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First attempt at Serigraph

I am taking a Serigraph class this summer and quite frankly I am having an enormous amount of trouble.

First I had a few registration problems. My hinges had become to loose on the board they were mounted to. Then I was tightening my clamps enough. All well enough, as now I know to check those things.

Then I had a few problems with the right squeegee angle and pressure. Problem solved!

I understand the ink as it is a water based acrylic. I have a good handle on which paper I am using and why. I don't have many problems with the other elements of the this process and when I do I understand where and why I have gone wrong.

So why am I having such a hard time?

I am having to shift my paradigm. As an artist I primarily work intuitively. I rarely plan out a painting or collage. I allow it to unfold like a dancer moving to unknown music. Sometimes it is brilliant and sometimes it is something that I struggle with. However, I never feel as thought I have been set adrift in uncharted waters. For me, serigraph is a large dark lagoon. Things appear to be familiar, but they aren't and this makes me very, very uncomfortable.

So today when I go to class I will be finishing the mess I am creating. Twelve colours in an edition of 10. After that I will softly and quietly have a chat with my self. There will be no more trying to make an image. Instead I will just open myself up to creating a consistent group of abstract colour studies.