Screenprinting is one of those media that hang on in the digital age because they have a genuine craft feel rather than the detachment that computer work can give; a bit like airbrushing or film photography. Whereas they were once the province of the commercial artist, they’re now being increasingly taken up (or reclaimed) by the purely creative fraternity.
The subtitle of this timely look at what’s been going on sums it up completely: Inspirational pieces by contemporary practitioners. The bulk of the book is taken up with examples of work from around the world, with notes explaining the background to the pieces reproduced. There’s also a handy Short History at the beginning which is brief enough not to bother those who know, but long enough to give those less familiar with it an idea of what they’re looking at. Much the same can be said of Screenprinting in Practice. In three pages it isn’t going to tell you how to go about making your own prints, but it does give a hint to the processes involved.
As an introduction to what screenprinting can do and what’s going on around the world at the moment, this can’t be faulted. I might wish for a larger format, though, and maybe a paper stock that didn’t knock the colours back quite so much.
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