Screen printing. It’s everywhere. On billboards, clothing, cell phones, soda pop cans, bathroom products and more.
“Corporate America uses screen printing as a technique to print their logo or design and make their products more marketable and appealing,” said SLCC student Hanna Rudelich.
SLCC offers a screen printing course that teaches students about the methods and history of the art. The course gives students hands-on experience in creating and printing their own designs.
Screen printing is a stencil method in which a design is projected and burned onto a screen, with blank areas covered with a resistant substance called emulsion. Ink is then forced through the stenciled design on the screen onto a desired printing surface.
“Those artsy designs on your t-shirt to those stellar graphics on your sun glasses, those designs are all done using a technique called screen printing,” said Rudelich. “SLCC’s screen printing course teaches students just how those designs come to life.”
Rudelich is a SLCC student who took screen printing last year. Rudelich took what she learned form her screen printing class and is now currently working for Kingdom, a local t-shirt company here in Utah.
“Screen printing has become a huge hobby of mine since I took it last year,” said Rudelich. “Pamela Poulson was my instructor for this course and she taught distinctive ways on how to customize designs by using Adobe Photo Shop and Illustrator,” Rudelich said.
Pamela Poulson is the screen printing instructor at SLCC, and has been teaching the art of screen printing since Jan 2008.
“I love getting students with neat and creative ideas,” Poulson said. “Screen printing is around you every second and it shocks some students when they realize just how much screen printing is being used,” said Poulson.
“Adobe Photo Shop and Illustrator play a significant role in this course,” said Poulson, “You don’t have to be an artist to survive in this class. Both of these programs are used as tools to help students create designs and make their design look more professional.”
Both of these well-known software programs are commonly used to edit and customize graphics.
“I see a lot of familiar faces almost every semester. Students that take this course often end up taking it again,” Poulson said, “For students interested in taking this course next semester, register now because this class fills up fast.”
For more information about screen printing, visit slcc.edu/visualart or contact Bryan Griggs at 801-957-5041.