glossary
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Collagraphs Printmakers have developed collagraphs to be a much more sophisticated medium in recent years. It is no longer a simple method of collaging on card. Mountcard is the preferred card to use, and the surface is cut out and scored with a sharp craft knife. The card is sealed with varnish and can be inked and wiped like an etching or a drypoint plate. Collaging can also be used to add texture and some artists only use this method, but what is stuck on has to dry thoroughly and should be very thin like cotton, leaves, tissue paper etc. |
Drypoint This is the most direct of all the intaglio processes. Lines are scratched directly into the metal plate with a drypoint tool. The resulting raised line of metal (the burr) holds the ink and a print is taken from this. The images are often more raw in quality than an etching. Editions of dry point etchings are usually quite small as the burr wears down relatively quickly. |
Chine Colle This is usually used with etchings, but also can be incorporated in woodcuts. A thin sheet of Japanese paper, (or any other thin paper), exactly the size of the image/plate is pasted with wallpaper paste or Japanese rice glue and placed on an inked plate or block and printed with another blank sheet of paper on top. The thin paper, different in colour to the main paper, holds the image, but adds a subtle tone to the image and often a delicacy to the look of the print, with torn edges around the plate just visible.
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Engraving A square or diamond shaped point called a burrin is used to cut lines in the metal plate removing slithers of the metal. Quite a number of different cutting tools are used, some of which create multiple lines which appear in the final print as hatching or cross-hatching. The lines produced in engravings have a thin, clear crisp quality.
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Etching An acid resistant etching ground is applied to a metal plate and lines drawn through the wax or acrylic surface to reveal the metal below. The plate is immersed in acid which bites into the metal. The printmaker varies the amount of time the plate is left in the acid to determine the depth of the line. This process may be repeated several times before the plate is ready for printing. When the plate is inked up, ink is forced into the lines and the print taken pressure. Photo etching extends the range of image making possibilities. |
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Gum Arabic Transfer This method has been reintroduced to printmaking after many years on the shelf. It is quick, highly effective and uses no solvents. The gum arabic is watered down to around 50 / 50 water to gum arabic. (Gum arabic itself is commonly used in lithography).
The solution is rubbed gently onto a black & white photocopy and a lightly inked roller passed over the surface. with another quick wipe it can then be put through a press and printed. It is often referred to as paper lithography, and has many similar qualities.
We are now also seeing this method used as a resist for photo-etching and photo-line; exciting stuff! |
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Lino cut The method of making linocuts is similar to that of woodcut, though the material being more pliable and easier to work, produces a more flowing line. Special lino cutting tools are usually used and those found in schools are quite adequate. As a process, the lino cut can be a very expressive and direct method of printmaking. The surface can be scored, acid etched or otherwise manipulated to produce interesting textures. A new breed of vinyl surfaces which are even easier to cut and work are now available. Lino prints can be monocoloured or multicoloured using a number of different cutting methods. Photo-lino has recently been reinvented along with other new innovations to printmaking. Hot Bed Press has been working with Justin Sanders; one of the pioneers of this process, whereby an image is transferred onto lino by photo-screenprinting bitumen for by the even more recent introduction of gum arabic transfer.
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Relief Etching This process crosses two printmaking processes. Though it involves using a metal plate, the print is taken from the top surface rather than from incised lines. An image is drawn onto the plate using etching ground and the plate (usually zinc) is immersed in acid until a deep etch is achieved. The printing method is the same as for relief prints. |
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Aquatint
Aquatint Used in etching to create tone; a resin dust is applied to a plate, fused to it with heat and ‘stopped out’ where no tone is needed. The plate is then dipped in acid and stopped out in stages making the depths of tone. Innovations in printmaking have also seen the introduction of an acrylic spray as a substitute to the fine resin dust. Salt aquatint has also come back into vogue, whereby a wax ground is applied to the plate and salt is poured over it and warmed up to as hot as possible. The result is that the wax ground is pulled into the salt crystals and the dots left become an aquatint area.
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What is an original fine art print? An original print is not a reproduction of a drawing or painting, but a piece of art originated utilising and as a result of the printmaking process, whether it be etching, screenprinting, lithograph or relief print.
The quality of each technique dictates and informs the artistic decision making and directly influences the resulting image. An etching for example will be more autographic and clearly hand drawn, whereas a relief print is necessarily block colour, a screenprint more about overlaying and flat colour. PRINTMAKING TERMS A print can be unique in that there is only one made (monotype) or it can be one of a suite or edition of prints which are essentially the same, and limited to a relatively small number of prints.
The main processes used in printmaking are:
There are numerous processes where these three methods cross over. In addition, the printmaker may make use of digital methods either to plan or create the print or as part of the whole process.
The following are some printmaking terms: |
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Screenprinting Screenprinting is produced by pushing ink through a fine mesh by pulling a squeegee across it. Areas of mesh are blocked resulting in blank areas. The image is built up usually in at least 2 colours. The blocking of the screen can be done with simple cut stencils or photo-screenprinting. The quality of screenprint is defined by its flat colour. The ink is mainly water-based nowadays, (although some master printers still use oil based inks and commercial printers too are often still not fully water-based).
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Wood cut Areas of the wood block are gouged, cut or punched out using either special wood cutting tools, or a knife. Scorpers or chisels are used to clear large areas of wood. Woodcuts often carry the image of the wood grain and some printmakers enhance the grain by wire brushing the surface removing some of the softer wood. Paper is placed over the inked up block and printed under pressure or by embossing by hand. Japanese woodcut is also practiced. This method of relief printing differs from Western style woodcut primarily in the way the block is printed; by hand using a baren and usually with water-based inks. There are other differences such as the way editions are printed and registered. One of the best known authorities on this is Rebecca Salter who has written 2 books on the subject and exhibits internationally. We are pleased to have her teaching for us in August 2009 and again in early 2010. |
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Wood Engraving Wood engravings are usually rather small in size and are cut from the end of the wood rather than from its flat surface. The design is made by cutting into the surface of the block withare engraved with tools called gravers. Larger areas are cleared as in woodcuts. A stiff ink is applied thinly to the surface of the block and a print taken using a thin paper. One of the best practitioners of this is Anne Desmett. Anne is the Editor of Printmaking Today and has exhibited around the world. her courses for Hot Bed Press over the past couple of years have brought wood engraving to life here. |