SHUFFLE. PRINT. WEAR.

Shuffle. Print. Wear.

The first collaboration for the PASCH.net Collective, formed from students on the CityLit 2023-24 Advanced Printmaking: Experimentation and Development course, led by Rolina Blok.

‘With great expectations I change all my clothes
Mustn’t grumble at silver and gold
Screaming above Central London
Never bored, so I’ll never get old
So I’ll wait until we’re sane
Wait until we’re blessed and all the same’

David Bowie, Buddha of Suburbia

Shuffle. Print. Wear. is an interim show for the year-long course, designed to mark the halfway point with a showcase of developing ideas and skills, woven together with each artist’s existing practice and influences.

A tarot card was the starting point for this project, variously chosen as The Tower, The High Priestess, the Moon, Death and Justice. The process tapped into visual icons, spiritual connotations or symbolic meanings associated with these cards, to create wearable prints, which can be activated by anybody wishing to become immersed in the work, curiosity and research of the artists in the Collective.

The themes of power and change run throughout the show, with concepts explored here including the use of learning to break down physical, professional or institutional barriers – the real as well as proverbial towers – and create new opportunities; the pull and power of the moon’s cycles and its effect on bodies of both humans and water, revealing the true influence of nature on mental health; and how female identity is shaped by modern culture, and the imperative for women to take control of their own internal narrative.

Elsewhere, the cruelty and injustice of war and its impact on communities and individuals, particularly children, is interrogated, and death, the ultimate transformation becomes a catalyst: urging us to live, to grow, to create and reflect on who we really are.

Printmaking approaches included cyanotype, screenprint, photo litho, woodcut and letterpress, on a range of materials from cardboard packaging, worn out shirts, metallic card, old books and even workwear.