Screenprinting Today
An Introduction
Screen Printing (also referred to as silk screening, screen process printing, serigraphy) is a unique method of transferring or printing graphic images, and is considered by many to be the one of the oldest methods of printing. It was first used by the Chinese and the Japanese to decorate clothing, reproduce artwork, and publish posters with the latest words of wisdom of the emperor. Over 1000 years ago it was discovered that woven silk stretched on a wood frame, with a stencil image attached to the bottom with glue, could be used to reproduce the same image over and over on different materials by forcing ink or paints through the opening in the stencil. That's screenprinting!
Examples of this original technique are still used today. If you ever get the chance to watch a traditional Japanese kite maker, you get a glimpse of ancient screen printing in action. The kite maker uses a set of miniature silk screens with different colours and stencil shapes to repeat fish scales, eyeballs, and other shapes that illustrate a fish on the side of a kite. The basic components of the screenprinting process remain the same as in ancient times:
- the art or design
- the frame with the mesh
- the stencil carrying the image
- the ink
- the squeegee
- the press system
- the substrate (material) to be printed
However, there have been a few advancements made over the years in materials, techniques, and equipment that allow today's screenprinter to use the process to print almost anything anywhere. This course is concerned with covering some of these advances in screenprinting, and helping to integrate the new ideas into your printing efforts. You will develop your ability to recognize and reduce variables and problems within the process to achieve 'the perfect print'.
