Ink-Making, Place-Based Art, and an Artist Community With Jason Logan
An ink maker before an illustrator
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TW Copyeditor Jess Barnett interviews Jason Logan, author of Make Ink: A Forager’s Guide to Natural Inkmaking. They discuss the process of making ink with foraged materials, how it affects the creation of their art, and how it diversifies their skills as artists.
Jason S. Logan is a Toronto-based creative director and strategic graphic designer. He is also the author of several books and the founder of the Toronto Ink Company. In 2014, he led the CDTO campaign, an initiative to build the Office of Creative Direction Toronto (CDTO).
The Toronto Ink Company was founded in 2014 as a citizen science experiment to make eco-friendly, urban ink from street-harvested pigments. In Make Ink, Jason delves into the history of ink-making and the science of distilling pigment from the natural world.
Through Jason’s book, readers learn how to forage for materials such as soot, rust, cigarette butts, peach pits, and black walnut and then how to mix, test, and transform these ingredients into rich, vibrant inks that are sensitive to both place and environment.
Jason writes in his introduction, “In my experience, inkmaking is easiest when you are patient and remain open to everything. Some of the most interesting effects of handmade inkmaking happen when the unexpected happens. Wherever it takes you, the ink you make yourself can only be your own color. Follow your instincts. There is no wrong path.”
In this podcast episode, Jason talks about his experience, ink making, and why he considers himself an ink maker before an illustrator. He talks about the freedom he has found through creating ink out of forged materials, including and street paint, from around his neighborhood. Since he started his ink-making journey, he’s found that he loves to try anything. By making ink out of forged materials first and actualizing it later, he gives himself the freedom to experiment with new techniques and colors.
By working with place-based color, he has found himself in a community with those around him, as well as those in the past. He compares himself to cavemen, who used forged materials to draw animals along the cave walls. There is a sense of connection between himself, his art, and the place that he cannot separate and that he finds extremely satisfying.
Jason talks more about place-based color and the process of foraging ink materials on his Substack, The Colour. He posts weekly newsletters as well as resources. If you’re interested in place-based color, give him a follow.
Click here to purchase Make Ink: A Forager’s Guide to Natural Inkmaking from our Bookshop!