New Editions - new exhibition launch!

Hi there

I've had to keep this quiet for quote a few months now, but the cat is out of the bag, and I'm very happy to announce that an exhibition I have co-curated is opening very soon!

'NEW EDITIONS' is an exhibition of contemporary printmaking, and features over 60 pieces of work. It is being held at The Millennium Gallery in Sheffield, opens on Saturday 12th September 2026 and runs until 24th December 2026.

I have co-curated it with my friend and fellow artist Ed Bradbury (aka Kid Acne).

The idea behind the show was simply to choose some of our favourite artists from our print-worlds. Ed and I have quite different art backgrounds. He has worked in the street-art world for most of his career, and I in a more traditional art/craft one, and it has been fascinating to see how our tastes have intertwined, contrasted and overlapped at times! We have been working on this for nearly a year now and I’m really excited to reveal what we have in the exhibition to you. Over the coming weeks Sheffield Museums will preview many of the exhibiting artists on their social media, as well as showing some work-in-progress footage and interviews.

All of the prints in the exhibition will have unframed editions for sale through the gallery shop, while stocks last (the framed ones may also be available by contacting the respective artists directly). Myself and Ed will both have new pieces in the show, and you can find out a bit more about the exhibition on the Sheffield Museums website:

https://www.sheffieldmuseums.org.uk/whats-on/exhibition-opening-new-editions-contemporary-printmaking

There is a launch event on Friday 11th September 2026 at the gallery, 6pm to 9pm, with a bar and print activities to get involved in, and prints will also be available to buy too. No pre-booking is needed. You can just turn up.

Pride Of Yorkshire, paintings, plates and prints...

 Hi there

As always there has been a lot going on at Printworks HQ, including some non-print activity! I've had some great events over the last few months, Open Up Sheffield, Saltaire Makers Fair, Sunny Bank Mills Print Festival, Endless Love Summer Festival and The Hepworth Wakefield Print Fair! phew...The Pride Of Yorkshire sculpture trail has also been launched this month, which is very exciting, as 150 lions and lionesses have been let loose all around Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster and Barnsley!

Amongst all of this, I have found some time to make some new prints, which I'll tell you about below.

I have one more event coming up before the summer break, being the Spike Print Fair in Bristol! This is their first print fair at Spike Print Studios (surprisingly) at what is a fab large open access facility and gallery for all sorts of print methods. It is on 24 to 26 July 2026 (Fri preview 6-9pm, Sat/Sun 10am - 5pm). I've never done any events in Bristol and I'm a big fan of the city, so can't wait!

PRIDE OF YORKSHIRE

The Pride Of Yorkshire sculpture trail was launched on 8th June 2026! 150 lions and lionesses, transformed by artists from near and far will be placed all around Sheffield and South Yorkshire. The project has been organised by the Sheffield Childrens Hospital Charity in order to raise money for the emergency department, and they're hoping to raise £2.8m.

It was great fun taking part in this project earlier this year, and then see all the creations at the Sheffield Arena earlier this month (top pic). I transformed my lion/lioness into donkey worlds (obviously!) and they will be located at Charter Square in Sheffield and the Danum Gallery, Library and Museum in Doncaster. There are so many great artists involved with this project, including Ryan Mosley, Sarah Abbott, Kid Acne, Jonathan Wilkinson, Pete Mckee, Sam Groom, Liah Edwards and many more. You can see which artists are taking part here.

NEW PAINTINGS

Donkey Paintings

I have also been working on a series of paintings over the last few months. I'm not normally a painter, and have done very little since specialising in print over 18 years ago. However, since being involved in the Pride Of Yorkshire charity project, I felt very inspired to try some paintings on a slightly easier canvas! I have made six donkey paintings using emulsion paint on board, all 30cm square, framed and varnished (the one missing in the pic above is currently being displayed at the Millennium Gallery until July). They are £400 each, and in my Folksy shop.

NEW CERAMICS

I have been beavering away alongside my prints creating a new batch of sgraffito stoneware donkey plates, this time with potter Elham Hessavi, who was a finalist in this year's Great Pottery Throw Down TV series. I love making the plates, and she is great fun to work with, as well as being a very talented ceramicist! The sgraffito process is extremely therapeutic and does feel a lot like making a linocut. I have 8 new plates which are 22cm in diameter and in red, blue, green and black. They are £50 each and available at upcoming in-person events. However if you'd like to come and collect one from my studio, drop me a line.

NEW PRINTS

Magic Donkey No.12 (Moon Edition No.7)

I hadn't intend to create any more versions of this print, until I had a conversation with my sister, and she asked why I hadn't done a green version. I couldn't think of a reason, and rather liked the idea, so here it is! A lone donkey contemplating a mighty circle. Is it a moon, a solid dot, a passage to another place? They will find out soon enough.

Apple green System 3 ink on A2 size Seawhite antique white 290gsm acid-free paper. From an edition of only 7, signed, titled and numbered. £50 in my Folksy shop.

The Orchard of Puzzlement

I created this print whilst taking part in Open Up Artists' Studios a few of weeks ago. The title was suggest by the winner of a competition I set (to come up with an interesting title) and it seems pretty fitting!

I only created a tiny edition of this print, 4(!), of which three are available. It is an A5 size linocut print on 220gsm Daler Rowney paper, signed titled and numbered. £20 in my Folksy shop.

Donkey Abstract No.3

This large-scale print started out as an experiment in mark-making, using charcoal, pens and markers. I soon knew that this was the perfect environment for a new abstract environment for a donkey to explore! I created the edition at Hunk Print in Sheffield.

Blue and black System 3 inks on A2 size Seawhite antique white 290gsm acid-free paper. From an edition of 20, signed, titled and numbered. £60 in my Folksy shop.

Donkey Abstract No.4 and No.5

After doing quite a few large prints recently, I decided to go small for a change. I have created two A5 size two-colour screenprints. Both were made by experimenting with mark-making and loosely based on tree patterns. This is also the first time I have used fluorescent inks too. I love how bright they are, but they are really tricky to photograph. Believe me they are pretty bright! Unusually for me, I have tried to print right up to the edges of the paper, so that when they are framed, you can't see the edges of the paper, except for at the bottom where the edition, title and signature are.

These bright little donkeys have two new strange landscapes to explore.

Donkey Abstract No.4: Fluorescent pink and grey System 3 inks on A5 size Munken Pure off-white 260gsm acid-free paper. From an edition of 24, signed, titled and numbered. £20 in my Folksy shop.

Donkey Abstract No.5: Fluorescent orange and grey System 3 inks on A5 size Munken Pure off-white 260gsm acid-free paper. From an edition of 24, signed, titled and numbered. £20 in my Folksy shop.

Alternative you can buy both prints as a bundle for £35 in my Folksy shop.

Happenings In Donkey World No.17

This is the seventeenth print in the donkey-world series, a continuation of my surreal donkey theme.

In this print, several donkeys have found on their adventures that gravity seems to have redefined itself, mysterious beacons have appeared, and a bunch of 'helping hands' have gathered, intending on being of some assistance to them. 

Pink, orange and dark grey System 3 inks on A3 size Antique White Seawhite 290gsm acid-free paper. From an edition of 34, signed, titled and numbered.

The print is now in my Folksy shop and costs £40 plus p&p.

Donkey Puzzle No.4

This is fourth print in the 'donkey puzzle' series, a continuation of my theme showing a donkey or donkeys figuring out a tricky puzzle made of strange and mysterious shapes, on their adventures in donkey-world. This here donkey is taking their time. There is no rushing this puzzle!

It is an A3 size three-colour screenprint, printed on 300gsm white Seawhite paper, in an edition of 34. The print is now in my Folksy shop and costs £40 plus p&p.

Lions, lionesses, pin-badges, scarves, prints and a mended kidney...

Hello there

An awful lot has happened since I last posted. Health-wise, I've been in and out of hospital a fair bit, and had a few operations to sort out one of my kidneys. Thankfully, all is now sorted. I have been thoroughly impressed with the treatment I was given by the doctors, nurses, surgeons, dinner-ladies, porters and everyone else at the Urology dept of Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield. We are truly lucky to have the NHS in the UK. x

NEW THINGS

Work-wise, this spanner in the works  thankfully doesn't seem to have affected my creative output at all, in fact it has been a really busy creative time! I think I have created over 12 new prints, plus some pin badges and also worked on a range of scarves and cowls with Glaswegian knitting wiz Olive Pearson.

The scarves idea started out as a chat when we were both at the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair in Manchester a couple of years ago. We finally found some space to think about the project early in 2025, and worked on a repeating donkey pattern to be turned into a range of merino lambswool scarves and cowls. I'm so happy with the result. They are really beautiful garments, and so soft. 

There are still some left on my website, and you can even contact Olive to create a bespoke colour combination if you so wish!

JG/OP Donkey scarves/cowls on Folksy

Olive Pearson website

New prints...as I said, I have created a whole load of new prints, mostly donkey ones. I'm not going to post here about all of them. you can see them in my Folksy shop, but I shall mention a couple of recent favourites.

Donkey Puzzle No.4 - A3 three-colour screenprint

This is fourth print in the 'donkey puzzle' series, a continuation of my theme showing a donkey or donkeys figuring out a tricky puzzle made of strange shapes, on their adventures in donkey-world. This here donkey is taking their time. There is no rushing this puzzle!

It is an A3 size three-colour screenprint, printed on 300gsm white Seawhite paper, in an edition of 34. The print is now in my Folksy shop and costs £40 plus p&p.

Starling A2 screen-print and A3 poster-print

I find starlings fascinating. Not only do they do those crazy murmurations, but their coats have this magical sheen to them with all sorts of colours going on. In the print I have tried to reflect that, and create a very mini-murmuration at the same time.

I have created two versions, an A2 4-colour screenprint, and an A3 poster-print too. The screen-print is in an edition of 24, printed on 300gsm acid-free Seawhite paper, and the poster-print is not limited, and on 160gsm acid-free paper. Both are in my Folksy shop now. The screen-print is £80 and poster-print £15, plus p&p.

Pin Badges!

The last badges I created (for my 2023 'Donkey Nonsense' exhibition) came and went in a flash, so I thought it was about time I made some more. This time, there is a blue and a red version, made from silver-colour nickel and soft enamel, with a rubber clutch at the back. They are 30mm tall and 28mm wide, and £8 each in my Folksy shop. Hope you like them!

Blue pin-badge

Red pin-badge

Pride Of Yorkshire - Sculpture Trail

I have spent the first month of this year working on the Pride Of Yorkshire sculpture/art project, which is an animal sculpture trail around the whole of South Yorkshire, featuring lions and lionesses! 2026 is the 150th anniversary of Sheffield Children's Hospital, and the project is happening to raise money for it, via the trial and the auctioning of the lions/lionesses. I have worked with the SCH charity several times over the last few years, on exhibitions, commissions and the elephant/bear trails, so it has been an honour to be involved in this too! I can't share too much info or too many images, but the trials looks likely to be the biggest and most spectacular so far, with a really exciting range of artists and artwork. 

The trail happens June to September 2026, and I'll be posting on social media and hopefully here too about it, with more pics and details!

That is all for now.. x

Ups and downs...

 Hi there

It has been a slightly strange time since I last blogged. I've had some health issues to deal with, which have been somewhat unfortunate, but on the other hand, my creative flow has been great, and I have ended up making a lot of new prints. I have no idea why this has happened, but I'm going with it!

I have also been working on some new ceramic pieces, with my friend and pottery mentor Charlotte Berry, and really been enjoying this too. 

Anyway, here are some of the new things that I've made. You can see all of my new artwork in my Folksy shop.

Happenings in Donkey World No.16 (A2 screenprint)

It started with a squiggle, a scribble, and before I knew it, my most intricate 'Happenings' print began to emerge! Somewhat gothic in tone, in the print the donkeys come across a deserted town, with curious buildings and sculptures, and three helping hands...

The print is an A2 one-colour screenprint, printed in black on 290gsm Seawhite Antique White acid-free paper, in an edition of 30, signed, editioned and titled. The print is £50, and in my Folksy shop.

Watson No.3 (A3 linocut/screenprint)

As some of you may know, I'm a bit of a cat-person. The first print I ever made was of a cat (our old cat Otto), and the theme has stuck with me ever since. Watters here is our cat. We got him from the RSPCA a few years ago, a very timid and shy creature, but he soon learned to relax and take control of our lives! In this third print of him, I wanted to capture him at his most relaxed, sleeping with his paws in the air on his favourite cushion.

The print is an A3 three-colour linocut/screenprint, on 300gsm Seawhite acid-free paper, in an edition of 50, signed, editioned and titled. The print is £40, and in my Folksy shop.

Happenings in Donkey World No.15

Sometimes I like to give myself a challenge. I drew this image initially, knowing it'd take some arranging to work out as a print, and I was right. It took a while! It is a six-colour print, showing a whole jumble of 'helping hands' doing their thing in service of the adventurous donkeys.

The print is an A2 six-colour screenprint, on 290gsm Antique White Seawhite acid-free paper, in an edition of 23, stamped, signed and titled. The print is £100, and in my Folksy shop.

Large donkey plates

I worked again with master-ceramicist Charlotte Berry on creating these two large plates. They are both 37cm in diameter (14.5 inches), and three-colour sgraffito stoneware. As usual, I had no real idea excatly how they would turn out, but I'm very happy with the results. I have not put them for sale online, as I'm not going to risk posting them. However if anyone wants to buy one and pick it up, you can contact me directly (jgprintworks@hotmail.com). Stop press - the left one has sold, right hand still for sale £125). 

Upcoming Events

I have one event coming up next month, in Sheffield. 

Selected Space

Fri 11th (12pm to 8pm), Sat 12th (10am to 5pm) and Sun 13th (10am to 4pm) July 2025, Yorkshire Artspace, Persistence Works, 21 Brown St, Sheffield, S1 2BS

I took part in this event last year, newly launched in the city centre, and it was a spectacular success! It is a really well curated art and craft event, with lots of great ceramics, paintings, print, textiles, metalwork and more... tickets are £5 on the door.

I will be launching a new print there, a detail of which you can see in the image above..

New year, new ideas...

Hi there

The start of the year (so they say) is supposed to be a good time for working on new ideas, as it is fairly quiet for events etc, but this doesn't always work out, as you end up sometimes putting too much pressure on yourself to create (the blank canvas problem). However, this year has started well!

I have been working on 4 new prints, two of which are here. The other two are under wraps for now.. 

New Prints

'Donkey Treasury No.1 & No.2'

I had an idea just around the end of last year to create a print containing a collection of artifacts from the mysterious 'donkey world', evidence of ancient donkey civilisations, including helping hands, monoliths and more. Several drawing later and I came up with the 'treasuries'!

Both prints are A4 two-colour screenprints, on 300gsm Seawhite acid-free paper, in editions of 28, in ochre/grey and light green/grey. Both are £25 each, and in my Folksy shop.

Upcoming events

Endless Love Creative - Sheffield Makers Market

Saturday 8th February 2025, 10am to 4pm, The Workstation, 15 Paternoster Row, Sheffield S1 2BX

What better way to start the year than with an ELC event! These are always super-friendly, really well curated and in a great location right in the centre of the city.

Print Festival 2025 at Sunny Bank Mills

Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd March 2025, 10am to 4pm, Sunny Bank Mills, Farsley, Pudsey, West Yorkshire, LS28 5UJ

Formerly 'Printed Bound' this event has grown into a really significant one on the print circuit, with over 60 artist/printmakers taking part, lots of demos and workshop, and in a really fantastic location!

The Hepworth Wakefield Print Fair 2025

Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th March 2025, 10am - 4pm, Tileyard North, Wakefield WF1 5FY

I can't wait to return to this fab event, one of the best of the year! Located next door the THW gallery, in the lovely Tileyard North, the print fair returns with an impressive line-up. Workshops, family activities and street food too!

Sheffield Print Fair 2024 and other November happening..

Howdy

As usual it has been a while. Rather than try and recap goings on for the last few months, I'll waffle on about a few new things, and about what is happening at printworks HQ for the rest of the year...

SHEFFIELD PRINT FAIR 2024!

Yes, it is the one I co-organise, with my good pal Suzi Thompson, and this year is looking to be a corker! 43 artist/printmakers from all over the UK come to Sheffield for the day to show and sell their work, plus there are print demonstrations, a kids workshop, a free print raffle and free SPF tote bags to the first 50 people through the doors...

It takes place at The Millennium Gallery in Sheffield city centre on Sat 9th November, between 10am and 4.30pm. You can see more info and a full line-up on our blog at:

http://sheffieldprintfair.blogspot.com

Come along if you're in town!

I have a few other events coming up in November, and they are:

Endless Love Creative - Sheffield Makers Market
Sat 16th Nov (10am - 4pm), Showroom Workstation, 15 Paternoster Row, Sheffield S1 2BX
ELC seems to be turning into a bit of an institution, with great contemporary fairs popping up all over the place and a community vibe to them too. All sorts of great art and craft, and you can bring your dog along too! 

The Hepworth Wakefield Festive Market
Fri 22nd Nov (7pm - 10pm), Sat 23rd Nov (10am - 4pm) and Sun 24th Nov(10am - 4pm), Tileyard North, Wakefield WF1 5FY
It is always a pleasure to return to the Hepworth for events, and this one, at Tileyard North (next door to the gallery) is no exception. The place will be full of lovely art, craft, food and drink and proper festive!

Sunny Bank Mills Christmas Market
Fri 29th Nov (2pm - 8pm) and Sat 30th Nov (10am - 4pm), Sunnybank Mills, 83-85 Town St, Farsley, Pudsey LS28 5UJ
My last event of the year is in North Leeds and another fantastic venue (home to the Sewing Bee too!). Over 60 makers on site, plus print workshops, mulled wine and more..

and that is it for my 2024 events..

NEW WORKS

I've been working mostly on donkey-related prints over the last few months, including several versions of a rather minimal 'Magic Donkey No.12' screenprint. i'm not sure why, but I've found this image somewhat compelling. I think I just like circles! I have also created a print of the town of Wirksworth in Derbyshire. I'm very fond of the place and visit most years to take part in the brilliant arts festival there. I've been meaning to create a print of the place for years now, but never found the right view, until now!

Donkey On Hand No.2 A4 screen-print (edition of 25)

Donkey On Hand No.3 A4 screen-print (edition of 25)

Magic Donkey No.12 (Moon Edition No.4 - silver) A2 screen-print (edition of 5)

Magic Donkey No.12 (Moon Edition No.3 - light blue) A2 screen-print (edition of 5)

Magic Donkey No.12 A2 screen-print (edition of 20)

Wirksworth A4 linocut/screen-print (edition of 80)

Happenings In Donkey World No.14 A3 screen-print (edition of 40)

Next year exhibition plans are afoot, and hopefully some collaborative work too. Fingers crossed! Thanks for your interest, as ever! x