The Possibilities of Paper - Colorplan

The Possibilities of Colorplan - Edition 1 of 3, in collaboration with Swiss Printer, Sonderegger.

Colorplan represents an exceptional achievement in paper making. Over the last 80 years Colorplan has been continually refined, perfected, and pushed the range to its limits. Every one of its 55 colors, optional embossings and 10 weights is made sustainably, in Great Britain. It can adapt to endless transformations, from boxes to business cards, paper bags to works of art.

Possibilities of Paper - Colorplan explores the subject of Butterflies. Butterflies conjure up images of sunshine, the warmth and color of flowery meadows, and summer gardens teaming with life. A perfect subject for creative expression on Colorplan.

Colorplan Hot Pink

Colorplan Hot Pink

Colorplan Purple

Colorplan Purple

Colorplan Citrine

Colorplan Citrine

With a staggered release, the 3 editions mimic the life cycle of a butterfly. Starting from a view of immense detail and abstraction, each one gains more context graphically until its fully fledged final form is revealed, culminating in a final unveiling of a beautiful butterfly.

To really showcase the vast potential of Colorplan, we wanted to explore numerous print techniques. These techniques, when applied to Colorplan create beautiful print pieces that you want to explore, hold, study and feel.

We have created unique and unusual color combinations, presenting an artful and expressive printed reinterpretation of the original butterfly imagery.

Print Production notes:

Outer case - Colorplan Racing Green 350gsm. Debossing of butterfly wing detail, with KURZ Laser foil.

Inner sleeve - Colorplan Mandarin 270gsm. Intricate raster lasercut on frontside of sleeve with embossed text.

Cards - Utilising Hot Pink, Citrine and Purple stock; showcasing 3 foil blocks; Holographic, Metallic Silver, and Metallic Gold. We have also overprinted ink on top of silver foil to create an unusual shimmering color in specific parts of the print.

Rethink Color, Composition and Corners with YUPO Round

With YUPO Round artists can reshape, rethink, recompose and reimagine everything and create anew. It’s a revolution that cannot be cornered. YUPO opened a door of creativity with YUPO Round, taking that slick, beloved tree-free medium and literally reshaping it.

Learn more about how artist, Courtney Patterson, uses YUPO Rounds for her artwork.

What do you find appealing about the Round shape?
I love the shape of a Yupo Round. Circles are a soft shape and the roundness aspect often adds warmth and interest to a work of art. Circles are also omnipresent in the natural world and I try to include a sense of nature in every piece. The natural world is where I find most of my inspiration.

Does the shape affect the way you work on YUPO?
It absolutely does! I base the direction of the artwork on both the size and the shape of the paper. I really enjoy adding an accent tone to most of my work with alcohol ink (usually a metallic - silver, brass, rose gold, or gold). Depending on the shape and size of the paper, I will either increase or decrease the amount of accent tone I use.

How do you display a finished piece on YUPO Rounds? Do you mount the piece? Do you seal and protect your finished piece?

After the ink has dried on the YUPO Rounds, I use a finisher to set the piece. My varnish of choice is Lascaux 2070 Acrylic Fixative Spray. Often, the alcohol ink will dry with a high gloss and pigment finish, so for me, it is crucial that the varnish is non-yellowing and clear. I always want the natural pigments of the ink to stay intact and for the piece be as vibrant as possible. I let the artwork sit for a few hours before starting the mounting process, I like to mount the YUPO Rounds on cotton board. I then get the board and the spray adhesive beside me, along with some liquid glue. Once I have everything ready to go, I get started by flipping the YUPO Round over and spraying the back of the paper with the adhesive.

I then flip the paper so that it's upwards and adhere it to the center of the cotton board. I carefully press down with my hands and ensure every part of the paper has adhered correctly. In the rare case that it hasn’t, I keep liquid glue (Lineco Neutral pH Adhesive) beside me so more adhesive can be added to the corners of the round if needed. Once the piece has been finished and adhered, I have a rough idea of how it will look framed. Framing is a whole other process, I think it’s important to find a style and tone that best compliments the piece. There are thousands out there, so it’s always enjoyable hunting down the right one. Sometimes a simple moulding suits the artwork best and other times a frame with a little more character compliments the art just right.

 What your favorite media to use on YUPO?
My favorite media to use on Yupo paper is definitely alcohol ink. For the primary colors I use on YUPO Rounds, I enjoy using COPIC ink refills in the 12ml bottles. I drop them onto the YUPO Rounds and use a heat gun to drive the flow and direction of the piece. COPIC carries a variety of beautiful colors and shades. For the metallic accent tones, I usually use Jacquard Piñata Alcohol Ink.

Any struggles you come across with YUPO / any advice for other artists?

There are not too many struggles when it comes to YUPO. Alcohol ink tends to dry quite quickly on non-porous surfaces, so sometimes going back and fixing what we might see as mistakes can be quite a challenge. Although, I often think what we initially see as mistakes can be the most unique or beautiful part of a piece, it can be best to avoid redoing anything and just see where it takes you! It is a good way of pushing you to be okay with being imperfect when it comes to creating. My advice is even if you do not like how it’s turning out at the beginning or midway through, just keep going and you might surprise yourself!

YUPO Medium Round is available in 74lb/197gsm, in both 8" and 12" diameter.

Printmaker, Kathy Anderson, Uses Somerset for Linocuts and Etchings

Kathryn Anderson is a printmaking artist living and creating in Washington State in the US. She derives much inspiration from the beautiful Pacific Northwest region. Her work reflects her love for the natural world and her connections to the animals who inhabit it.Birds, forests, myth, and magic are often recurring themes in her work.

How did you come across Somerset?

{KA} There is a wonderful community of artists on Instagram! I have come to know the work of so many talented printmakers all over the world. I have found that printmakers are very kind and willing to share their knowledge about how they create their beautiful work and are quite patient about responding to my questions.

Among the artists whose work I truly admire, and I’ve often found that Somerset paper was a recurring theme of their successful work. Once I tried Somerset papers with my linocut prints and etchings I was hooked!

What qualities does Somerset have that works with your techniques?

{KA} Somerset papers are consistently perfect. The quality is exceptional, and the range of colors and textures allows me to use Somerset paper with both linocut prints and etchings. I can confidently know that my editions will be archival, consistent, and clean.

Somerset Satin is sized perfectly for linocut, and the Somerset velvet and textured papers can be dampened to work beautifully for etchings while yielding sharp fine details.

What is your favorite type of Somerset and why?

{KA} I use Somerset Satin paper exclusively for creating linocut prints. I’ve tried lots of other papers and Somerset Satin is far and away my favorite. The delicious smoothness of the surface is the perfect receptor for the ink and yields wonderfully sharp, clean prints. I love the weight of the paper too; it is strong and stable.

I teach linocut classes and I provide Somerset Satin paper for my students. There are a lot of variables that affect the print quality, but by starting them off with the best paper, their first experience with linocut printing is a positive one with great outcomes!

What is your process like?

Linocut

ETCHING

Watch Kathy’s Aquatint Process.

2022 Holiday Gift Guide for Artists!

  1. Legion Tees: These unisex tees feel like they’ve been in your closet before you even take them out of the package. Designed with super-soft, ring-spun cotton, each shirt is a short-sleeved crew neck that delivers unrelenting comfort to your artsy torso.

  2. Sample Books: Artists need to touch and feel every step of their process and that begins with their supplies. These collections have been handpicked from over 4,000 papers for the express purpose of getting these select few into the hands of creators everywhere. Literally. We encourage each one to experiment, test and create on a small scale today so they can make big plans for their art tomorrow. Our sample collections curated by application and color.

  3. Mini Pads: The PERFECT stocking stuffer for your artist or creative. These adorable 2.5” x 3.75” are available in all 15 Legion Artist Pads including brands Stonehenge, Stonehenge Aqua, YUPO & Lenox. A great size for traveling and tiny art!

  4. DIY Ornaments: Everyone loves a handmade gift. Watch this tutorial to create your own ornaments using YUPO. You’ll also get to showcase your art on a friends tree!

  5. Mini Pad Sets: Have an artist that already has a brand or medium they love? Give your watercolor artist our Stonehenge Aqua set, give your colored pencil artist our Stonehenge set and your alcohol ink artist our YUPO set.

  6. Artist Pad Set: The Legion Artist Pad Collection consists of a set of thirteen 9x12 drawing and watercolor pads, including the renowned Stonehenge, Lenox, Yupo, Stonehenge Aqua and the NEW Stonehenge Oil papers, it offers every artist a glorious range of untouched, unrivaled and, perhaps, unexplored surfaces. Hand-wrapped and available for a very holiday-friendly price of less than $100 (separately over $200).

Turn Your Art Into Prints

Tell us about yourself and your art!

My name is Elizabeth Karlson, I am an artist from Northern Illinois. I create calming, ethereal abstract artworks using primarily alcohol ink.

What materials do you use for your artwork & prints?

I create most of my paintings on synthetic paper, like Yupo! My favorite paper to use for prints is Moab Entrada Rag Bright White.

Why do you print your artwork?

I print my work because it provides a cost effective option for those that have a limited budget. It also allows me to print copies of my work and share them to people all around the world.

What is your process for printing your art?

  1. I start by scanning my artwork on my Epson v39 scanner at a high resolution, like 2400dpi. This allows me to take small images and be able to print them at a large scale.

  2. I open the scan TIF file in photoshop and edit out pieces of microscopic dust, hairs and fuzz. It usually takes me at least an hour to edit the image, sometimes much more than that depending on the image.

  3. Once I have my image finished, I open a new document in my desired print size, then paste my image onto that document and crop it to the correct size. I print on Moab Entrada Rag Bright White using my Epson Surecolor P900. I can print images up to 17” in studio.

  4. If a customer wants a print larger than this I use a company called Finerworks. With Finerworks, I can order prints in very large sizes, the print quality is great and you can select your favorite paper or material to print on.

Advice for artists that wants to start printing.

My advice to artists that want to start printing their work- always get a good image of your artwork. I recommend getting a scanner, this way you can have high resolution images and make an image portfolio. For larger works you can take a picture using a digital camera and a tripod so the image is sharp.

You don’t need to invest in a fancy printer at the start, you can find great companies online or local print shops and take your file to be printed there. (Here ‘s a list of photo labs printing on Moab Paper.)

Having a good image makes all the difference, you can use it for prints/ reproductions, licensing deals and a variety of other things.

Get a flash drive, hard drive, or upgrade your cloud space so you can store all your images there for easy access. You never know when a customer or potential client wants to work with you and you’ll be prepared with a high resolution image portfolio.