Introduction to Wood Engraving Workshop

Introduction to Wood Engraving Workshop with Fred Jones ARBSA

The workshop is a starter course for preparing, cutting, and printing woodblock engravings. Participants will be able to print a small edition of a woodblock print, and will have the knowledge to take their skills home and develop them further.

Age group and abilities to be taught        

• 18 years and above.
• Suitable for all abilities

Course aims and skills/knowledge to be taught

• Preparing an image for transfer on to wood block
• Engraving styles and techniques
• Printing methods for home / studio

Course outline for Introduction to Wood Engraving Workshop

Morning activity

• Introduction to materials
• Examples
• Learning and physical resources/suppliers
• Practical: Learning about cutting styles and techniques

Afternoon activity

• Preparing and transferring an image on to the block
• Engraving
• Inking and printing
• Cleaning up and wrapping up

Materials and equipment required by students

• Standard drawing equipment (i.e. pencils, pens, rulers, etc)
• A folder to take work home in
• Participants should bring with them printouts on paper of photographs, drawings or other images to turn into engravings. The image size should be 6.5 x 5.5 cm to fit the wood blocks. Remember, in the course of printing an engraving the process will left-right flip the image, so you may prefer to pre-flip your images on the computer so that the final outcome will be left-right true.
• You may like to include some photos that have been converted to black and white if you want to think about strong contrasts of tone.

Materials and equipment provided

The following will be provided by the tutor and the gallery, but participants may wish to bring their own materials as well.

• Woodblocks practice pack
• Woodblocks 6.5 x 5.5 cm
• Engraving tools
• Relief ink (black)
• A4 perspex sheets
• Rollers
• Wet Fabriano Rosapina paper

Methods of assessing outcomes

• Group discussion and tutor feedback
• Completion of the evaluation form

Interested in learning more about this workshop? Visit our blog to read some student feedback! 

Booking information

• To book please visit the RBSA Gallery website and click ‘workshops’ at the top of the page. Alternatively, please call the Gallery on 0121 236 4353 during opening hours Tues-Sat 10.30am – 5pm. Bookings can also be made in person at the Gallery. Payment in full is required at the time of booking to secure a place.
• Payments can be made by card online, by card over the phone, and by cash/card at the Gallery.
• Places are limited to 10 people per workshop unless stated otherwise. Allocation will take place on a first-come first-served basis.
• Please inform the RBSA Gallery when booking of any health conditions or additional needs as some workshops might not be suitable.
• A valid student ID must be provided to receive a student discount.

Cancellation Policy

• If you, the customer cancels your booked workshop, we are unable to offer you a refund.
• Transfers to an alternative workshop may be possible depending on the circumstance and is of the discretion of the RBSA Gallery.
• In the event of under-subscription, workshops may be cancelled or re-arranged. We will give you as much notice as possible if this happens and you will be able to transfer to another course or receive a full refund. The RBSA is unable to refund additional expenses, such as travel and accommodation.
• If you are booked on a workshop and do not turn up on the day, a refund will not be given.

Continual Professional Development (CPD) and Copyright

• We welcome bookings from people attending for Continual Professional Development (CPD). However, our workshops are not designed as CPD. If your employer is paying for the course or you require more details about what you expect from the course, please contact the Gallery in advance before booking.
• The workshop content and any information provided (e.g. handouts, guidance notes, etc.) are the intellectual property of the artist delivering the workshop. They should not be used or reproduced without permission from the artist (e.g. copying handouts to use in any classes workshop attendees might deliver themselves afterwards). 

Other information

• The workshop will take place in the RBSA Gallery, floor 1. The space will be closed to visitors and will only be used by workshop attendees. However, staff and volunteers will need to walk through the space at various points in the day to access the staff office, which is located on the same floor.
• Attendees can leave their materials in the workshop space during their breaks but the RBSA will not be responsible for any loss or damages.
• Please bring a packed lunch. Alternatively, there are a number of cafés and sandwich shops within walking distance of the Gallery.
• Please bring an old shirt or apron to help protect your clothing.
• The continuous redevelopment work in the city center has caused increased traffic, delays, and diversions in and around the City Centre. Therefore, please allow yourself plenty of travel time, plan your route, and check your parking arrangements.
• If you are travelling by car, please ensure your car is clean air zone compliant, or charges may occur.