I watched several videos on Gelli Plate prints last night and found a few new techniques that have come about since I taught at CCCC and last did Gelli prints. One technique uses packing tape to LIFT a dried design that has been layered on the plate and dried between each layer. My Spirit paintings are made by layering various medias to create the textures and depth, so I thought I would try this method and see how it comes out.
Here are just a few of the examples I made for the demonstration:
This is a negative print of a mesh bag and water spritzed onto the inked plate.
This is the positive print of the mesh bag and the texture made by rubber brushes.
This is an example of LIFTING the dried residue left on the plate by applying a wet coat of ink over the dried residue and then immediately pulling a print! For this technique, one needs to do detail work on the plate, let it dry and then apply a uniform coat of ink. I love this and want to try some more intricate designs.
Here is the process of layering various textures and allowing them to dry between each layer. Then LIFTING ALL of the layers off with packing tape. This is my first try at this so we will see if it works as good and easily as the videos made it look!!! :D
Masked areas of torn paper and flower. Two pieces of paper mask have already been lifted off the inked surface.
Here the paper mask pieces are on the left with the inked Gelli Plate on the right with the masked areas appearing darker.....they will be CLEAR when the design is lifted with the packing tape.
Here is the inked plate with the masked areas showing clear (plate is on a white sheet of paper.).
Here I have applied seven layers of texture: 1.bubble wrap inked and printed on the dried plate 2.mesh bag printed with dark blue paint 3.purple stamp pad painted and printed 4.dark blue filled in circles printed by dipping the end of a pencil in the paint 5. dark blue open circles made by dipping the end of a straw into the paint 6. texture of the head/seeds of the flower made by dipping the point of a wooden tool into metallic gold paint 7. metallic gold paint splattered on the plate by dipping the end of a tooth brush into the paint and flipping the bristles.
Eighth layer was made by dipping the end of a plastic cup and end of the lid of a medicine bottle into dark blue paint and printing the circles onto the plate. Ninth layer was made the same way using the cap of the metallic gold paint and dipping it into the paint.
The piece is then allowed to thoroughly dry before applying the tape to the plate to lift the design. The design will appear EXACTLY as it is right now.
Lifting the print from the Gelli Plate. The packing tape was laid down on top of the DRY paint and then rubbed with a rounded, scooped end of a wooden tool (or you can use your thumb, pressing very hard). Then, simply remove the tape (make sure that your tape is longer on both ends than the Gelli Plate so it can be easily picked up and lifted from the plate.) by lifting it up off the plate. IF some of the print does not lift, IMMEDIATELY lay that part of the tape back down and press with the wooden tool again. It should lift from the plate. If it does not, it is probably because the paint was not completely dry.
Then lay the tape, sticky side down, on whatever surface you want to use it on. Here I placed two strips on aluminum foil so that the clear areas (where the masks were) are now metallic silver.
When I cleaned out my mother's house, I found some disposable aprons that are, I think, vellum with a very soft floral print . My mom used these for fancy parties and they were SO cool and said so much about that era, that I have held on to them, knowing I would use them at some point in my art. My art is very contemporary, but I thought the soft floral design of the apron, would look nice peeking through the petal of my print. I am not sure how I will display this one. I may use it in another piece. We'll see where it ends up.
This print is placed over part of a newspaper article on a one man show I had in Junction City, KS last October (2014). 
The piece on the left is a full strip of print placed on dark purple card stock. The piece on the right is the quarter inch strip of ink that is left over from the width of the four strips of tape not quite matching the full width of the Gelli Plate. I am not one to waste anything, and actually liked this narrow strip. I will probably use it in another piece.
I'm not sure how I would use this technique, but it was fun to experiment with it. Hope you enjoyed seeing some of the possibilities of Gelli Plate printing.
