AGAstudio is what we call the workplace and lab function for artists and designers who create their work independently.

From Monday till Thursday there will be technical guidance – each with their own expertise – available at the workshop. In addition on Friday and Saturday, you can count on some artists and other voluntary assistants to accommodate you in the workplace. Our technical experts can help you start up, give you tips on any of the techniques or specific materials and help you brainstorm.

We are a DIY workshop, that means we assume that you already master the basic technique and your experience is quite topical. If you cannot independently work with one of the techniques, you can follow one of our basic workshops, or you can hire a technical supervisor for printing work for, or with you.

When you’re coming in for the first time, make sure that you’ve phoned or emailed us for an appointment. That way we can plan an introduction with one of our staff members to introduce you into the workshop and our workflow.

We are an environmentally friendly workplace. Among other things, this means that for screen printing water-based ink is used and that we prohibit working with white spirit. If you want more information, please contact the technical supervisor.

We are a DIY-workplace for professional artists and designers and we want to be able to offer everyone the opportunity to work in professional circumstances. This means that we require participants to take responsibility for cleaning all the materials and facilities used (silkscreen frames, textile table etc.) Whenever the materials are not correctly cleaned, we will charge an additional €25.

Always make sure to check the tables, presses, squeegees and other materials before you get to work. AGA LAB and their team try to manage the workplace as well as possible, but sometimes it happens that the previous user didn’t clean the materials properly. If this situation occurs, please inform the staff immediately.

Since you are required to bring your own materials, such as ink, paper or fabric, you are responsible for these particular items. AGA LAB is not to be held accountable for damage to your personal belongings.

SCREENPRINT
The screenprint area is well equipped with four vacuum screen printing tables in various sizes. Our biggest table is A0-size. We have a separate washing room with a high-pressure cleaner and two drying racks.

For textile printing, we have two textile printing-tables available. Both tables are equipped with a very simple repeat system. Textile printing has the same cost as screen printing. The artist should bring their own inks (water based is mandatory) and fabric.

DIGITAL
Fine Art Printing of Giclée Printing
Your digital images will be printed perfectly on durable, high-quality paper, films and canvases by our professional Epson printers. The Ultrachrome K3 inks will create intense colours and light-fastness for 80 years. The digital lab is situated on AGA LAB’s entresol, which has a great view of the spacious gym. The lab consists of two full size digital fine art printers, an A2 printer and several computers with the Adobe software (CS6) installed.

Epson Stylus Photo 4880
The standard paper is Hahnemuhle Photorag Satin, Hahnemuhle German Etching and Hahnemuhle Bright White. We can also print on rolls that go to a maximum of 42 cm.

Epson Stylus Pro 9800 and 9880 per m2 (including ink)
The maximum width of the paper roll that can be inserted in the printer is 111,8 cm and the image width has a maximum of 111 cm. It is not possible to print images that have a bleed. Images should be supplied in 240dpi TIF’s with 100% output or high-resolution PDF.

Scanner Epson Expression 10000 XL
The A3 scanner can scan your artwork, slides and negatives in either reflective or transmissive form.

When you want to use other paper than that are listed above, please discuss this with the assistant.
It is possible to print an ‘Inkaid Matte inkjet coating’ or ‘Inkaid Clear Gloss inkjet coating’ on not-so-conventional materials (thin veneer, plastic, aluminium, etc.), to prepare them for printing with regular inkjet ink. Both fluids are €0,45 per layer on A4 size.

RISO – KNUST IN AGA LAB
The Riso is a modern stencil printer, it’s environmentally friendly and very useful for posters, cards, art prints or zines with deep, bright colours. Ever since late 2014, AGA LAB manages, in collaboration with Knust, a DIY Riso workplace!

At Knust in AGA LAB, you can work with two different Riso machines. The Riso MZ1070E (A3) has yellow, orange, fluorescent pink, red, (royal) blue, (delfts) blue, (seafoam) teal, green and black colour drums. The Riso V8000 (A3+) has purple, fluorescent orange and black. It’s only possible to print on raw, uncoated paper. This paper is available in the workplace.

Start DIY-ing at AGA LAB with the help of motivated and knowledgeable volunteers. Their backgrounds range from graphic designers, comic book makers and illustrators.

Make an appointment through drukwerk@extrapool.nl or call 020-6252186.

Interested in becoming a volunteer at the Riso department of AGA LAB? Apply through drukwerk@extrapool.nl.

It’s also possible to print more coloured print work in a bigger size (A2), or print on demand at Knust in Nijmegen: www.knustpress.nl.

RELIEF PRINTING
AGA has an offset proofing press (Havlik) which basely is adjustable in height. • The maximum size is 60 x 80 cm. • You can also use our etching presses for relief printing by raising the upper roll (the maximum size is 100 x 190 cm). Use of the presses, newspaper press and the cleaning products are all included in the price. Artists should bring their own paper and inks.

ETCHING
We have four etching presses of different sizes (52 x 110 cm, 75 x 130 cm, 80 x 140 cm). The largest (100 x 190 cm) is motorised. There are two acid baths (100 x 130 cm) and a movable bath for very large sizes (up to 73 x 109 cm).

In the workshop, there’s also a metal cutter, a tank for moisturising paper (80 x 120 cm), three ovens and two raised worktables available for use. In the wet room, there’s an aquatint box with powdered resin (70 x 80).

There are a contact printing box and a small darkroom available for making photopolymer etchings. The use of presses, newspaper press, cleaning products and the possibility of biting the etching plates are all included in the price.

The safe, as well as the environmentally friendly working method of our studio, is what distinguishes us from others. We have replaced harmful solvents with VCA/salad oil and instead of traditional varnish, we use acrylic primers as much as possible. Instead of using acid, which produces corrosive vapours, we use copper sulphate and iron chloride for etching. All chemical and residual waste will be either exhausted or recycled.

LITHOGRAPHY
There are two lithographic presses: a manual press (65 x 90 cm) and a motorised press (100 x 200 cm). A grinder and a grinding tank are also available. We have a large selection of stones (the largest size is 60 x 95 cm), ink rollers and a tackle for lifting stones. Lithographers pay a 10% surcharge in addition to the entrance fee for the “rock fund”. Use of presses, newspaper press, resin and talc, carborundum and cleaning products are all included in the price.

DARKROOM
The analogue darkroom consists of a couple of basic facilities to make black-and-white prints and to develop films. The darkroom is equipped with a Durst magnifier, dark room lighting, rinsing tubes and chemicals. For specific prints, it would be best to bring your own chemicals. AGA LAB offers a basic provision of chemicals: developer (for paper – AGFA multi-contrast), fixer (Amaloco X55) and photo flow. These will be available to your for a fee of €3. If you want to develop your own film you should bring your own developer. Developing tanks (for 35mm and 120mm film) and fixative are also available for use in our darkroom. It’s also possible to work with old printing techniques like cyanotype (blueprint).
For booking the darkroom and more information on i.e. cyanotype, mail to info@agalab.nl

TOYOBO SOLAR PLATE PRINTING
In this workshop, you’ll learn to make and print your own photographic etch with oil based ink and firm paper. Your digital (black-and-white) photograph will be transferred onto a photosensitive etching plate (Toyobo). By pressing the etching plate deep into the paper, you get a completely different quality to your photograph. Playing with contrast can be very nice with an etch, and it is easy to manipulate. The Toyobo-plate is way more detailed than the older, more well-known polymer techniques. This technique is very interesting for photographers who seek this out.

Time: one day from 10:00 till 17:00
Costs: € 175 including materials

SCREENPRINT (paper and textile)
Christina Hallström, artist and technical assistant at AGA LAB, will be giving the two-day screenprinting workshop. Based on your own A3 sized design, you’ll make screenprints in multiple print runs. You will learn to prepare the film and coat the screens with photosensitive emulsion. While the screen dries you’ll mix the inks and plan the opaque or transparent print runs. The screen printing tables are situated for an optimal workflow. You’ll print a small edition of your design and analyse the al the different possibilities that come forth during printing. After the workshop, you’ll be able to work in the atelier independently.

You provide: your own design on an A3-format.
Date: you can register yourself through workshops@agalab.nl
Costs: € 280 for two days.

PREDICTABLE COLORS
Colour is magic, colour is almost never the same!
Alex de Vocht, photographer and technical assistant at AGA LAB, will be giving the Fine Art Printing and Color management workshop. The human eye has an enormous colour and contrast range. Colours can change in different lighting conditions. Scanners, printers and monitors have their own colour management (colour language) that can make the colours less intense and unmatch. This creates an unpleasant surprise for the critical eye unless you know how to handle image, colour and its reproduction. In this workshop, we’ll be challenging ourselves by making predictable colours. Every technical aspect that is needed for a nice Fine Arts Print (or giclee print) on the Epson 4880 printer will be discussed. We’ll take a critical look at colours and colour profiles, resolution, contrast and the influence of paper and ink. Technical terms like ICC-profiles, black dot compensation, gamut, DPI and printer and monitor calibration will also be addressed. After this workshop, you’ll be able to make your own high-quality prints and you’ll go home with your own A2 Fine Art Pint.

You provide: A selection of photo’s or images and digital files on an USB stick or laptop (240 dpi in your preferred output format). Also you should bring your own (high quality) paper to print on.
Costs: € 140 for 1 day, including handout, ink for 1 print on your own paper and 1 print on AGA LAB paper. (A morning or afternoon refresher course is optional for € 70). Any questions? You can mail these to alex@agalab.nl

NON-TOXIC ETCHING
Master printer Eric Levert, technical assistant at AGA LAB, will go through all sorts of etching techniques. This includes line etching, aquatint, varnish mou, colour etching, dry needle and sugar water aquatint.
Day one

After an introduction on etching, everybody starts with their chosen technique on either a zinc or copper plate. The plates will be etched, edited and if desired provided with aquatint.

Day two

After a quick introduction to printing the etch plates, the participants will try and print their etch on their own. This test print can be redrawn and/or corrected to create a better print. If you have time left at the end of the day you could try a different technique.

You provide: a design for your etch (A4 max)
Date: you can register through workshops@agalab.nl
Costs: €280 for two days (including materials)

RISO – KNUST IN AGA LAB
Ever since late 2014, AGA LAB manages, in collaboration with Knust, a DIY Riso workplace. The stencil experts from Knust will host a Riso workshop in AGA LAB about two to three times a year. The Riso is a modern stencil printer, it’s environmentally friendly and very useful for posters, cards, art prints or zines with deep, bright colours.

Sign up for the workshops through workshops@agalab.nl or 020-6262186
For the workshop dates, check the agenda.

CYANOTYPE
Cyanotype (or blueprint) is an old photographic technique which can be printed directly on paper, wood or textiles via a contact negative. For this technique, you can use a digital image by printing it as a negative on a transparent material.

Benjamin Brandenburg, expert in analogue (and digital) photography, will teach you the basic techniques to create a blueprint on paper and will start with a printed negative. We make the paper light-sensitive by applying an emulsion which consists of a combination of two iron salts. After drying this, it is possible to print via illumination with UV-light on the paper.

Preparation: two weeks before the start of the workshop, you should send two black-and-white images to Benjamin Brandenburg (at least 6 megapixels, a total of up to 20mb). These will be prepared for the workshop and then printed on a transparent paper so you can start right away when the workshop is held.

Please bring your own kitchen or powder free latex gloves.
Time: one day from 10:00 until 16:00.
Costs: €150 (including material and paper).

Sign up for the workshops through workshops@agalab.nl or 020-6262186
For the workshop dates, check the agenda.

FINE ART PRINTS ON DEMAND
AGA LAB makes high-quality prints on demand for artists, designers, cultural institutions and organisations. From classical craftsmanship to modern digital printing techniques.

We use durable inks (colour proof for 80 years), high-grade fine art papers and a high-quality printing process. We also do screen and etching prints on demand (in small editions). For cultural organisations, artists, designers, bureaus, and galleries. (previous clients: CBK Amsterdam, FNV Kiem, De Burcht, Philadelphia, artists)

Do you want to print your next project with us?
Contact us for exclusive corporate gifts, small editions to sell or maybe unique gifts.
Mail to info@agalab.nl or call 020 625 21 86

Download: General terms and conditions AGA LAB 2016