Monotypes - Foliage and Kozo Paper

Frottage is a technique that involves rubbing with pencil, graphite or crayon onto a sheet of paper that has been placed on top of a texture surface. The raised portions translate onto the sheet of paper. The term is derived from the French word Frotter, which means to rub. I have used frottage to describe some of the foliage that I have collected before using them in my prints.

Responding to themes of place in my monoprints, I have sourced foliage from my backyard and daily walks around my neighbourhood, with also collecting waste products within my household.

Kozo Paper is Japanese paper derived from mulberry tree bark. When using Kozo paper for monoprints, the paper doesn’t need to be soaked like rag paper (to much water damages the paper) lightly spraying the paper with water and pressing the excess water from the Kozo with newsprint is sufficient.

When trialing this method, I found that the damp Kozo stuck to the plate and would tear. I tested using the Kozo dry and had much better results. I like the softness and sheerness of the Kozo paper and when displaying the final prints, I plan to play with overlaying the prints on top of each other.