Students in the Printmaking class taught by Travis Head, associate professor of studio art in the College of Architecture, Arts, and Design, have been using their artistic talents to encourage campus and community members to get out and vote in this fall’s election.

Inspired by the Works Progress Administration posters of the past, when artists were employed to share messaging to educate Americans about the basic tenets of citizenship, today's students had their own chance to engage in a nonpartisan outreach effort to help get out the vote.

But before any posters created by students in the School of Visual Arts made their appearance in Blacksburg, students spent approximately three weeks learning and executing the intricate dance of steps leading to the finished products.

Students kicked off the process for designing the “Posters of the People” by drawing their designs on paper. They then scanned and enlarged the drawings, reversing each poster design and tiling the designs to print in sections using a laser printer. Once printed, they taped the pieces together and transferred them to 18 x 24” medium density fiberboard (MDF) wood blocks and finalized the drawings with Sharpies. They finished this part of the process by adding a thin India ink wash to help differentiate the areas in preparation for the next step: carving. Photos by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.

Students kicked off the process for designing the “Posters of the People” by drawing their designs on paper. They then scanned and enlarged the drawings, reversing each poster design and tiling the designs to print in sections using a laser printer. Once printed, they taped the pieces together and transferred them to 18 x 24” medium density fiberboard (MDF) wood blocks and finalized the drawings with Sharpies. They finished this part of the process by adding a thin India ink wash to help differentiate the areas in preparation for the next step: carving. Photos by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.

Three students sit around a table, leaning forward and drawing on a piece of paper. A student sits at a wooden table putting together sections of paper that form a drawn image of Smokey the bear when assembled. Three students sit at a table, using Sharpies to trace the design on a wood block. A hand holding a paint brush and a metal can applies a dark liquid to a design on a wood block.
After the wash dried, each block was clamped to a table and carved using relief carving tools. When carved, the blocks were sanded and sealed before inking. Students spread black ink on glass slabs and used rollers to ink the raised surfaces of each block. Photos by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.

After the wash dried, each block was clamped to a table and carved using relief carving tools. When carved, the blocks were sanded and sealed before inking. Students spread black ink on glass slabs and used rollers to ink the raised surfaces of each block. Photos by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.

Two hands hold a linoleum cutter being used to carve a design on a flat piece of wood. A student hunches over a wood block while carving it with a linoleum cutter. Two students stand beside a wooden table, moving sanding blocks over two carved wood blocks. Two students each hold an inker while spreading ink over a carved wood block.
Once each block was fully inked, students used registration jigs to lower paper onto the block surface and transferred the two to the printing press, where they were run through the machine under pressure. Once the blocks emerged from the press, students used a burnishing tool to apply pressure to the back of each paper in circular motions to “spot print” any under-inked areas. Photos by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.

Once each block was fully inked, students used registration jigs to lower paper onto the block surface and transferred the two to the printing press, where they were run through the machine under pressure. Once the blocks emerged from the press, students used a burnishing tool to apply pressure to the back of each paper in circular motions to “spot print” any under-inked areas. Photos by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.

A student presses a piece of paper down onto a block of linoleum with one hand, while the other hand holds up the linoleum from below. A student holds a large sheet of paper upright while in the process of laying it down on an inked carved wood blood. Professor holds a burnishing tool to apply pressure to a piece of paper. A student holds up a printer poster with a drawing of a pigeon’s head and the words “PIGEONS VOTE SO SHOULD YOU NOV. 5. Within their flocks, pigeons use a decision-making system to decide on flight leaders. They use wing motions to do so.”
A student holds aloft a printed poster with a drawing of Smokey the Bear and the words “DON’T BEAR IT. BALLOT VOTE NOV. 5.”
After carefully separating each paper from the block, the Hokies were able to admire their finished products. Photo by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.
A student rubs a paintbrush over a poster on a wall.
Once the ink dried, students took the posters outside to learn how to apply wheatpaste, made by mixing flour and water, to affix them to structures for display. Students first applied the mixture to a wall and then placed each poster on top of the mixture. They covered the posters with more wheatpaste to help them adhere. Photo by Victoria Boatwright for Virginia Tech.
Loading player for https://video.vt.edu/media/1_pjsih9mn...

Contact:

Tags

Share this story