Printmaking
Relief - surface of the blocks are inked while recessed areas are ink free.
Woodcuts are made by cutting into broad areas of a plank of wood. Artists cut away areas that are not meant to be printed. These cut areas appear as the white parts on the print while the ink appears as the raised parts.
Artist: Albrecht Durer
Planographic - printing from a flat surface. Image is created by applying a tusche (greasy substance) to a plate or stone.
The stone is first dampened with water before inked as the ink won’t cling to these dampened areas. When a paper is pressed on the stone, the ink on the greasy parts are transferred to it.
Artists: Toulouse-Lautrec and Picasso
Intaglio - This type of printing involves the use of a metal plate.
When printing the ink settles in the sunken areas. The plate in contact with damp paper is passed through a roller press under pressure. The paper is then forced into the sunken areas where the ink is settled.
The plate can be cut by several methods:
- Engraving - The design is cut by using a tool called burin by driving furrows.
- Etching
- - The plate is covered by a material called ground. Then the artist draws on the ground using a needle. The plate is then put in an acid bath and the exposed areas will be eaten away. The artist etches on the plate parts that will appear black or colored areas. The length of time the plate stays in the acid bath affects the darkness and character of lines.
Artist: Rembrandt
- Drypoint - Sunken lines are produced by diamond-hard tools that are pulled across the plate. The line’s depth depends on the artist as the lines are controlled by the artist’s muscle. The method of cutting produces a ridge called burr.
Artist: William C. McNulty
- Aquatint - Powdered ground is melted onto the surface of the plate. The plate is then left in an acid bath, the longer it stays in acid, the darker and heavier the texture becomes.
Artist: J. Jay Mcvicker
Stencil Prints - It prints open areas of the stencil.
Artist: Andy Warhol
