Howard Hodgkin first started printmaking in the mid-1950s at Corsham Court, where the likes of William Scott had trained, and Clifford Ellis oversaw the printmaking classes. So began a long career of producing editions. However, it was not until Hodgkin encountered the printer Jack Shirreff that he truly embraced the full potential of the medium. Carborundum etching was the catalyst for this change, and Hodgkin set about creating monumental prints under the expert guidance of Shirreff at his 107 Workshop in Wiltshire. Carborundum allowed the artist to paint directly onto plates, giving incredible depth and texture to the results, with surfaces echoing impasto paintings. It was a process that Hodgkin described as “marvellously liberating.” To complete these works, swathes of vibrant hand colours in egg tempera were washed across the surface.
