Printmaking Unleashed

The amazing and one-of-a-kind Traci Bautista has recently released a new book Printmaking Unleashed: More Than 50 Techniques for Expressive Mark Making. I was excited to receive a copy from Traci to review.

The first thing I noticed when I flipped through the book was the explosion of colors. There is eye candy to be found on every page and that alone makes this great for a shot of inspiration. But this book is not just about color. It is also filled with information and technique. And do not think you have to be a printmaker to find value in this book. Rather, these techniques can be used by every artist and crafter out there.

Traci's book is divided into three main parts. In part 1 she covers the basics of printmaking and printmaking tools. This is the largest section of the book. Through a series of easy-to-follow exercises, she introduces you to everything you will need to complete the projects and techniques in the remainder of the book. Although Traci covers familiar and more traditional tools (stamps, texture plates, etc.) helpful for the beginner, the majority of the section focuses on innovative and nontraditional tools and approaches, making this book perfect for the seasoned pro. Examples include hot glue stencils, lace embroidery hoops, sticks and yarn, Collage Pauge silkscreens, molding paste plates, and many more.

Part 2 discusses printmaking techniques in more depth, using multiple examples of acrylic skins, fusible prints, digital stencils, plexiglass printing, sgraffito, resist and subtractive printing, and more.

The last section presents a series of pieces that have been created by Traci that illustrate the techniques and approaches introduced earlier in the book. She included finished pieces as well as works in progress, making this section even more valuable.

Traci's instructions are easy to follow and well illustrated. If you typical color palette is not as bright and vivid as hers, you can utilize all these techniques with colors in your comfort zone. For example, I can easily see her techniques being applied to vintage, sepia work as well. You can take the information that Traci has generously shared and make it your own.