I've been thinking further about this idea (first floated here) and have refined it a bit more.
First of all I've more or less fixed on a name - Panchromatica Print Club. A bit of a mouthful, but it ties the club into the blog, which will increasingly become the focus of my selling activity, and so cashes in on what internet 'brand image' is already out there. I need to work out how to get my own name in there too.
In this first year I'm only going to do one set of prints. That way I know I can cope, I will have time to deal with any administrative hiccups along the way and more to the point, I know I can concentrate on producing a good piece of work.
The set will comprise four images, each about 12" by 10". Paper size will be larger. I haven't settled on a paper type yet. They will be made using a range of techniques, almost certainly incorporating screen print, collagraph, chine colle, and perhaps some digital elements. There may also be some hand applied colour using stencils.
Subscribers will, in exchange for paying some of the price up front, get the prints at a discount on the price to non-subscribers. Subscribers will also be guaranteed a full set of prints. Guide price through the club is about £50 per print unmounted and unframed but including all shipping. Normal price would be about £60-£75. Price for the set therefore would be around £200, of which say 25% would be paid up front as a deposit. You can pay more! Obviously mounting and framing would be extra.
This collage uses a hand applied wash as the background. It is about 11" by 8" in size and has been framed using a green stained waxed wooden moulding about 1.5" deep. It is available to purchase for £140 including the frame and all shipping and postage costs. (The line on the bottom is an artifact of scanning - it is a shadow cast by the mount and does not appear on the actual collage.) Flickr view
Each set will be offered unframed, but I will also offer the opportunity to have the set mounted in acid free board or framed and mounted in a moulding chosen by me to complement the image.
The edition size will be quite small at no more than 10. This is partly to make the offer a bit more special, but also, because these will be hybrid prints incorporating a variety of print techniques, they will take a little extra time to produce.
I have three possible themes.
Memories - I've done some work on this theme already, but these are in various formats and sizes. The new work would be created from the outset as a linked set. I have an idea of a 'Four Seasons' set, perhaps using a common plate, but inked up in different ways and colours for each season.
Jazz - I have loved jazz and blues for 50 years so it isn't surprising it should carry through into my art work. I have some preliminary ideas but this image below might also give a feel, although it is a mixed media collage, not a print. It is about 8" by 6" and is mounted to fit a 10" by 8" frame.
Rock Art - I've done a string of digital prints (also soon available for sale) that serve as preliminary sketches for this set. This one below for example will probably be translated into a handpulled print using screen printing, collagraph, chine collee and an acrylic wash as the back ground.
If you are interested in this project, you can keep up to date by joining my mailing list. I also need some feedback from you as to which of the three themes you might be interesed in. They will all be made eventually, but only one will be offered through the print club.
You can also purchase the set as a gift for someone else. In that case I would send you a gift certificate that would be a small work of art in its own right for you to give to the lucky person. On the reverse would be a code for them to claim their prints. At the moment I'm thinking you would need to pay all the cost up front, but I'm willing to talk about alternatives.
I'll be including this information in my next newsletter, due mid-January, but by then I'm hoping feedback will help me to pin down some of the options.
