1. Printmaking

2. Printmaking is the act of creating a work of art with the intention of making reproductions of it. There are many different types of printmaking, including etching, block- cutting, and screen printing.

3. Techniques and Tools Printmaking can be done in a variety of ways: typically a plate or block has a design etched onto it, and then ink is applied to the block. Paper is then pressed onto the inked block to make a negative (reverse) copy of the image.

4. Our purposes… For our purposes, we carve out rubber blocks using linoleum cutters. Changes in shading are achieved by using line shading techniques, such as crosshatch or stipple. Ink is then applied to the block using a special type of roller, called a brayer.

5. Printmaking Once the ink is applied to the block, we press the paper to the block… NOT the block to the paper. The paper is mashed into the block using a hand tool called a baren.

6. Printmaking The paper is gently pulled from the block, and a negative (reverse) image has been deposited onto the paper.

7. Editions A series of prints of the same plate is called an edition. The edition number usually signifies the number of the print, and the number of prints overall from a particular plate. Once you have reached the overall limit, it is morally wrong to EVER print from that plate again without making some sort of adjustment to it… adding lines, changing colors, etc.

8. Prints At the bottom of a print, information about it is usually written in pencil. Typical print information includes the edition number, title of the print, and signature from the artist, to be sure it is genuine.

9. History of Printmaking Printmaking began in China after paper was invented in about 105 A.D. Since the invention of the Printing Press, printmaking has been an inexpensive and effective way for artists to make a living… it gave rise to the first “commercial artists.”

10. Europe The first edition ever printed in Europe was a set of playing cards.

11. Albrect Durer Albrect Durer was the first European to realize the benefit to printmaking… one block could yield several hundred prints that could be sold at a nice price. In effect, he became the first commercial artist.

12. Durer’s “Rhinoceros”

13. Durer’s “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse”

14. Four Types of Printmaking There are four main types of printmaking. The process and materials of these techniques influence the appearance of the final print.

15. The Four Types of Printmaking are: 1. Relief Printing 2. Intaglio (engraving) 3. Planography (lithography) 4. Stencil (Serigraphy)

16. 1. RELIEF PRINTING This is printing from a raised surface. A simple example of relief printing is a rubber stamp presssed into a stamp pad and pressed onto a piece of paper.

17. Relief Printing Plates are made from flat sheets of material such as wood, linoleum, cardboard, styrofoam, etc. After drawing a picture on the surface, the artist uses tools to cut away the areas that will not print or builds up the surface that will print.

18. Relief Printing - Tools A roller - called a brayer - is used to spread ink on the plate. A sheet of paper is placed on top of the plate and the image is transferred by rubbing with the hand or by being run through a a printing press. The completed print is a mirror image of the original plate.

19. 2. INTAGLIO This describes prints that are made by cutting the picture into the surface of the printing plate. Using a sharp V-shaped tool - called a burin - the printmaker gouges the lines of an image into the surface of a smooth polished sheet of metal or in some cases a piece of plexiglass.

20. Intaglio Printing To make a print, ink is pushed into the lines of the design. The surface is then wiped clean so that the only areas with ink are the lines. A sheet of paper which has been soaked in water is then placed on the plate which is run through a printing press.

21. 3. PLANOGRAPHY As we have just learned, relief prints are created from a raised surface, and intaglio prints are created from a cut surface. Planography however, is the printing of a flat surface.

22. Planography - Lithography Lithography is the art of printing from a flat stone or metal plate by a method based on the simple fact that grease attracts grease as it repels water.

23. Planography - Lithography Printing In Lithography an image is drawn on the surface with a greasy material - grease crayon - and then water and printing ink are applied. The greasy parts absorb the ink and the wet parts do not.

24. 4. STENCIL A stencil is a sheet of paper, fabric, plastic, metal or other material with designs cut, or punched from it. Ink is forced through the openings onto the surface to be printed.

25. STENCIL: Serigraphy (Seri means silk) Serigraphy, sometimes called silk screening, is a type of stencil printing.

26. STENCIL: Serigraphy A stencil is fastened to a sheet of silk which is tightly stretched across a wooden frame. The frame is placed against the material to be printed. A squeegee is used to push the ink through the open areas onto the material or paper below.