How to Get Started in Printmaking: Introduction to Intaglio Printing Processes

 Welcome, and thank you for joining me.

Intaglio printing is the title we give to the process's that allow us to print an image which is made by inking the incised lines and recessed texture of a plate onto a damp piece of paper. This is done by placing the inked plate on an etching press bed, the dampened paper is then placed on top of the plate and pulled through and etching press. There is a large number of printmaking techniques that fall under the title of intaglio, engraving, etching, drypoint, mezzotint, aquatint, soft ground, and collagraph.

Engraving; an intaglio technique where the image is cut directly into the plate using a  sharp engraving tool.

Etching; an intaglio process resulting from the action of acid upon a metal plate, where an image has been drawn through an acid-resistant ground, (hard ground) laid upon the surface of the plate. The term also refers to the print pulled from such a plate.

Drypoint; an intaglio technique where lines are scratched directly into the plate, without the use of acid. The bur thrown up by the needle gives the print a velvety appearance.

Mezzotint; an intaglio technique where a plate, having has been previously prepared to print as a rich uniform black, is gradually scraped and burnished back to form the desires images.

Aquatint; an intaglio process used to create areas of tone. Fine rosin dust is sprinkled over the plate and fused to it with heat prior to biting.

Soft Ground; an acid-resistant ground used in etching, Capable of being lifted from the plate when textures are impressed upon it, or a pencil drawing is made upon paper laid over it.

Collagraph; a print from a plate which has been built up using collage techniques, with various low-relief materials and textures being glued to a plane surface to form the plate. May be printed as a relief an intaglio or a combination of both.

Warmly
Jo Lankester
P.S Go to www.howtogetstartedinprintmaking.com for you free report on how to get started in printmaking.

You and I are essentially infinite choice-makers. In every moment of our existence, we are in that field of all possibilities where we have access to infinity of choices.
Deepak Chopra


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