A creative afternoon at Axárquica: with hands covered in ink, time spent together and good conversations

A creative afternoon at Axárquica: with hands covered in ink, time spent together and good conversations

A different kind of creative afternoon in Vélez-Málaga

Some afternoons just pass us by, whilst others linger in our memories.
The creative afternoons at the workshop usually fall into the latter category.

At Axárquica, our art space in Vélez-Málaga, the creative afternoon doesn’t begin when people arrive, but much earlier: when the tables are set up for the handmade printing workshop, the tools are organised, the inks are laid out and everything is left ready so that, as soon as someone walks through the door, they feel as though they can pause time for a while.

Because that’s what it’s all about, really: taking a break.
Doing something with your hands.
Sharing without rushing.

The space before it all begins

Even before the first people arrive, the workshop already has a special feel to it.

The tables are carefully laid out: gouges, sheets of linoleum, rollers, inks, paper, fabrics. To one side, some light refreshments, a few drinks ready – that little touch that transforms a workshop into a creative get-together. It’s not just about coming to learn a technique: it’s about spending the afternoon in a lovely, pleasant spot in Vélez-Málaga.

The light streams in gently; the space exudes calm. Everything is ready, yet still peaceful. All you can hear is the soft jazz we’ve put on to warm up before we get started.

And then people start to arrive.

From idea to linoleum stamp: the creative process

Handcrafted stamp-making and printing workshops have something very special about them: they combine moments for concentration with moments for play and discovery.

During the early stages of our creative projects, everyone focuses on their own design. Some people arrive with a clear idea, whilst others need to explore a little further. It doesn’t matter. Everyone sets their own pace.

We sketch, simplify and adapt the image to the language of linocut.
And then comes the moment to carve.

Something interesting happens here: the silence becomes shared. All you can hear is the sound of the gouges on the linoleum, the occasional laugh, and comments coming and going. It isn’t a rigid silence; it’s more like a kind of collective concentration.

The hands work, the mind relaxes.

The moment of the ink

When the stamps start to be inked, the atmosphere changes.

The music picks up. The first results appear. The test prints. The mistakes (which often turn out to be successes). The surprise of seeing how an idea that was just in your head becomes something physical.

Mini-prints are stamped onto paper, compositions are tested on kraft notebooks, and unique tote bags are designed. Every piece is different, even when starting with the same stamp.

The ink stains our hands, the tables, and sometimes our clothes. That’s all part of the experience too. And what the heck, we love it!

When the workshop becomes a collective

There’s something happening in many of these creative group sessions that we love to watch: collaboration arises quite naturally.

Sometimes groups of friends turn up and decide to work on the same theme. Each person creates their own stamp, whilst thinking about how it will fit in with the others’. Then, when they’re stamping, they combine all the elements to create collective pieces.

At other times, the opposite happens: everyone works on their own design independently, but as soon as they start to see the results, they begin swapping stamps.
“Do you mind if I try yours?”
“What if we combine this one with that one?”

There are also the workshop’s own stamps, which we make available as a reference or resource. And it’s lovely to see how they’re incorporated: one person uses them to complete their composition, another to experiment, and another simply to have a bit of fun.

What begins as an individual process ends up becoming a shared experience.

And that’s the magic of printmaking: collaboration, exchange, creating together.

Beyond technique

Yes, in these workshops you learn linocut printing.
Yes, you practise hand-printing on paper and fabric.
Yes, there’s a tangible result that you take home with you.

But what really happens goes beyond the technique.

It’s an experience that blends creativity, conversation and quality time. A space where you don’t need to know how to do it, or do it perfectly. Where you can try things out, make mistakes, and try again.

And where, almost without realising it, you switch off from everything else.

It’s precisely at that moment that we have the best time. When someone suddenly glances at their watch and says, ‘Three hours have gone by and I didn’t even realise it’, that’s exactly when we’re enjoying ourselves without any rush, without routines, without screens.

A creative plan that makes you want to do it again

Many people turn up without ever having done anything like this before. Others come looking for something different to do in the Axarquía, something out of the ordinary.

Many people are worried that they “won’t know how to do it” or “don’t have the skills”…

The funny thing is that, when they’ve finished, the feeling is usually the same for almost everyone: “We’ve got to do this again”.

Because it’s not just what you do, but how you feel whilst doing it.

Creative afternoons strike that rare balance between activity and relaxation. Between learning and enjoying yourself. Between being on your own and being with others.

And that, given the pace of life we lead, isn’t all that easy to find.

Axárquica as a meeting place

In Vélez-Málaga, Axárquica is gradually becoming a place where things happen.

Not just workshops, but get-togethers.
Not just learning, but experience.

Creative projects, especially when undertaken in a group, generate something that is difficult to explain but easy to recognise: a connection that extends beyond the workshop itself.

By the end of the afternoon, the tables are covered in test pieces and ink stains; and the drying rack is laden with finished pieces that will dry over the next few days.
The conversations continue.
And there is a shared sense of having done something meaningful.

Something simple, yet important.

And if you’ve made it this far, thank you for joining me on this journey.

Paula.