Will Gates (ROIDS), “20⁠–⁠21 Framed”, London 2021

20–21 Framed is the third in a series of prints that play with contemporary interpretations of still life and observational drawing. The self-referential trompe l'oeil, depicting a print constrained within a shattered glass frame, indulges a frustrated creative energy that emerged for me, like for so many others, through the multiple lockdowns of 2020 and 2021. Layers of suppression, repression and repetition build to form an image of something simultaneously familiar but forcibly new, enclosed in instability. This tension within the print, between what was before and what is now, is both melancholic and hopeful, questioning what it means for something to be broken, but also what it means to remake.

This print differs from the standard reprographic process usually used for reproducing images in print.

The process for 20–21 Framed was developed over several visits to London-based screen printing studio Make-Ready.

I worked with the printmakers to explore different technical possibilities resulting in a method that balances an intentionally Lo-Fi reproductive dot, simulating a RISO-like quality, with areas of solid colour in varying tints, shades, and UV varnishes. In total the print is composed of 22 colours 28 layers. This broad range of elements contrasts the principal subject – the damaged print – with the illusion of the fragmented glass.

“Throughout the process, the artist has worked closely with our printmakers. Each visit explores a slightly different avenue of technical possibilities to create a truly unique set of original silkscreen prints in a limited edition” Make-Ready.

©Will Gates, 2021