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Modern Photogravure Printing

Photography Education

Instructor: Clay Harmon
2024 Dates: October 23 - 26
Focus: Darkroom
Medium: Digital

Designed for the curious, this workshop will take you on a journey through the photogravure printing process, enabling you, the Artist, to produce continuous-tone photographic images using ink and paper. Explore plate-making, inking, wiping and printing techniques, and return home with a complete body of work: 8-12 etched plates and numerous editioned prints from each plate.

 

$1,150.00 USD
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Overview

This class is an introduction to the polymer photogravure process, a non-toxic alternative to the traditional copperplate photogravure process. This intaglio printing process enables the artist to produce continuous-tone photographic images using ink and paper. Platemaking, inking, wiping and printing techniques will be covered in this class and the student will leave with 8-12 etched plates and numerous prints from each plate.

FALL 2024 - October 23 - 26

 

Workshop Details

Modern Photogravure Printing
INSTRUCTOR Clay Harmon
FOCUS Darkroom
MEDIUM Digital
LEVEL Beginner to Intermediate
ATTENDEES 6
TUITION $1000
MATERIAL FEE $150

New for this year’s class, we will be emphasizing direct-to-plate methods for producing polymer photogravure plates. This method uses an inkjet printer to print a positive image directly on the plate that then acts as a light resist. This plate is subsequently exposed with UV light and etched in a water bath. It is a considerably simpler technique and has fewer equipment requirements than the traditional two-exposure method.

After the plate is made, a world of possibilities is now available to make a print. Unlike many alternative processes, a photogravure print is not confined to a narrow set of papers on which to print. Because photogravure is a mechanical rather than a chemical process, the only requirement is that the paper is durable enough to withstand the pressures of the etching press used to transfer ink from the plate to the paper. Both European and Asian papers in weights from tissue-thin to cardboard-thick can be used to make a print. Similarly, the print color is completely at the artistic discretion of the photographer. Virtually any ink color is possible.

The printmaking step is where we will delve into the world of intaglio printing. The basic techniques of inking, wiping and printing a plate will be taught. Paper preparation, press adjustment and edition planning are an integral part of the learning experience in this class. Advanced techniques such as chine collé, in which the printed image is printed on a gossamer-thin gampi paper and simultaneously glued to a thicker support paper will also be covered.

The length of the class will allow the student the opportunity to make a small editioned portfolio of prints and is an ideal opportunity to unify a small body of work with several sets of a series of prints. Photographers interested in exploring a new printing process will learn all the basic techniques necessary to return to their own studio and begin making prints using this process.

About the Instructor



Clay Harmon

CLAY HARMON Ever since Clay Harmon first viewed a platinum print, he has been creating his art in platinum/palladium and a host of other 19th century photographic print processes such as gum bichromate, cyanotype, and van dyke brown. Somewhere along this fifteen-year journey, he began getting ink under his fingernails and dove headfirst into mastering the photogravure process.
While never one to walk away from taking a pretty landscape picture in the northern latitudes, his favorite subject matter is the quirky world of parking garages, nighttime urban scenes and freeway overpasses, with the occasional statue’s butt, cathedral interior and offbeat portrait thrown in the mix. He enjoys sharing his knowledge and has taught alternative process workshops for the Penland School of Crafts, Asheville Bookworks, Cullowhee Mountain Arts, the Houston Center for Photography, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the Kalamazoo Institute of Art, and Project Basho in Philadelphia.

He is represented by the Blue Spiral Gallery in Asheville North Carolina, and has exhibited work at Fotofest in Houston, Rayko Gallery in San Francisco, Houston Center for Photography, and the Clear Lake Arts Alliance. His work is in the permanent collection at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and in private collections in the Americas, Europe and the Far East. 

Workshop FAQ

Find answers to your questions about our Photography Workshops in our FAQ. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you need additional help. You can reach us by email at photoed@anseladams.com or by phone (650) 692-3495. 

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Cancellation Policy

Multi-day Photography Workshop Cancellation Policy: We rely on your confirmed attendance to make important arrangements for the workshop. If you need to cancel, please let us know no fewer than 45 days prior to the first day of your workshop for a refund of your tuition, less a 10% non-refundable charge. Refunds cannot be made for cancellations initiated within 45 days of the first day of the scheduled workshop, or for no-shows, for any reason. If you are concerned with this possibility, please consider purchasing travel insurance.

Workshop registration is NOT transferable.

In the extremely rare event that The Ansel Adams Gallery needs to cancel a workshop, we will let you know at least 14 days prior to the first day of the scheduled workshop, and immediately refund your full tuition. However, we will not be responsible for non-refundable airline tickets or lodging reservations. (Lodging reservations made through Yosemite Hospitality, Aramark are fully refundable 14 days in advance).

It is recommended not to purchase airline tickets or make non-refundable deposits on lodging that cannot be canceled 14 days prior to the initiation of the event. The Ansel Adams Gallery highly recommends travel insurance to help with an unfortunate travel event.

COVID-19 Policy

COVID WORKSHOP PRECAUTIONS:The Ansel Adams Gallery is trying to create a workshop environment that is safe for all attendees. In doing so, the gallery realizes that workshop participants will have differing opinions in regards to the Covid-19 Policy. The gallery will side with caution and safety. The Ansel Adams Gallery will follow current CDC Guidelines in pace with the evolution of the Covid-19 Virus. Additional measures may be instituted and updated for the purpose of improved safety of all attendees.

The Gallery will provide the following:
COVID-19 rapid test upon arrival
Masks
Hand sanitizer
Sanitation wipes
Room Air Filtration

COVID-19 POLICY

The Ansel Adams Gallery will require all attendees to show proof of a current negative result from a supplied Covid-19 Rapid Test. This negative Covid-19 Rapid Test result will be required after travel to Yosemite and prior to entry into the first day of the workshop. A Covid-19 Rapid Test Kit will be included in your welcome package available at check in at the Yosemite Valley Lodge or Ahwahnee Hotel. It is very important to inform us if you have chosen different accommodations. A gallery representative will then make alternative arrangements for your receipt of the Covid-19 Rapid Test.

The Ansel Adams Gallery highly recommends travel insurance to help with an unfortunate travel event.

This pre-workshop information may be emailed to the education coordinator at photoed@anseladams.com.

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