Te Kowhai Print Trust

The Trust’s aim is to preserve traditional Printmaking equipment and to teach printmaking skills that are in danger of being lost.

Te Kowhai Print Trust sits close the rock face of a disused quarry, where the stone walls and native bush inspire those who visit and work or live at The Quarry Art Centre.
Though its origins began in a coffee bar in Auckland in 1982, when Ron de Rooy and Phillipa Sanders discussed their dream of a Trust that would preserve print equipment, printing and print making skill.
The Old Boy’s Foot Ball Club building in the Town Basin, Whangarei was the first headquarters of the project in 1984 where it was joined by Graeme Cornwell and his lithography equipment supported by S.C.OP.E.
The old building was dismantled in 1986 and transferred to the “The Quarry” in Selwyn Ave, Whangarei, with the assistance from The Roy McKenzie Foundation and the Marsden Point Levy Fund.
In the same year Te Kowhai was registered as an Incorporated Society,
A series of ACE training coursed in silkscreen techniques followed, with Peter Riley and Ron de Rooy as tutors. Printmaking machines and print making equipment steadily accumulated, as the Trust became known, with them came a number of skilled operators.
In March 1989, Te Kowhai provided a one year course in traditional bookbinding and paper making with Roger Crowden. From this “Bound to Last” book binding co operative evolved and is still expanding.
A second building was commenced in May 199 with funding from ASB and the Lottery Board and was opened on 1 June 1991 by Mrs Joyce Ryan.
By the end of June 1989 Te kowhai took delivery of more lithography equipment purchased for Stanley Palmer to augment the equipment on loan from Graeme Cornwell.
Of particular pride of Te Kowhai Print Trust is the two rare lithography presses and some twenty 00 million year old lime stones.  This two hundred year old technique is exclusively the domain of artists who produce limited editions of the images. These are then hand painted onto the best Mould made linen paper that has a life of several hundred years.
The lithography department now provides a service to artist and student, especially the 6th and 7th formers specializing in printmaking.
The benefits of attending workshops are that they are relaxing, promote self esteem, provide relief from today’s busy life styles, allowing creativity to be expressed and can create employment by skills obtained.
Te Kowhai held the first ACCESS course in Northland which closely monitored by the government as a precedent to other ACCESS course in the area. The Trust was then supported in hold 3 further 14 week ACCESS courses in Screenprinting and a further 1 year long ACCESS course in traditional Bookbinding.

Of particular pride to Te Kowhai Print Trust is its Lithographic studio that houses two, now rare, Lithographic presses and some 200 million year old stones. This 200-year-old technique was the forerunner to modern day Offset printing, but is now exclusively the domain of creative artists who produce strictly limited editions of their images. They are then hand-printed onto the best Mould-made linen paper that has a life expectancy of several hundred years.

Lithography
The printing process known as lithography was discovered about 200 years ago.
It is a process of drawing an image on a 200 million years old stone (only found in one quarry in the world- Old Bavaria) with a greasy pencil or liquid.
Once the image is complete the stone is prepared for print through a process involving chemicals and water. It is then rolled with greasy ink which sticks to the image only.
The high quality paper is places on top of the stone and they are passed through the press where the ink is transferred to the paper and the print is made.
The press used at Te Kowhai is quite unique in that it is not operated by rollers but rather by the pressure of a blade. This is vital for lithography because rollers are non forgiving and could break the stone.
One the required numbers of copies have been made for the limited edition, the image on the surface of the stone is ground ready for a new image.
Lithography was the method used to print music, maps and book illustrations before using metal plate became a cheaper process. Te Kowhai Print Trust is one of the few places in New Zealand that has Litho stones available for the public use.

For further enquires on TKPT, please contact: 09 438 5868.