We are excited to have Keneilwe Mokoena in the workshop this week working on a new series of watercolour monotypes.
The medium suits her patient and particular approach to her work involving the combination of chance and intention in how the water and pigment of the paint pools and moves on the surface. Her fascination with chaos and order in nature translate well, where pigment particles intricately mix with water, creating microcosmic (or macrocosmic) structured cell- like patterns.
For a watercolour monotype, watercolour paints are painted onto a gummed perspex surface and left to dry. The plate is then placed on the press bed with a sheet of damp paper on top. As it runs through the press the pressure pushes moisture back into the dried watercolour, reactivating it and allowing it to transfer onto the paper, creating a unique print. Unlike editioned prints such as etchings and woodcuts the monotype refers to ‘one type’ because the process allows for only one print to be created per plate.
On Master Printer Phil Sanders recent visit to DKW he taught the team how to make watercolours from scratch giving them more control over quality and quantity.
Read more about Mokoena’s etchings made at DKW in 2015 here and view more of her work on her tumblr account.
Series releasing soon