Alexandra Aquilina, who works under the alias ScreenGirl, is a printmaker, small business owner, and activist from Malta and based in Berlin. She graduated in Psychology from the University of Malta while undertaking studies in Fashion and Costume design at alternative schools. Not satisfied with her job prospects, Alexandra decided to study Graphic Design. Here she was introduced to screen printing during a self-led assignment. The whole concept utterly fascinated her, and Alexandra decided to build her own home set-up and teach herself to print though books and trial and error.
“Screen printing is the perfect balance between art and design. It takes a digital artwork into the physical and finite world of art by adding an extra organic layer of texture and spontaneity, while also retaining the element of reproduction.”
Today, Alexandra works as a professional screen printer and creative, and also offers screen printing workshops for beginners. She operates across two shared workshops in Berlin; one set up for textiles and the other for paper. Alexandra is mainly a textile and poster printer, hand-printing small editions of textiles, posters and records for bands, bars, cafes, activist groups, and artists, as well as for her online business.
Alexandra describes her style as “…very fun, quirky, illustrative, sarcastic, feminist, and witchy, and often has a y2k vibe to it”. Her works on paper also carry this theme and aesthetic, yet act as a medium to explore deeper issues and thoughts that are more specific to her upbringing and native country.
When printing, Alexandra prefers to separate colours manually rather than through software, describing it as “a very peaceful process”. She also loves mixing her own inks using pigments instead of using colours straight from the box; “It can sometimes be frustrating, but ultimately it is very satisfying when the perfect colour palette is achieved. Getting to the final colour and having everything perfectly registered is a rush of excitement. On wrong move can break a print so concentration is key.”
In 2020 Alexandra received funding from the Arts Council Malta to curate and print works of Maltese and Malta based creatives during the exhibition Spread the Ink. The prints were all 50x70cm and printed in limited edition runs of 10 pieces and showcased a variety of artistic styles and printing techniques.
Alexandra’s ultimate dream is to have her own screen printing studio which would act as an open space for people to print, share, and learn about screen printing.
www.screengirlberlin.com
@screengirlberlin
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