Instructor Spotlight: Hannah Batsel
Tell us about your experience and key highlights of your work as it relates to the workshop you will be teaching for Artists Book House (ABH).
I've been a book artist and printmaker for almost 20 years, and reduction linoleum prints are still my favorite medium in the field! I use this process not only for one-off prints and handmade artist book editions, but also for my mass-market, traditionally published books.
Where can readers find examples of your work (i.e. website, social media, publications, etc.)?
I'm @hbatsel on Tiktok and Instagram, and my website is www.hannahbatsel.com. My handmade artist books can be found in special collections libraries around the world, and my mass market books, "A is for Another Rabbit," "The Knight of Little Import," and "Codex Regenesis," can be found wherever books are sold.
What can prospective students expect to learn in your workshop (that might not be included in the official class description or that expands upon that)?
We're going to learn not just about the process of designing, carving, and printing a reduction print, but more importantly, how to think about reductive art processes in general. It can be scary to carve a linoleum block (or cut a paper silhouette, or chisel a block of marble) knowing that removing material is permanent, but learning how to plan for each step of the process will ease those fears.
If a student were to walk away with one or two key lessons, skills, or principles from your workshop, what would you hope that would be?
Reduction printmaking is all about maximizing the impact of a limited color palette, which is a skill that can be transferred to nearly any other medium; I hope that students will come away with a greater understanding of how colors work together. I also hope that the "print exchange" we'll create together will show students how community-focused and collaborative the printmaking community is as a whole.
Can you name an example or two of past workshops you’ve taught, and what most excited you about them?
I've taught numerous lino-cut printmaking workshops before, but this is my first multi-week, multi-color lino print class! I'm looking forward to expanding the energy and excitement of the one-day printmaking workshop into a longer format that allows for deeper exploration. I've also taught classes on various aspects of paper engineering, which is another book arts passion of mine; in week one of the reduction lino print class, I'll be showing students how I combine paper engineering with the reduction lino medium!
What are the most important features of your workspace (studio, office, etc.)?
My drafting table, my big heavy-duty never-wobbles flat work table, my Vandercook Universal 1 printing press, and my cast iron guillotine! Of course, you certainly don't need all that, and it's taken me years to collect and organize my studio, but those are the four things I'd keep above all else.
What are some of your favorite tools in your studio?
Favorite tools: Pfeil carving tools, Pentel brush pens, Karol Pomykala dot tool for lino stippling, teflon paper folder, xacto knives, PVA glue... I could talk about this for hours (and will!)
What inspires and informs your work (other artists, works of art, art forms, aspects of life, etc.)?
Thematically, I'm drawn to magic, horror, power, collecting, and nature. The artistic works I'm most inspired by tend to be small press publications (zines, artist books, indie comics, etc.) Anything with an unusual structure, anything scrappy, anything that couldn't get published anywhere else.
How did you first become associated with ABH?
I joined the board several years ago and never left!
What interests and excites you most about working with ABH?
While I now have my own studio setup with just about everything I need to create the way I want, I used to be a broke artist with no studio space, no printing press, and no connections to the independent or traditional publishing worlds. I'm driven to help build a space for people like that: people with the unstoppable drive to create that need the technical knowledge, equipment, and space to do so.
Other than your ABH workshop, can you name a few other key events or projects in your near future?
My third mass-market children's book is currently going through the publication process; I'm also working on a new mass-market project for adults who enjoyed my puzzle book "Codex Regenesis." I just finished up a series of gargoyle-themed reduction lino prints in my home studio, and I'm looking forward to hand-printing something more substantial, like a zine or small publication. My work tends to be either inexpensive mass-market books or expensive hand-bound artist books; I'd like to shoot for something in the middle and create an affordable handmade publication this year.