30/9/2017 - Print Workshop Prep

In preperation for my print workshop I studied the brief provided, and was intrigued by the idea of bringing a glass object a bit more interesting than a plain old jar.


Instantly I hit off on the idea of a terrarium, which I have studied extensively as an A Level Product Design student during a project in which I crafted one of my own. I quickly searched through the online options and found a design which I liked. The irregular shape held lots of connotations for me, of gemstones or ice, perhaps the cocoon of a butterfly, and I thought it could spark some interesting ideas. Terrarium also have added contextual value, as they are used to create an insulated ecosystem of plants. Because of this they could be interpreted as sheltering, preserving and protecting as well as decorative and scientific.

Upon further research I found an interesting case study on Butterfly Shrinkage in the arctic, and decided this would be an interesting contextual basis for this piece, not only because of the poignance of the tale, but also due to the fact this unique story luckily included two of the themes I had initially interpreted from the design of the piece, butterflies and ice. Going with this concept, I could also employ some of the protective connotations of the terrarium.

I also thought about what kind of background print could go behind by jar. I wanted to dry and describe a naturalist environment around the industrial forms of the terrarium, so found a lovely textural image of arctic lichen and pine cones which provided a beautiful muted palette as a base for the work. I added some white chevrons to give the composition some structure, and carry through the geometric elements suggested by the terrarium.

Although I really like this image for the background, I am not sure how well it will carry into a 2 colour screen print, however hopefully there will be a way to sustain both the brown and blue-green colours whilst still maintaining texture and detail.



For my print inside of the terrarium I want to represent the Arctic fritillary which is one of the two species being effected by the shrinking phenomenon. I think with an etched print I
could try and recapture the effect of a scientific diagram, and make the butterfly appear trapped inside a preserving time capsule, 'frozen' if you will and defended against the rising temperatures which threaten it's very physicality.


I thought to enhance the 'frozen' effect of the piece I could use actual crystals with a similar geometric shape to the irregular terrarium, like ice shards growing out of the ground around the cocoon. This could look very effective, and really emphasise the object based element of this workshop. Perhaps I could also research the physical properties, origins or histories of crystals and find another variety with conceptual basis to scatter in too.