Box Set Filling Party at East London Printmakers

A night with printmakers, collaboration and a huge sense of achievement - 32 printmakers, 41 editions each, and one very special Box Set now complete.

Last night we all came together at the East London Printmakers studio to fill the Box Sets - a moment that felt both like a celebration and a huge relief! It marks the completion of months of work for the 32 printmakers who took part this year, with each artist contributing an edition of original prints to create this collaborative collection.

The finished Box Sets will be shown as part of the Festival of Print 2026 in October, and Edition 1 will become part of the archive at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) - which makes being part of this project feel particularly special.

32 printmakers, 41 editions each…

This is my first year taking part in the Box Set, and I have to admit that producing 41 editions was a rather daunting prospect!

With Mokulito, I have never previously made more than five prints from a plate. Suddenly having to produce an edition of 41 was a completely different challenge.

Mokulito is a form of wood lithography, where a drawing is transferred onto a wood plate and printed using a lithographic process. I decided to use it for my Box Set because I love the combination of drawing, wood grain and the unpredictability of the printing process.

Before starting, I met up for coffee with Caroline Whitehead, who taught me Mokulito and is the only other person I knew who had attempted this process on this scale. I asked for her advice - and listened carefully as she told me how, halfway through one of her projects, the board and print plate had actually started disintegrating!

I decided it was still worth a try…

My first print plate was a definite no. So I tried a second plate and moved on to the Columbian Print Press - the wonderful old press from Edinburgh, with its distinctive eagle.

And somehow, it worked.

Perry Green Oak

My Box Set print began with one of my favourite subjects from my sketchbook practice: a much-loved oak tree in Perry Green, near the Henry Moore Foundation.

Standing alone in the landscape, the tree has become a favourite subject for my drawing practice. I drew it in my preferred combination of stick and ink, capturing its distinctive shape, movement and character.

That sketch became the starting point for the Box Set print.

I transferred the drawing onto an Ash wood plate for the Mokulito process and printed it using the Columbian press, experimenting with a top-press technique that was new to me.

The natural grain of the Ash plate came through beautifully, giving the print a wonderful texture. I then added watercolour directly onto the plate immediately before printing, bringing in the fresh green of the oak and a flash of yellow against the blue sky.

The result is a print that combines the things I love most about printmaking - drawing, texture, colour, the character of the wood and a little bit of unpredictability.

Perry Green Oak
Material: Mokulito on Ash wood plate with watercolour
Date: 2026

A celebration of printmaking

What I particularly love about the Box Set is the variety of techniques represented by the 32 artists taking part.

The collection includes screenprint, woodcut, etching with chine collé, linocut, photopolymer etching, Mokulito, etching and aquatint, and photo etching.

Although every artist works differently, bringing the editions together creates something much bigger than the individual prints. It is a wonderful reflection of the community and co-operation at the heart of East London Printmakers.

And so, filling the boxes last night felt like the final piece of the puzzle.

There was a real sense of excitement in the studio as we handled each other’s prints, carefully counted editions and watched the Box Sets come together. After all the drawing, carving, printing, proofing, reprinting, counting and - in my case - worrying about whether an Ash plate would survive 41 impressions, it was wonderful to finally see the finished collection.

Festival of Print 2026

The completed Box Sets will be on display alongside the wider Festival of Print 2026, East London Printmakers’ annual exhibition and the highpoint of its creative year.

The exhibition celebrates contemporary printmaking by around 100 established and emerging artists, with original prints available to view and acquire. The show will span a wide range of printmaking techniques, including woodblock, screen print, etching, relief, monoprints and limited editions.

Festival of Print 2026
The Art Pavilion
Mile End Park
Clinton Road
London E3 4QY

2–11 October 2026

A highlight of the festival will be The Dreaming of Butterflies on Thursday 8 October — an evening of performance exploring how printmaking can communicate through dance and music, ending with a collaborative collage led by ELP artist duo Jairo Zaldua and Nicola Jane Green.

Member and Festival organiser Inga Eičaitė describes the intention behind this year’s exhibition as exploring “how different perspectives interact within a shared space” — encouraging visitors to take their time, start conversations and really connect with the work.

After last night’s Box Set filling party, I think that sense of shared space and collaboration feels particularly fitting.

Thirty-two artists, hundreds of prints, one very ambitious Box Set - and one rather relieved Mokulito printer!

I can’t wait to see it all together at the Festival of Print in October.