops
Michael Phillips delivers printmaking workshops at leading universities and art schools across the world.
The Slade School of Fine Art
University College London
The Blake Study Day at the Slade began with an illustrated discussion of Blake’s innovations as an artist-printmaker. A printmaking demonstration followed in which the students selected replica plates to ink and print themselves. The day concluded with a visit to the British Museum Department of Prints and Drawings to see and compare examples of Blake’s originals with the replica impressions the students had printed.
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What the students at The Slade have to say:
“The workshop has really made me understand and appreciate the complexity and nuances in Blake's print, and how many factors go into effecting it. It was especially eye-opening to compare our print with Blake's works, and to be able to see the minor defects and traces left by him. This has really created a very human connection with an iconic historical figure from 200 years ago. It was so generous of Michael to show us his research results and teach us all the processes that go behind the remaking and printing of the plates.”
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“I would say that the day with Michael was a truly wonderful and inspirational day that has also been extremely useful for me in my own work. Seeing the process by which Blake produced his illuminated prints, and then seeing our print next to the original Blake one was indeed a real psychedelic and most brilliant ride to the moon.”
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“For me, it was a great workshop. To have the opportunity to print from the reproductions of William Blake's plates and learn the complex process made me wonder about the repercussions on contemporary technics and political methods. Also, the visit to the British Museum to compare our work with Blake's was the perfect ending.”
St. Paul’s School at Christ Church, Oxford
The Blake Study Day for students from St. Paul’s School, London, took place in the splendid Upper Library at Christ Church where the replica of Blake’s wooden star-wheel rolling press was on loan following the exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum (2014-15). In the morning seminar-style discussions of Blake’s Songs were followed in the afternoon with a demonstration. The students then selected a replica plate of the Songs to ink and print themselves on the replica of Blake’s rolling press.
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“Michael is a world authority on Blake's printing methods, and his willingness to share his expertise in a practical printing workshop provides students with an astonishing opportunity to produce a beautiful and authentic artefact, to develop a real human connection with the artist they have enjoyed studying and to understand fully the close relationship between the verse they have examined and the books as physical artefacts. Michael's patience, humour and extensive knowledge of Blake make working with him both a great pleasure and an intellectually exciting experience.”
– Andrew Broughton, English Master at St. Paul’s School
To find out more about Michael Phillips’ printmaking workshops, please get in touch.