Copper Etching: Soft Ground and Sugar Lift (five sessions)
Adult Class | This program is completed
Learn a variety of copper etching techniques in this fun intaglio workshop and learn how to achieve a wide tonal range and detail in your images. Using a copper plate you will learn line etching with sugar lift and soft ground techniques. Learn how to use a press, proper ink application, and registration. Projects, collaboration, and experimentation will be encouraged along with developing innovative and unconventional tools for your mark making. You will get demonstrations and hands-on practice in: copper plate preparation, ground application, drawing, inking, and printing on a press. This workshop is suited for beginners, and also offers intermediate students an opportunity for a deeper exploration of the medium including soft ground etching and sugar lift techniques. Historical and contemporary artists will be introduced throughout the term. This class can be taken as a follow up to "Line and Aquatint" or taken for the first time!
What you will learn:
1. An extensive knowledge of the history and contemporary practice of etching
2. Various traditional techniques including soft ground etching, sugar lift, and scraping and burnishing
3. Non-toxic techniques including wax crayon resist etching and acrylic soft ground etching.
Miriam Singer
Miriam Singer is a Philadelphia-based artist who combines drawing, painting, and printmaking to create layered, imaginative interpretations of city life. Her work explores urban environments through a blend of observation and invention, often merging architectural details, public spaces, and abstract forms. Singer has created murals and public artworks for organizations including the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Philadelphia International Airport, and the Albright-Knox Public Art Program in Buffalo, NY. Her mural Compass Map (2020), created in partnership with NewCourtland Senior Services and the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, features drawings of neighborhood architecture surrounding NewCourtland buildings in Philadelphia. It was painted with the help of local seniors, who contributed to both the design and painting process.
An active educator, Singer teaches printmaking at Fleisher Art Memorial, where she leads workshops in etching and screen printing on fabric. Her collaborative, community-based approach extends to her print projects as well. Such as creating screen prints to support mural fundraising and public engagement. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and alternative spaces including Paradigm Gallery, James Oliver Gallery, The Fairmount House, LG Tripp Gallery, and Vox Populi. Singer is a member of the artist collective Space 1026, where she also maintains a studio. She holds an MFA from the Massachusetts College of Art and a BA from Brandeis University.
https://miriamsinger.com/