Summer School: From Leaf to Print with Su France

An exploration of botanical printing using Gelli plates, suitable for beginners and those with some experience. Emphasis on playful experimentation, plant selection, how to forage responsibly, taking joy from the process and creating finished pieces, including collages and mounted works.

Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, participants will:
- Understand how to select and use botanical materials for printing
- Know some basic and more advanced Gelli plate techniques
- Create a collection of finished pieces
- Complete a mounted work and concertina book
- Develop their personal artistic style/ palette
- Know how to combine some mixed media with prints

Course Structure

Day 1: Introduction and Foundations

- Welcome and safety briefing
- Introduction to Gelli plate printing
- Basic techniques demonstration
- The importance of plant material selection, sustainable foraging
- Local plant collecting expedition (weather depending)
- Rolling and lifting
- Initial experimentation with simple leaves
- Single-layer prints, combination prints, misregistration

Day 2: Developing Techniques
- Using earth pigment sticks/creating backgrounds with walnut ink, coffee and tea dyes
- Create gestural marks through the use of a variety of tools/ media
- compare different inks and discuss advantages/ disadvantages and qualities
- Understanding colour combinations
- Layering techniques introduction- background pulls, details, combing layers, ghost prints
- creating a collage

Day 3: Creative Expression
- Advanced layering techniques
- Using metallics, iridescent inks
- Combining different botanical elements
- Working with positive and negative space
- using your phone to photograph compositions
- Personal project development
- Building a collection of prints concertina book

Day 4: Project Development
- Collage techniques with printed elements
- Mounting demonstration
- Using a range of papers
- Starting personal projects
- Concertina book structure introduction
- Planning book layout
- Continued project work

Day 5: Finishing Presentation reflection
- Completing personal projects
- Book assembly
- Final details and refinements
- Mount work preparation
- Project completion
- Group critique and discussion
- Celebration and reflection

About the Tutor

Su France is a Lincolnshire-based artist whose work celebrates the beauty of rural life. Working with foraged botanicals, earth pigments, and vintage threads, she creates prints and textile pieces that capture how she feels about her place in the natural world. Her practice includes stitch work on linen, the use of locally sourced pigments muted, earthy colours, Gelli plate printing and collagraph prints, where she explores her love of ceramics and the idea of imperfection and the mend.
Drawing inspiration from her surroundings, Su combines traditional techniques with playful experimentation. She's passionate about sharing her methods through workshops, helping others discover their own creativity through accessible approaches to printmaking and natural materials. Her work emphasizes the connection between art and the wild, finding beauty in the simple patterns and textures of the natural world.