Alumni Profile: Screen printer
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In 2008 Blake Brasher ’01 decided to pursue a full-time career as a visual artist. He previously worked as a robotics engineer. Photos: Liv Gold, 2009
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He publishes a web comic, Infinity Day Weekend, which began as an autobiographical narrative and evolved into a surreal adventure story.
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Panels take between two and three hours to complete.
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Brasher also runs a screen printing business called Solid State Circus. He restocks blank shirts from American Apparel about twice a month.
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While Brasher organizes his inventory, a fixture he’ll use to create a screen warms up and spotlights a self portrait.
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His junior and senior years, Brasher lived in Towers and took photos of Scutigera coleoptratas, aka Towers bugs. One photo from those years became a shirt design.
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A digitally produced negative is placed on a screen coated in photosensitive emulsion.
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The UV-rich, 150-watt metal halide fixture was originally purchased for use in a hydroponic garden.
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Exposure time is six minutes.
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Once the screen is exposed, Brasher removes the negative and rinses off the unexposed emulsion.
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A hair dryer speeds up drying.
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Brasher sells his shirts on Etsy.com and plans to open an independent online store this winter.
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The ink he uses is made of plastisol, a suspension of PVC particles in a plasticizing agent. Brasher prefers it to water-based inks because it is brighter and more durable.
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Shirt sales spiked last week after this design was featured on technology and culture blog, boingboing.net.
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After the ink is down, Brasher slides a 1.8kW flash curer into place.
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The screen and single color press are set inside a homemade fume hood.
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The ink heat cures in 45 to 90 seconds.
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More than 50 Towers bug shirts were ordered in the 10 days since the design appeared on boingboing.
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Brasher was course 4-3 visual arts in the architecture department, but he’s a self taught screen printer. Most of what he knows comes from books and Web sites.
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Orders are fulfilled within 10 days. A customer in Toronto will receive this shirt.
In 2008 Blake Brasher ’01 decided to pursue a full-time career as a visual artist. He previously worked as a robotics engineer. Photos: Liv Gold, 2009
He publishes a web comic, Infinity Day Weekend, which began as an autobiographical narrative and evolved into a surreal adventure story.
Panels take between two and three hours to complete.
Brasher also runs a screen printing business called Solid State Circus. He restocks blank shirts from American Apparel about twice a month.
While Brasher organizes his inventory, a fixture he’ll use to create a screen warms up and spotlights a self portrait.
His junior and senior years, Brasher lived in Towers and took photos of Scutigera coleoptratas, aka Towers bugs. One photo from those years became a shirt design.
A digitally produced negative is placed on a screen coated in photosensitive emulsion.
The UV-rich, 150-watt metal halide fixture was originally purchased for use in a hydroponic garden.
Exposure time is six minutes.
Once the screen is exposed, Brasher removes the negative and rinses off the unexposed emulsion.
A hair dryer speeds up drying.
Brasher sells his shirts on Etsy.com and plans to open an independent online store this winter.
The ink he uses is made of plastisol, a suspension of PVC particles in a plasticizing agent. Brasher prefers it to water-based inks because it is brighter and more durable.
Shirt sales spiked last week after this design was featured on technology and culture blog, boingboing.net.
After the ink is down, Brasher slides a 1.8kW flash curer into place.
The screen and single color press are set inside a homemade fume hood.
The ink heat cures in 45 to 90 seconds.
More than 50 Towers bug shirts were ordered in the 10 days since the design appeared on boingboing.
Brasher was course 4-3 visual arts in the architecture department, but he’s a self taught screen printer. Most of what he knows comes from books and Web sites.
Orders are fulfilled within 10 days. A customer in Toronto will receive this shirt.