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I went for an introduction to drypoint with Jonny recently. I had absolutely no experience, but I quite liked to doodle away at little cartoons. Jonny looked through my work beforehand and encouraged me to bring a drawing along that we could recreate as a dry point. It was wonderful to feel that someone was genuinely invested in what I was going there to do.When I arrived we discussed the types of techniques that were possible; chine collé being the one that intrigued me the most, and that Jonny recommended for my drawings. First we learned to prepare the plate, which he demonstrated then handed straight over to me, which is always encouraging and relieving. The classes where one spends hours watching and not doing can be very tiresome, so this was a relief. Interspersed with jokes about famous artists of the past that incorporated Jonny’s pedigree as an art historian into the learning framework, which gave it that something extra.After my plate was prepared and I had used the drypoint technique to scratch my drawing into my plate, we inked up and tried some prints. Jonny struck the appropriate balance between guiding me and allowing free reign. I was so happy with the first result, and after a few more tries and practicing the technique of wiping the ink from the plate, we tried the chine collé. I wanted to take a more abstract approach to cutting the shape from the tissuepaper, which turned out to look great. I was so thrilled and it’s now framed in my home…The only advice is to ensure you know what you’re signing up for when you have one of Jonny’s artisan coffee from his fancy machine. It had me at a level of shaky hands that probably didn’t benefit my printmaking skills…A really interesting time spent learning a traditional craft. Thanks Jonny!

New or already familiar to printmaking Jonathan is an inspirational and encouraging teacher. His studio allows new printmakers to experience a variety of techniques and practice the methods required to produce satisfying and accomplished work. His knowledge of art history and his own work allow new or established printmakers to work alongside a professional printmaker and share ideas.Participating in Jonathan's classes are fun, creative and sometimes political making them all the more interesting.