02 Jun RISO Artist of the Month Christina Lee
Meet RISO’s June Artist of the Month
What is your name and the name of your organization/location?
Christina Lee, illustrator, designer, and cartoonist.
How long have you been in the art industry?
I’ve been working as an illustrator since 2016.
How long have you been using RISO duplicators and the method of RISOGRAPHY?
I first encountered the Riso technology while I was an undergraduate exchange student @camberwellual in 2012. We were tasked with making a Riso edition, and since I had just learned how to screenprint at that time, I was fascinated by this machine that could basically do it all for you. For this assignment, I created an edition portraying pieces from the Oxford University Museum of Natural History using Fluorescent Pink, Yellow, and Blue Inks (Slide 2).
Once I graduated college, I started making zines by contracting Riso presses, like @risolve. My familiarity with screenprinting helped me understand how to set up files and guesstimate how the final prints would look without having immediate access to a printer. (Slides 3, 4)
I started gaining a fuller understanding of Riso by having access to a printer through community-based print studios, like Pittsburgh-based @pullproofstudio and New York City-based @risolab. Since printmaking is an inherently physical medium, the creative community these spaces offer is extremely valuable. I have met some of the most talented and kindest illustrators, designers, artists, and cartoonists through Riso printing.
What are some of your favorite colors to use with a duplicator?
I always like to switch it up to challenge myself and grow, but currently, I’ve been having a lot of fun mimicking CMYK printing with Aqua, Bubblegum Pink, Sunflower, and Federal Blue. You can get some really interesting shades of orange, red, and green with these colors. (Slides 5, 6) I think I’d like to pare it down for my next project and explore combining Copper with Mint/Aqua, which is a complementary color-ish palette— I’ve seen a few prints with this combination that I think are quite lovely.
Why RISOGRAPHY?
Riso is a wonderful medium because it is an efficient way to produce prints and zines, and the pay off is huge: you can produce a large amount of prints with vibrant colors in a very short amount of time. It’s like an offset printer / screenprinting machine that anyone can operate. It’s an incredible teaching tool in regards to color: it forces creatives to use a limited palette, which may sound daunting at first, but this limitation creates a more unified and harmonious image.
What would you tell people who are just finding out about RISO Duplicators and the artform of RISOGRAPHY?
Since it is an inherently physical medium, the value of Riso extends to the community of makers that use the technology: you are bound to meet an interesting designer, artist, illustrator, animator, designer, or cartoonist at a Riso printmaking space, art book store, or independent publishing fair.
Feel free to plug any events that you have coming up.
I will be tabling @spxcomics September 12-13
Website Links:
Website: xtinalee.com
Instagram: @xxtinalee