Edinburgh Printmakers

Three stars for the Printmakers: it would be more if I was a maker of prints and thus able to tell you more about the equipment, atmosphere, community and sense of creative freedom that I’m sure comes with being a part of this space.
I got to have a look around as part of the 2013 LeithLate event and I’m very glad I went a little way off the Walk to have a look. There are many presses, utensils, papers, inks, slabs of limestone and other accoutrements to get your hands on. The opening gallery space acts as a shop too, with a great selection of works produced just feet away. Upstairs there’s another gallery space, with some works coming from further afield when we were there. You also get a great view of everything that’s going on in the workshop from up there.
Edinburgh Printmakers is a lovely element of the city’s cultural resources and it’s great to be able to go home with work that has such a local story behind it.

Edinburgh Printmakers provides you with all the equipment and guidance you need to print, etch, and book bind your way to being a better designer.
I did the weekend screenprinting course here and found both the space and tuition excellent. The course includes all materials and a 3 month studio membership so you can continue to use the facilities. If you consider what you’d pay an artist for an original screenprint, the cost of the course is money well spent as you’ll come away with several prints and the skills to create many more.

Edinburgh is proving to have way to many distractions in my opinion, and this printmaking studio literally down my street is one of them. Thankfully it’s a very affordable distraction, and I’d probably take advantage of being able to do some print making myself if I had any tiniest idea where to start.
Ofcourse, the studio claims to offer lessons, but that would also require some commitment on my part. It’s extremely central, on a relatively quiet street just off Leith Walk. For those of you who actually know what they’re doing, I’ll just let you know what its possible to do over there; etching, lithography, screenprinting and relief printing. They’ve even got a dark room and and digital studio!
It’s quite light and spacious, and if you’re curious enough, there’s also a gallery where you can see some finished prints. I’ve now added printmaking to my list of things to do in Edinburgh.

I actually came across this place by complete accident, whilst walking around the city. It started raining and this place looked like a dry alternative to wandering around in the showers, so I popped in for a quick look.
I’ll be honest and say I wasn’t that interested in much in there, although the exhibitions were changing when I was there so the review might have been a bit unfair because of that. I scanned the place pretty quickly, and spent most of the time I had in the gift shop, which was actually really good! It has the usual gift shoppy stuff, including prints available to buy. I came away empty handed and not overly impressed but if you like art, prints and painting then this would be more interesting to you!

I recently took a course at the Printmakers Gallery and Studio.
The Gallery itself was lovely, lots of amazing artwork at very reasonable prices. There’s also an excellent selection of handmade greetings cards and smaller prints for those on a smaller budget. This would be my first port of call if I was looking for a unique and special gift for an art-​loving friend.
Inside the studio, we were taught print making techniques over 2 days. We learnt how to take a digital image, turn it in to a photographic printing plate, and then use a press to get the image on to paper.
The teaching was very friendly and relaxed, and the group was small; so you were guaranteed a bit of individual attention and help if needed.
As part of the course fee, you are allowed access to the studio for 3 months after. This is a great perk, as the equipment is very specialised, and there is no way you could set up this type of workspace at home. It also allows you to practice the skills you have learnt on the course. I am planning to go back asap!