graphic design:
printmaking

Students are introduced to the complexity and myriad possibilities of graphic practices and associated technical processes step-by-step and with sufficient space for practical practice, experimentation, analysis, interpretation and reflection.

In the first bachelor year, the emphasis is on exploring and experimenting with mainly historical analogue printing techniques, such as dry needle, monotype, linocut, pronto plate, silkscreen, and so on. In addition, students are also introduced to digital preparation and editing of certain printing techniques using software. Mastering these techniques and experimenting with them are encouraged through exploratory practice that can take various forms, including drawing, writing, collage, note-taking, photography, sound recording, and so on. The guidance of this exploration process and its frequent individual discussions are designed to inspire and guide students towards interesting topics and approaches. Exploration, discovery and experimentation are therefore central in this first year. 

In the second year of the bachelor's programme, we delve deeper into previously taught techniques and introduce new processes and skills, such as etching, aquatint, varnish mou, chine collé, lithography, digital printing with large-format printers, and integrating laser cutting into graphic practice. We will also explore the process of gluing and binding small handmade publications and the use of software for the development and production of printed or graphic audiovisual works. During this year, we also address specific themes and features of graphic practice, such as the relationship between image and text, figure and discourse, the use of photography in print, and edition printing. Our guidance and discussions in this second year focus mainly on analysing these processes and reflecting on the results arising from the searching practice and creative processes. In doing so, we aim for the student's individual artistic practice to gradually begin to focus and relate to specific objects or domains. To support this, presentations are regularly given during studio classes where we illustrate analyses of such processes in important, well-known graphic artworks. Moreover, in the specific theory classes (Theory and History of Printmaking), we pay ample attention to analysing the mass-media contexts that influence printmaking practice and graphic art, through close reading of canonical texts on various aspects of graphic art practice.

In the third year of the undergraduate programme, we place more emphasis on learning and deepening various reproduction processes that specifically suit the students' individual artistic development. As in the second year, our guidance and feedback remains focused on analysing and directing the production processes and interpreting the artistic results. In this third year, we also focus on specific aspects of graphic practice, similar to the second year, through small exercises and presentations. However, students are encouraged to work on their work with more independence. Searching and making should result in precisely executed works that are integrated into small projects, which may or may not culminate in an overarching undergraduate project.