The Art Cloth Network Collaborative Custom Repeat Pattern Workshop

 

The Art Cloth Network Collaborative Custom Repeat Pattern Workshop

Monday, April 24, 2023 at the Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia

 

On Monday, April 24, 2023, the day after our in-person meeting in Philadelphia, seven members of Art Cloth Network got together for a workshop at the Fabric Workshop and Museum. In attendance were Mary Ann Nailos, Ileana Soto, Barbara Matthews, Adria Sherman, Judy Languille, Sherri Lipman McCauley and Regina Marzlin. Together we designed, prepared a screen for printing, set up the print table for repeats, then printed seven yards of fabric. The fabric was a cotton sateen with a 30” repeat using textile inks.

The facilities were wonderful, with very long print tables: 30” high, 68” and 72” wide and 20 yards long!

The first thing we learned was what types of marks and masks were opaque when transferred to the light sensitive screen. Various markers and black papers were
considered.

The first challenge was coming up a design. This was a lesson in team building. Each person came up with some marks or shapes that were then laid on top of the paper that is transparent in the printing process. The loose pieces of black paper were taped to the base with transparent tape.

After getting the arrangement we liked, a “jog” line was cut through the white spaces down the center of the design. The outside edges of the design were then put together so that the straight edges were now in the center, with gaps that needed to be filled in with more shapes and marks. The irregular edges that the jog line created on the sides ensures that the repeat would be less noticeable when the fabric is printed. Finally, everything was taped in place.

The design was placed on top of a prepared screen with a photo-sensitive emulsion and brought to a separate room housing the light table. The table was equipped with a vacuum that ensured the design was flat and would not move around during exposure to the light.

After exposure, the screen was brought to a large sink and the photo emulsion was removed from the areas opaque to the light by spraying with a hose.

The tables were equipped with rails with stops. The screens had L brackets that registered against each stop. Each stop was positioned precisely 30” apart in order to ensure the proper repeat.

Our next decision was color. We chose a medium blue as our main print color and also some other colors for accents. We used gold, a maroon red, some greens and lighter blues. These were dispensed from squeeze bottles, dripping them onto the screen before the main color was placed in the well at the top of the screen.

Printing was a two person job. The squeegee was pushed across to the center by the first person, then pulled the rest of the way by someone on the other side of the table. Every other stop was printed so that the no stray ink was picked up on the screen to mar the design. Every person had a hand in each print, either squirting the ink on the screen or taking turns pushing or pulling the squeegee.

Large fans dried the ink, then the rest of the repeats were completed.

At the end of the day each took home one yard of our originally designed fabric, with our names printed on the selvage! It was a great fun and a good learning experience. Who will be the first to cut up their precious fabric?