Pitch Punch Print: How can working with depth and layers across paper engineering, printing and animation foster collaboration, experimentation and innovation in illustration practice?

My poster is about the possibilities of creating new layers of heritage within our work as illustrators. Using layered imagery, text, colour, texture, and themes, I will put forward insights and invitations from my practice-based research into finding new layers of meaning and potential in traditional and often obsolete methods of artistic production, including the mechanical embroidery loom, mechanical music box and multiplane animation rostrum. I present these as ongoing active processes including designing and making artists’ books in collaboration and community; experiments with layering for the risograph printing process during off-timetable Riso Club sessions for University of Portsmouth illustration students; my development of multiplane camera rostrum kits to support students in the creation of multi-layered materials (collage and offcuts) for stopframe animation; facilitating workshops for students to create tunnel books, dioramas, and paper-engineering experiments; and exploring the heritage of textile machinery through soundweaving (converting embroidery patterns into musical score).