Highland Print Studio

There is a reminder of the art of letter writing in this final episode, as I cut and print the final two colours of the reduction cut print. Linocut is a slow way to write a letter, unlikely to challenge digital technology, and it has to be cut back to front. But it keeps me happy. John

I’m unashamedly highjacking this blog because I really feel that the digital world could do with another cat story. Also, it was a year ago today that Missing, Presumed Dead became Missing, Presumed Fed. Last February, after a year of saying “never again”, I left the office one day, drove to the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to …

With the new registration system working well, I have the courage to push on with another two colours. In this episode I at least manage to fill most of the paper, instead of the pathetically small amount of the first instalment. Just in case the paper waste polis have tuned in… John

Here we go again with a new series of films. Since the last videos my life has been a whistle stop tour of interviews and media interest, reaching way beyond the small world of printmaking. Netflix, Disney Pixar and Warner Bros have all been in contact. A Mr Weinstein has been very persistent. He says he can’t meet just now, …

Another wee dip into our archive has thrown up a project with the grand title of ‘A Brief Lesson in Caledonian Antisyzygy’. We refer to it as our ‘unsung heroes’ versus ‘much sung zeros. John and I had already been thinking about projects inspired by unsung heroes, when one evening we went to a talk by the historian, Sir Tom …

Reducing Medium, Extender Base, Tinting Medium. All names for That See-through Stuff, a transparent ink which can be added to other colours. Experience in the studio shows that people have a bit of trepidation about using it and getting to know what it can do. It can be a wee bit tricky to guess or judge its effect, but it …

It has been so difficult to prevent spoilers getting out before this big finale. But here it is at last, the big reveal. The technique in this final part is unusual. Maybe through laziness, I am not cutting away everything I don’t need. Instead, there is final cutting on the figure, and local inking of the figure with a small …

For those interested in making books, Japanese stab bindings are an ideal place to start. They are simple, require only a few basic tools, and are endlessly customisable. The basic Japanese version of stab binding is called Yotsume Toji, which roughly translates to “four holes” the same as the Chinese version, while the Korean standard has five holes (a more …

Still hanging on in there? So two colours printed and with text starting to form. In this thrilling instalment, the text will be completed, and more forming of the figure is cut. Remember all the cutting is to preserve that previously printed colour. The cutting and printing of the lettering is completed in this third colour so as to not …

I was looking back through our project archive recently and I came across this one that I’m very fond of. Face to Face was a photography project that we worked on with pupils from Fortrose Academy, and also involved attendees of D-Caff, the local dementia café where the young people volunteer. The activity was supported by High Life Highland Black …