Print Prerogative

To mark the start of spring, details of 'The Spring I've Never Seen', by Xintong Zhang. Aquatint, 31 x 30 cm, edition of 5, 2020. This work is available now on our website.

Xintong Zhang is a London-based artist whose practice incorporates etching, stone lithography, moving image and installation. She graduated from Sun Yat-Sen University in Anthropology in 2019 before undertaking an MA in Print at the Royal College of Art. Due to her research background, Xintong uses an anthropological methodology in her art practice to document the dialogue between humans and plants.

Xintong’s work is focused on investigating the value of weeds in urban landscapes as a metaphor for resistance to the hierarchical value system in human society. She exposes their fragility and marginalised property by running fresh plants directly under the printing press, to make imprints on top of etched images. Her work aims to bring attention to the beauty of those whose existence is isolated or marginalised and raises discussions on living circumstances, identity and sense of belonging.

Xintong enjoys the process of printmaking. It has led her to experiment with photoetching, mono-printing and stone lithography. She has found her own way to visualise wild plants in the city landscapes. Using her dual histories as an artist and anthropologist Xintong builds on her fieldwork, studying weeds in Yunnan, China in 2017. As the base of all her works, fieldwork allows her to share a new vision of the value of the overlooked in an urban environment.

'Transfiguration',

Cyanotype print, on cotton rag paper,

21 x 29.7cm,

2023.

Stewart Russell is passionate about unravelling the complex connection between self and the enigmatic realm of psychoanalysis through the transformative medium of cyanotype. Russell’s art delves deep into the human psyche, drawing inspiration from ancient alchemical theories that underlie the journey of self-discovery and transformation. His journey with formal art education began at the Glasgow School of Art, where he honed his craft and developed a deep appreciation for the avant-garde. Surrealist artist Man Ray, with his exploration of the subconscious and dreamlike imagery, became a significant influence on his work. Cyanotype, not chosen arbitrarily but intrinsically alchemical, embodies his process. It intertwines light, chemistry, and time to craft vibrant blue prints, echoing the alchemical "solve et coagula" principle – disassembling and reassembling elements for higher existence. Cyanotype symbolises the human experience, wherein we deconstruct and rebuild identities, continually evolving in our pursuit of self-understanding.