Twice during the academic year–in October and in February–the students of The American School in Switzerland (TASIS) disperse around Europe for a week of academic travel. This February the TASIS art department chose Granada as their destination, both for its rich multicultural history and for its storied Moorish fortress and palace, the Alhambra, today a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Granada also offered them Maureen’s printmaking studio where, accompanied by Martyn Dukes, Chair of Fine Art, and Frank Long, photography teacher, they spent five mornings with her learning the basics of solarplate printmaking.
The students, who arrived with a solid grounding in art and a healthy enthusiasm for something new, took immediately to creating images on acetates and burning them onto solar plates. They were delighted with the speed at which solarplate techniques yield results. Before the first morning’s work was done they already had the drying racks filling up with images. In the following days they refined their techniques and learned the importance of creative approaches to printing solar plates. What follows are some snapshots of the TASIS students at work and at play in Granada. (Click on the images to enlarge them.)
.
Printmaking Courses in Spain 
Dear Maureen Can you recommend anywhere that does Japanese woodcut in Spain (residencies that include those facilities) or anywhere that does Non-toxic printmaking? Thanks
Dear Clare, I used to have a Japanese woodcut friend here, but she left Spain. Let me look around and get back to you. Are we talking about a course for one person or more? Would the teacher have to speak English? As far as non-toxic techniques go, my two most popular techniques–solarplate and liquid metal–are both non-toxic. So, please tell me a little more and I’ll see what I can do for you. Maureen