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By Heather Ferguson
 Sonja Georgeson’s excellent standing as an art teacher in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney was something I had long heard about from various friends and colleagues so I snapped up the chance to take a collagraph workshop with her when a friend handed me the flyer. It was one of those gifts from the gods that falls into your lap at just the right time.
I then discovered that this was in fact the last workshop Sonja would be running from her studio in Manly, as she was moving up to the Queensland hinterland early in the new year! Sad for us here in Sydney – great for you further north!
Collagraph is an experimental form of printmaking which explores texture as much, or more than, other compositional elements of line, shape, colour and tone. Every stage of the production is affected by the texture and it is integral to the final result. Collagraph involves gluing (or adhering in some way) a collage of various materials on to a cardboard or wooden surface called the ‘print plate’ or ‘print block’. Numerous artworks can result – not only a huge variety of prints and series of prints, but also the printing block can become a worthy artwork in its own right.
 Texture, because it provides the ‘relief’ of the print surface, becomes even more important in collagraph than in many other visual art media. Yet it doesn’t stop there. A myriad different effects can be obtained by:
- Using relief or intaglio printing processes – or a mixture of both
- Using a press or any number of manual press methods
- Applying different types of paint to the ‘block’ in different ways – rolling, painting, dabbing
- Printing onto - print making paper, tissue paper, water colour paper, card, newsprint – preworked paper or card - the list is endless
- Layering prints utilising different colours, or even changing some of the shapes and lines, or masking whole areas
- Continuing to work the prints with inks, paints, pastels or whatever combination your imagination suggests
- and of course the original plate itself may outshine the prints taken from it and become your favourite work of the series in itself – or it can do with a little more reworking.
The endless possibilities make collagraph a great way to explore the environment through texture, but also engenders a certain ‘openness’ within the artist during the creative process. It draws on your sensory abilities – feeling the textures and seeing how they translate through the print process – feeling the tack of the print paint and noticing what it picks up and transfers, or doesn’t.
 It is helpful to try a lot of different variations when printing with the one plate. (Hint! Take notes so you remember how you achieved each effect!) Experimenting freely like this rewards you with a richer understanding of possibilities, as well growing your confidence and encouraging further exploration! The endlessness of it all reminds me of Alice in Wonderland disappearing down the rabbit hole. You end up in whole new, unexpected universes. Go with it, just stay present and enjoy the adventure.
Sonja herself is a compulsive creator who works as an artist and designer as well as an art teacher. She has been exhibiting her work since 1987 and teaching art for over 25 years. As well as collage, she also works with oils, acrylics, watercolours, pastels, and other forms of printmaking so has a wealth of knowledge and experience she generously shares in a rich, and well organised workshop environment. She specifically designed her studio space in Manly to act as a ‘creative sanctuary’ to encourage the creative growth of each individual student.
 I am even more disappointed about Sonja’s move up north now I’ve taken one of her workshops! I’ll just have to plan a visit up north to coincide with one of her ‘offerings’ once she is established. From February this year she will be based in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.
Sonja Georgeson
Mobile 0407 238 026
Email
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PO Box 103
Montville QLD 4560 |
