SGC - Printing With Bacteria & Tool Making

Christina Hung


Christina Hung, "Stay the Course"

In a panel discussion called "Caught in the Web" that examined how the internet is affecting printmaking narratives, artist Christina Hung showed work that was essentially printmaking with bacteria. Using nutrient agar as "paper," bacteria as "ink," and non-nutrient agar as "resist," Hung creates living images in petri dishes.



Jon Lee, a professor in San Antonio Texas, did a demo ostensibly about using digital methods to design moku hanga prints. As far as I could determine, that's not actually what his demo was about, but he did show some fascinating ways to make your own tools for moku hanga. In his classes he has his students make their own knives, baren, and brushes. Lee also makes his own paper and sizes it. An interesting tip about knife sharpening stones: Lee says he boils Arkansas stones to remove the oil and convert them into water stones.