Print Techniques
There are two basic types of printmaking, relief and intaglio. Relief prints include lino cuts, wood cuts and wood engraving. Lino and wood cuts lend themselves to bolder, graphic styles, cuts are made with a variety of tools and when ink is rolled on, the material that is left produces the print. Wood engraving is used to produce smaller more detailed prints, tools called burins are used to cut end grain boxwood, or a synthetic substitute. Relief prints may be printed by hand or with a press.
Intaglio prints include drypoints and etchings. For a drypoint, lines and marks are scratched into a metal or plastic plate, ink is wiped into the lines and the plate is printed onto dampened paper using a press. The shallow lines wear down quickly so only a small edition is possible. For etchings the plate is covered with a waxy ground, lines and marks are made through this to expose the metal. This is then etched using a mordant such as copper sulphate. Tone can be achieved with an aquatint which is bitten for different times depending on the darkness required. Etchings are printed in the same way as drypoints.
Since both relief and intaglio prints are handmade and printed by the artist there will be some slight variation throughout the edition, this adds to their charm and value.
Giclee prints enable high quality reproduction of original paintings and drawings. The original is scanned or photographed and the resulting digital image is printed onto archival paper using lighfast inks.
Intaglio prints include drypoints and etchings. For a drypoint, lines and marks are scratched into a metal or plastic plate, ink is wiped into the lines and the plate is printed onto dampened paper using a press. The shallow lines wear down quickly so only a small edition is possible. For etchings the plate is covered with a waxy ground, lines and marks are made through this to expose the metal. This is then etched using a mordant such as copper sulphate. Tone can be achieved with an aquatint which is bitten for different times depending on the darkness required. Etchings are printed in the same way as drypoints.
Since both relief and intaglio prints are handmade and printed by the artist there will be some slight variation throughout the edition, this adds to their charm and value.
Giclee prints enable high quality reproduction of original paintings and drawings. The original is scanned or photographed and the resulting digital image is printed onto archival paper using lighfast inks.