Newly refurbished, this project demonstrated SPW’s capacity in studio facilities and expertise for supporting a significant artist in a high-quality art project. It was also important in showing the accessibility and creativity of printmaking and its potential for working collaboratively across the art forms.
The Artist Print Portfolio 2000 was commissioned by the Contemporary Art Society for Wales (CASW) to celebrate The Year of the Artist. Twelve artists were invited to submit prints, each representing one month of the year.
In 2000, Swansea Print Workshop was commissioned to work with Glenys Cour to produce a limited edition print for the portfolio.
All the artists involved were not printmakers by profession. Glenys Cour trained in the use of stained glass and so the project involved some speculative work initially to find an appropriate and comfortable process for her to work in.
Glenys was allocated the month of ‘March’ and came to the studio with a number of collaged designs. These naturally translated into collagraphs, a technique Glenys was initially unfamiliar with.
Once the central motif had been worked out she decided on a very textural and deeply bitten plate to surround the central collagraph block. Best known as a colourist the print Glenys created is in fact a monochrome, with Celtic or runic symbols in relief, surrounded by a turbulent aquatint reflecting Mars, the Roman God of war.
Glenys welcomed the opportunity to explore, for her, a new medium and found it to be a liberating and enthralling experience – “It is as if another door has opened”.
Process and editioning support was provided by Jackie Ford and Alan Williams.
Blwyddyn yr Arlunydd | 2000 | Cymdeithas Gelfyddyd Gyfoes Cymru: Portffolio Argraffu’r Arlunydd 2000
Wedi’i adnewyddu’n ddiweddar, roedd y prosiect hwn wedi dangos maint cyfleusterau stiwdio GAA a dangoswyd hefyd sut all ei gwybodaeth arbenigol gefnogi arlunydd pwysig wrth iddo wneud prosiect celf o safon uchel. Roedd yn bwysig hefyd gan ei fod e’n dangos creadigolrwydd argraffu, ei botensial am gydweithio ar draws y celfyddydau a sut mae argraffu o fewn cyrraedd pawb.
This project was commissioned in 2000 by CASW – Contemporary Art Society for Wales