Margaret River Region Open Studios: Salty Bones

See the full event details here: https://mrropenstudios.com.au/artist/?a=adam-ashdown

"Being a printmaker, it is all about the reveal. Often the unintentional outcomes end up being my favourite pieces, working exclusively with marine life these happy mistakes are a regular occurrence.

I have adopted the 19th-century Japanese technique known as Gyotaku, where traditionally sumi-e ink was applied to a fresh fish, a sheet of rice paper is then manipulated over the fish to produce a beautifully simple mirror image.

Experimentation has been paramount for my growth as an artist. Although Gyotaku is seemingly a very simple process, it has led me to change up the traditional basics of the art form using an array of different mediums. Layering and subject manipulation can really animate a piece bringing both depth and movement.

Again this year, I will be printing real fish daily, incorporating traditional Japanese sumi ink and mulberry bark papers, as well as a wet mounting technique known as urauchi."