Printmaking

Printmaking is a way to create beautiful pieces of art by printing on paper or other materials like fabric, wood, or metal. Artists use special tools called matrices, which can be made from metal, stone, wood, or even screens, to transfer ink onto the surface. Some common methods include engraving, etching, lithography, woodcuts, and screen printing.

Each printed piece is called an impression, and when many impressions are made from the same tool, they form an edition. Artists often sign and number each impression to show that it is part of a special, limited group. This makes each print a unique and valuable piece of art. Printmaking has been used for centuries to make art that can be shared and enjoyed by many people.

Techniques

Printmaking techniques are divided into four main categories.

Relief, where ink is applied to the surface of the matrix, while carved or displaced grooves are without ink. Relief techniques include woodcut or woodblock, wood engraving, linocut and metalcut.

Intaglio, where ink is forced into grooves or cavities in the surface of the matrix. Intaglio techniques include collagraphy, engraving, etching, mezzotint, and aquatint.

Planographic, where the matrix retains its original surface, but is specially prepared and/or inked to allow for the transfer of the image. Planographic techniques include lithography, monotyping, and digital techniques.

Stencil, where ink or paint is pressed through a prepared screen or material with cutout elements, including screen printing, risograph, and pochoir.

Types of printmaking outside of this group are viscosity printing, water surface printing such as paper marbling. Contemporary printmaking may include digital printing, photographic mediums, or a combination of digital, photographic, and traditional processes.

Many of these techniques can also be combined, especially within the same family.

Woodcut

Woodcut is the earliest printmaking technique. It was probably first developed as a means of printing patterns on cloth, and by the 5th century was used in China for printing text and images on paper. Woodcuts of images on paper developed around 1400 in Europe, and slightly later in Japan.

The artist either draws a design directly on a plank of wood, or transfers a drawing done on paper to a plank of wood. Traditionally, the artist then handed the work to a technician, who then uses sharp carving tools to carve away the parts of the block that will not receive ink. In the Western tradition, the surface of the block is then inked with the use of a brayer; however, in the Japanese tradition, woodblocks were inked with a brush. Then a sheet of paper, perhaps slightly damp, is placed over the block. The block is then rubbed with a baren or spoon, or is run through a printing press. If the print is in color, separate blocks can be used for each color, or a technique called reduction printing can be used.

Engraving

The process was developed in Germany in the 1430s from the engraving used by goldsmiths to decorate metalwork. Engravers use a hardened steel tool called a burin to cut the design into the surface of a metal plate, traditionally made of copper.

To make a print, the engraved plate is inked all over, then the ink is wiped off the surface, leaving ink only in the engraved lines. The plate is then put through a high-pressure printing press together with a sheet of paper. The paper picks up the ink from the engraved lines, making a print. The process can be repeated many times.

Etching

Etching is part of the intaglio family. In pure etching, a metal plate is covered with a waxy or acrylic ground. The artist then draws through the ground with a pointed etching needle, exposing the metal. The plate is then etched by dipping it in a bath of etchant. The etchant "bites" into the exposed metal, leaving behind lines in the plate. The remaining ground is then cleaned off the plate, and the printing process is then just the same as for engraving.

Mezzotint

An intaglio variant of engraving in which the image is formed from subtle gradations of light and shade. Mezzotint is a "dark manner" form of printmaking, which requires artists to work from dark to light. To create a mezzotint, the surface of a copper printing plate is roughened evenly all over with the aid of a tool known as a rocker; the image is then formed by smoothing the surface with a tool known as a burnisher. When inked, the roughened areas of the plate will hold more ink and print more darkly, while smoother areas of the plate hold less or no ink, and will print more lightly or not at all.

Aquatint

A tonal technique typically used in conjunction with Intaglio techniques, especially etching, and printed in the same way. Like etching, the aquatint technique involves the application of acid to make marks in a metal plate. Where the etching technique uses a needle to make lines that retain ink, traditional aquatint relies on powdered rosin which is acid-resistant in the ground to create a tonal effect. The rosin is applied in a light dusting by a fan booth, the rosin is then cooked until set on the plate. The plate is then exposed to acid, to which the rosin particles are resistant, and tonal variation is controlled by the level of acid exposure over large areas.

Drypoint

A variant of engraving, done with a sharp point, rather than a v-shaped burin. While engraved lines are very smooth and hard-edged, drypoint scratching leaves a rough burr at the edges of each line. This burr gives drypoint prints a characteristically soft, and sometimes blurry, line quality.

Lithography

Lithography is a technique invented in 1798 and based on the chemical repulsion of oil and water. A porous surface, normally limestone, is used; the image is drawn on the limestone with a greasy medium. Acid is applied, transferring the grease-protected design to the limestone, leaving the image 'burned' into the surface. Gum arabic, a water-soluble substance, is then applied, sealing the surface of the stone not covered with the drawing medium. The stone is wetted, with water staying only on the surface not covered in grease-based residue of the drawing; the stone is then 'rolled up', meaning oil ink is applied with a roller covering the entire surface; since water repels the oil in the ink, the ink adheres only to the greasy parts, perfectly inking the image.

Screenprinting

Screen printing creates prints by using a fabric stencil technique; ink is simply pushed through the stencil against the surface of the paper, most often with the aid of a squeegee. Generally, the technique uses a natural or synthetic 'mesh' fabric stretched tightly across a rectangular 'frame,' much like a stretched canvas. The fabric can be silk, nylon monofilament, multifilament polyester, or even stainless steel.

Monotype

Monotyping is a type of printmaking made by drawing or painting on a smooth, non-absorbent surface. The surface, or matrix, was historically a copper etching plate, but in contemporary work it can vary from zinc or glass to acrylic glass. The image is then transferred onto a sheet of paper by pressing the two together, usually using a printing-press. Monotypes can also be created by inking an entire surface and then, using brushes or rags, removing ink to create a subtractive image.

Monoprint

Monoprinting is a form of printmaking that uses a matrix such as a woodblock, litho stone, or copper plate, but produces impressions that are unique. Multiple unique impressions printed from a single matrix are sometimes known as a variable edition.

Mixed-media prints

Mixed-media prints may use multiple traditional printmaking processes such as etching, woodcut, letterpress, silkscreen, or even monoprinting in the creation of the print. They may also incorporate elements of collage, or painted areas, and may be unique, i.e. one-off, non-editioned, prints.

Digital prints

Digital prints refer to images printed using digital printers such as inkjet printers instead of a traditional printing press. Images can be printed to a variety of substrates including paper, cloth, or plastic canvas.

Foil imaging

In art, foil imaging is a printmaking technique made using the Iowa Foil Printer, developed by Virginia A. Myers from the commercial foil stamping process. This uses gold leaf and acrylic foil in the printmaking process.

Direct-to-garment printing (DTG printing)

Direct-to-garment printing (DTG) is a process of printing on textiles using specialized aqueous ink jet technology. DTG printers typically have a platen designed to hold the garment in a fixed position, and the printer inks are jetted or sprayed onto the textile by the print head.

Color

Artists who make prints use many ways to add color to their work. They might use special printing plates, blocks, or screens for each color. Usually, they need about three to four plates, but sometimes they use up to seven. Each plate has a different color, and they are printed one after another to build the full picture.

One way to make color prints is called the reduction method. The artist starts with a simple block and prints a color on it. Then they carefully cut more away from the block and print another color on top. Each time they print, the new color goes on top of the old one. This method was used long ago, even before a famous artist started using it.

Registration

When making prints that need more than one layer of ink, it’s important to line up each layer correctly. This is especially true for pictures with many colors, where each color is added one after the other. Getting everything lined up just right is called "registration." When registration is done well, all the parts of the picture fit together perfectly. Sometimes, artists like Andy Warhol choose to line things up on purpose in a way that isn’t perfect, which can create interesting effects. How well things line up can change depending on the kind of printing being used.

Protective printmaking equipment

When making prints, it’s important to stay safe. Printmakers who work with etching and lithography should wear closed-toed shoes and long pants. Today, they use rubber gloves instead of using their bare hands like in the past. They also wear special respirators to protect themselves from harmful vapors. Most acid baths have ventilation hoods to help keep the air clean.

Printmakers should use respirators and masks with particle filters, especially when working with aquatinting. During this process, they may come in contact with rosin powder, which can be dangerous. In the past, people had to hold their breath to stay safe while using an aquatinting booth.

Print preservation

Modern prints on paper can last for centuries if they are kept away from sunlight and moisture. However, paper can be damaged by environmental factors and handling. Prints made with special alkaline and acid-free paper can last over 1,000 years, while average paper might last around 500 years. Older prints may be in better condition than newer ones, depending on how the paper was made. Over time, older prints can yellow or brown due to acids in the paper and materials used to support the print.

A problem called foxing can cause brown spots or blotches in paper, caused by mold or chemical reactions. To protect or restore older prints, washing and special treatments might be needed. Color prints can fade if exposed to too much light, so it's important to limit lighting to 50 lux (5 foot-candles) or less and use lights with UV-filtering protection. When framing prints, using special archival materials is important to prevent damage. Prints on animal skin (vellum) need to be kept at a humidity level between 25% and 40%, and prints on silk should be kept away from any light, including camera flashes.