Dan Howden employs linocut techniques to create intricate illustrations that have a grainy, textured feel to them. Using linoleum surfaces, which he purchases on Amazon, he cuts his design into the surface. The raised (uncarved) areas represent a mirror image of the parts that are printed. The linoleum sheet is then inked with a Speedball roller and then impressed onto paper.
With a BA and MA in Visual Communication, Howden’s layer-orientated approach to printmaking was learned through trial and error. “Using a layer-heavy approach I’ve been practicing for years now, I produce detailed prints, imagery and sometimes animation from linocut,” he relayed in an interview with Lecture in Progress.
According to Howden, the high volume of registrations within his work gives it a painterly quality. “I doubled down on it at university and since then it’s snowballed into becoming my entire practice, which if I think about for too long, can be a little disconcerting,” he says.
His subjects and themes vary, but most often than not he adds a dash of whimsicality to his creations. “Halloween, for instance, inspires me all year round,” he notes. “It’s primarily a holiday for children, but it’s dealing with some pretty dark subject matter and I love that combination.”
We highly recommend you follow him on Instagram.
