Interviews
Mark Graver interview by |
Mark Graver interview with Eva Yocum July 2007 |
World Printmakers interview - Wharepuke Print Studio & Gallery Startup |
Mark Graver interviewed by
London based printmaker Chris Pig
Mark Graver moved from London to New Zealand 4 years ago to set up a studio with his partner Tania, who is from New Zealand. There were plenty of teething problems as there always are with such enterprises; but to add to these in Graver’s case was the fact that he was trying to build his studio in a comparative wilderness, Kerikeri on North Island. Chris Pig asked him a few questions about it.
Chris - Apart from the obvious logistical problems of setting up a fully equipped studio in such a remote setting, such as getting your etching press shipped from the states; what has been the greatest challenge for you setting up?
Mark - It’s not actually that remote – only 3 ½ hours north of Auckland but has a small population of around 5,000. Tourism swells the numbers as they flock to The Bay of Islands in the summer months. We now have tourist accommodation on site too which Tania manages and a hall which we renovated where we put on concerts and other events. We hope to use this as an exhibition space in the future too. We were very lucky to be able to move onto a property that has been in Tania’s family since the 1930’s when her Grandfather bought it. Her father has cultivated part of it and it now has 2 hectares of established subtropical garden which has been awarded Garden of Regional Significance. Not a bad setting for a studio! I had the shell of a space in which to build the studio, it’s about 9 m x 22m However it took some time – approx two years - from conception to finally getting the space usable. The press was sourced from USA – it’s a Conrad Geared Monotype Press – bed size 915x1752mm. I looked at getting something similar in NZ but there was only one maker I could find and it actually turned out cheaper to import. I also have a Sakura Etching press – bed size 470mm x 800mm – which was purchased with the help of a Birgit Skiold Memorial Trust grant. The studio is dedicated to safer printmaking techniques and the hardest part of the set up was sourcing non toxic materials in NZ. I have to bring things in from Australia and USA. We are now working with Akua water based inks and work as a supplier for them in NZ. I also had to re-train myself in the new non toxic methods as all my previous printmaking has been using traditional methods.
Chris - How did the local people receive you? Have you had a positive reaction to the studio? Do you do much work within the community?
Mark - There are difficulties in explaining what prints actually are to people. Many of the gallery/shops have ‘limited editions’ for sale which are merely giclees and one gallery here actively promotes the printing of paintings onto canvas which they sell as limited editions. I always end up arguing with the owner but he has no idea what he’s actually selling. However, there’s been a lot of interest. Kerikeri has an active arts community and there are a number of small gallery/shop outlets. The studio hasn’t opened to the public just yet but will open in the next two months – looks positive though. The aim is to be national and international as well as serving the local community.
Chris - I notice that there is a political aspect to your work;
Mark - My work is based primarily on ideas about place. Connections to and memories of place both historical and personal. The political aspects relate to landscape – ie - what is “landscape”? Who decides what is worthy of the title? This is connected to ideas of ownership – the naming and mapping of place as means of colonisation. It’s a notion with particular resonance in NZ and Australia.
Chris - You have recently had some work accepted as part of the permanent collection of the Tolpuddle museum; how did this come about?
Mark - I was moved by the story of The Tolpuddle Martyrs when I first heard about them – probably school history. Before we left UK to move to NZ we went on a road trip to see the sites I felt I had to visit before I left. Stonehenge, Avebury, Iron Bridge, St.Ives and Tolpuddle was one of the places on my list. I’d been thinking about making some work relating to the Martyrs for some time and recently made a series of six white ground etchings to commemorate them. I offered a set to the museum and they were very pleased to accept them.
Chris - I get the impression that you are a bit of a printmaking pioneer, what plans have you got for the future?
Mark - We aim to establish the Wharepuke print Studio as the top non toxic printmaking resource in the country.
We want to work with artists at all stages of their careers from professional established artists needing printmaking expertise to those just starting out (I also teach printmaking at the local Polytech and hope to use the studio as part of the campus)
With the accommodation here we will be able to offer residential courses and summer schools and we hope to get an artist in residence programme up and running. We’re talking to Dan Welden about coming here early next year for a solarplate workshop.
There is also a small gallery space and we are looking at exchange shows with galleries in Wellington and further a field.
We are also in partnership with the major tour operator here, Fullers Bay of Islands. The garden and studio/gallery is included in a daily Eco Tour. It’s mainly for the garden but they were very interested in the studio as its set up to be environmentally friendly.
Mark Graver interview
with Eva Yocum - July 2007
Eva - What is non-toxic printmaking?
Mark - Non Toxic, as a term, has come to be used to represent safer alternative printmaking techniques. Traditional printmaking practice uses a cocktail of highly toxic materials that are damaging to the health of the artist and to the environment. In Non Toxic printmaking we use Ferric Chloride to etch copper. While this is an old technique it was hampered in the past by the need to feather the plate to stop the etched residue falling back into and clogging the lines. The Edinburgh Etch, developed by Edinburgh Printmakers, has citric acid (used in Jam making!) added to it – this alleviates the problem and speeds up the etch. No fumes are given off and no complicated extractor systems are needed.
In addition we use acrylic resists as grounds and aquatints, water based Intaglio inks and washing soda as a cleaner.
Various other techniques such as Solarplate and Photopolymer film can be employed which allow photo etching and digitally manipulated images to be combined with traditional etching techniques. Solarplates are developed using UV light so can be exposed in the sun, and ‘etched’ in water.
I also make collagraph, carborundum and drypoint prints.
Basically Non Toxic Printmaking can achieve all the results of traditional printmaking practice but without the need for toxic materials.
Eva - What turned you on to non-toxic methods and materials?
Mark - The health and safety issues and the practicalities of setting up a studio with health and safety in mind. The Wharepuke Print studio is set within 2 hectares of subtropical garden in Kerikeri and we have a very definite eco approach to all the activities that happen on the property. All my training was done with the old traditional materials but in order to set up a studio now days you’d need a huge investment in extractor units and have to meet very strict health and safety requirements, particularly with having public access. The new methods are far more eco friendly and much safer health wise, and you can do all the same things technically using non toxic materials as you can with traditional ones.
Eva - Where do you source your inks/materials?
Mark - That’s been one of the hardest things to achieve. While a number of the materials used are available in the local supermarket such as Klear furniture polish for acrylic hard grounds, citric acid for Edinburgh Etch, and soy sauce which is used for de-greasing plates, many of the more specialist items are not yet available in NZ.
I get some things from suppliers in Australia and USA such as Non Toxic Aquatint spray, and have just arranged to be a NZ distributor for Akua Waterbased Inks – they make a very good water based intaglio ink which will be available from the studio
Eva - Do you make any yourself?
Mark - No but I make my own paint from copolymers and clays
Eva - Where did you learn your printmaking skills?
Mark - I first learned etching on a Foundation Course in Art and Design at Watford Art College in the UK in about 1984, then went to Leeds Polytechnic (now the Metropolitan University) for a BA Fine Art degree. After a few years in Edinburgh I went to Cambewell College of Arts in London for a Masters in Printmaking.
Eva - Where did you first find out about non-toxic printmaking?
Mark - I think I first heard about it when working at Intaglio Printmaker as artist in residence in 1996. It’s a printmaking suppliers in London and one of the staff members went up Edinburgh for a workshop. It wasn’t until I came to NZ in 2003 that I begun researching it for myself and retraining myself in the new techniques
Our students hail from all over New Zealand (and the rest of the world). For our New Zealand students, if they were keen to learn more, do you teach short term workshops they could attend?
We will be running courses and workshops at the studio in Kerikeri – these are being planned at the moment and should start in the springtime. We will have residential courses, short courses, evenings and weekends. If groups want to get together we can design a course to suit and accommodation is available on site. We are also hoping to have a course in Solarplate Printmaking by Dan Welden (Printmaking in the Sun) next year. A web site is currently being developed but in the mean time there is some info on our set up here www.accommodation-bay-of-islands.co.nz
Eva - How archival are prints made with non toxic materials?
Mark - If you use good quality papers and inks they are as archival as traditional prints
Eva - And finally – the bottom line – do you have any idea how traditional and non-toxic materials compare in terms of cost?
Mark - Many of the materials can be bought from the supermarket, inks vary depending on colours ( a good black water based etching ink is about $30.00) so financially the costs are pretty much the same however the health costs and the fact that you need expensive safety equipment makes the non toxic approach a much better option.
Wharepuke Print Studio & Gallery Startup
A Brit's Bold Move to New Zealand
British Printmaker Mark Graver Swaps London, England for Kerikeri, N.Z.
Question - Your CV says you're a painter and printmaker from St. Albans, Hertfordshire, U.K., that you studied art at Leeds Polytechnic, then Camberwell College of Arts in South London, and that between 1995 and 2003 you enjoyed a series of art residencies in the U.K. Then in 2003 you turn up in Kerikeri, New Zealand. Would you care to elaborate a bit on the process which led you to make the leap, and how you feel about having done it?
Mark - My partner, Tania, is from Kerikeri. We met in the UK 11 years ago and decided to move here in 2003. I spent two six-month periods in N.Z. before moving and set up some shows here and dealer connections while still in the UK. It's a great place to live - we're on land that Tania's grandfather bought in 1938. It's been divided up between her father and his three brothers but in essence is still intact. Our part is two hectares of subtropical garden planted by Tania's father. And recently awarded "Garden of Regional Significance." We have five self-contained cottages for tourist accommodation set in the garden, garden tours, the print studio and a venue were we put on a variety of events including music gigs.
Question - Now, in 2007, you have just opened your own printmaking workshop there. How did that come about? What were the factors which convinced you that a workshop could be a success there?
Mark - I made my first prints on a foundation course in Watford UK, in 1984 and continued printmaking throughout my first degree at Leeds. Ever since that time I've had the ambition to have my own press and print studio. It's primarily set up as a place for me to make my work so isn't reliant on course numbers for its success.
There's a strong interest in the arts in Kerikeri but it is a small population to attract potential students from , however interest has been positive. I hope to also work with the local Polytechnic (I currently teach printmaking there but the studio has better facilities so I'm hoping it becomes an extension of the campus).
We can also offer on site accommodation which allows us to market courses and workshops to a wider audience and there's a huge influx of tourists over the summer months so can offer short courses then as well.
I'm hoping to attract professional artists who want to come here to make prints and artist printmakers to take workshops - we have Dan Welden coming to run a Solarplate workshop next year.
Question - The name of the workshop is not easy to forget: "Wharepuke Print Studio and Gallery." Would you care to tell us where that came from?
Mark - It means "House on the Hill" in Maori. Whare (Faray) = House, Puke (Pookee) = Hill. It was named by Tania's Grandfather when he bought the land.
Question - How did you finance it? Just off to the bank for a loan, or does New Zealand have programs which help artist/entrepreneurs with this kind of projects?
Mark - The main funding came through an interest free loan from my father. There was also some funding for one of the presses and a compressor from the Birgit Skiold Memorial Trust, a UK based trust for printmakers. The funding bodies I looked at in NZ don't fund for capital items.
Question - From the photographs the workshop looks beautiful. Who designed it? Let's give them a plug.
Mark - The building was designed by Martin Evans, a prominent NZ architect. He is now based in Auckland but has a number of significant buildings around Kerikeri. It was originally designed for Robin (Tania's father) as a potting area so was an existing building that I've renovated for studio use. There's a one bedroom flat above where we live, a mezzanine with a small bedroom, sitting area and storage then the studio and office below. The studio space is about 9 x 22 metres.
Question - What programs will the workshop offer?
Mark - A variety of courses and workshops in non toxic techniques primarily focused on Acrylic Resist Etching.
We will have weekend courses and probably a series of longer evening courses. Short courses will be available for guests staying in the accommodation and groups will be able to tailor their own courses in consultation with me. If a group wants to come for a holiday in the Bay of Islands they will be able to structure the intensity of workshop time and holiday time to suit their needs.
We will also have open access slots available for those with proven knowledge of the techniques or those who have completed an induction course.
There will be visiting artists running courses in other techniques and we hope to get a residency programme running in the future.
The gallery is part of the studio and is there mainly to showcase my own work. I tend to sell through dealers here in NZ and London so the gallery isn't primarily a commercial space - though if someone wants to buy some work that's allowed!
Question - Who do you think your principal clients will be for the gallery?
Mark - Probably tourists but I will have a couple of openings throughout the year for locals.
Question - Your workshop is billed as "environmentally friendly." Could you elaborate on that a bit?
Mark - All the techniques used in the studio are non toxic. We use the Edinburgh Etch system, vertical etching tank and acrylic resists. The inks are Akua water based Intaglio so wash up with soap and water. We distribute Akua inks in NZ too.
Nothing but water goes into any drains as we have our own bio - sewerage system on the property. Chemical waste is disposed of by local professionals through a free drop off system at one of the agricultural suppliers.
Question - What about printmaking equipment and materials? Are they available locally?
Mark - Many of the materials we use are from the supermarket - soy sauce for degreasing, floor polish for acrylic resists, vegetable shortening for lift grounds etc. I did find it hard to source the more specific items in NZ. The large Conrad Press came from USA and other specialist items from Australia - acrylic aquatint solutions, tint screen etc. But most of the day to day things can be found within NZ - though I can't find Somerset printing paper which was a favourite in the UK. I can get Hahnemuhle here though and Tiepolo which are the two main ones I use. The internet has proved very useful for ordering direct from abroad. Our connection with Akua allows me to bulk order their inks which are for sale through the studio.
Question - Suppose I wanted to come to Kerikeri and do an etching course with you. Where would I stay?
Mark - On site at Wharepuke Subtropical Accommodation. We have 5 self contained cottages, set within the award winning garden, which are managed by my partner Tania. You can see them here - www.accommodation-bay-of-islands.co.nz
We also have a sixth cottage for long term use and are hoping to use this for resident artists' visits in the future. We're exploring funding options at the moment.
Question - Where's Kerikeri? What's it like compared to, say, London?
Mark - Kerikeri is in the Bay of Islands in the north of New Zealand's North Island. It's a small community of about 6,000 and is one of the fastest growing towns in the country. It is very important historically as it was the place of first contact between the Maori and Pakeha (European) settlers. The Stone Store is NZ's oldest stone building and Kemp House the oldest existing wooden building.
I lived in London for 9 years, in Hackney in the East End, before I moved here. Kerikeri is predominantly white, middle class and conservative. Hackney was a vibrant multi cultural melting pot.
We're very lucky with the property we live on here in that it hasn't been sub divided and sold off for housing. Kerikeri was built on the citrus trade but the large areas of orchard have all but gone now. Tourism would be one of its main industries. It's very quiet compared to London and we are very close to the sea and the greater Bay of Islands area which is stunning.
Question - If you had to do it over, what would you do differently?
Mark - I might have looked at costing a purpose built studio rather than renovating an existing space, but I think financially that would not have been viable - for the amount of space we have it's cost very little really and one day I may build somewhere else on the property.
Question - If you could give one piece of advice to someone starting out on a printmaking-workshop project, what would it be?
Mark - Research and ask advice - sorry that's two isn't it?
