Drypoint Etching II

These are companion pieces to the seed pods I posted last time. Also 8x10, I created them using the same steps that I described in my past post.

The first print adding a blended roll. 

And the print using the ink remaining on the color plate. 

Drypoint etching I

I made this series of 8x10 prints a couple of months ago, but never got around to sharing it, so here we go!
 
Above is a drypoint etching, a method of making groves in a plate that will hold ink by physically inscribing them. Rather than using nitric acid to etch a line into metal, a sharp tool is scratched across the surface of a plate to both create a grove and to raise a burr that will both hold ink. The modern day printmaker is fortunate to be able to use a plastic film called Duralar which allows crisp lines and the displaced material, or burr, withstands the pressure of the press for a good number of runs. The burr gives drypoint prints their characteristically soft line.

After printing 10 or 12 of the dry point seed pods and letting them dry for a week, I mixed 2 colors of ink and rolled out a "rainbow roll". This is the blending of 2 or more colors on a single roller. I rolled the colors across a smooth sheet of plexiglass that was the exact size of my seed pod line etching. I then placed the colorful plate over my drawing on a light table so that I could see the image through the newly inked plate and wiped away the ink from the areas where my line work was.

 When I had removed the ink from the color plate in the areas I wanted to remain untouched, I carefully placed the inked side of the plate down on one of the black and white prints and ran it through the press. The resulting print had crisp black and white plus an interesting graduated color that I found pleasing.

I ran a secondary print, a "ghost print", with the ink that remained on the plate. I placed the plexiglass once again over another of my black and white prints for a trip through the press to get a softer looking print.

After printing the ghost, I cleaned the small amount of residual ink from the plexiglass, rolled it once again and made my way to the light table to carefully wipe away ink for another two prints.

Each of the 3 has a very different feel and stand alone as variations. According to personality, taste or mood, people choose  which one is most appealing to them. I like them all, and simply enjoy the process of making them!

Etchings in process

I am starting a series of prints of hands, holding and helping. It is my quiet way of encouraging kindness, understanding and simple humanity.

After the giant wood cut I last posted I decided this time to do some small scale etchings. I began by cutting down a zinc plate to the 4.5x6 inch format I wanted. I then coated the surface of the plate with Hard Ground, a material that seals the metal. I transferred my drawing onto the dark surface of the Hard Ground, leaving the outlines of areas I wanted to break the image into. I then used a Whistler's Needle to scratch lines through the hard ground, revealing the plate below. I have varied the density of my lines according to the map I have created for myself in my key drawing. The density of the lines will create different values.

When I was satisfied with both drawings I placed the plates in a vat of nitric acid. The acid eats away the metal only where my lines have exposed plate. The longer the plate is in the acid, the deeper the grooves beneath  my lines become.

When I was pleased with the depth of the grooves in my plates I removed them from the acid and removed the Hard Ground. I proofed the plate in order to see how the image turned out and check if there are things I want to change. I'm sorry I didn't take photos of the printing process, but I draw sticky ink across the surface of the plate, making sure that it is worked into the groves that the acid has eaten away. I then wipe the upper surface of the plate clean, place it on the bed of a press, place paper over the plate and crank the press. The bed of the press moves under a large cylinder that applies an even pressure across the plate and the paper on top of it, and the ink transfers to the paper.
  

I printed several proofs to see how the plates behaved and to get to know them. I spent time looking at the images and felt that I was off to a good start, but wanted to enrich the line work and refine the drawings a bit. So I again coated the plate with hard ground.

Looking at my proofs at the areas I wanted to further develop, I once again drew into the Ground to expose the plate.

The shine of the metal shows where I am enriching the line work.

The Whistlers Needle is a twisted length of metal that comes to a point on either end.

Here you can see the plates next to the proofs. Notice that they are the mirror  reverse of one another.  You can understand why if you envision that the print is a result of having been placed face down on top of the inked plate. Imagine the photo above folding in the middle and the 2 images come together like pages in a book.

Because plates are always backwards from the printed image, and printmakers are constantly working on plates to achieve an end product that a will be the reverse of what they see I'm pretty sure we are the least likely pool of people to ever suffer from Alzheimer's. We spend countless hours doing remarkable mental gymnastics keeping our synapses limber!

I touch up the edges of the plates to protect them from the acid. And they get another half hour  bath in the acid.

This time when I proof the plates I am satisfied with the drawings. However, I am not done. I plan to put a middle value behind the hands in order to create more depth. I will not use lines, but do an aquatint that will create an overall tone. I will protect the drawings by coating them with hard ground and then sprinkle rosin across the surface of the plate. I will then heat the plate so that the rosin melts into small dots stuck to the plate. When I again put the plate in the acid the open areas will etch all around the little dots of rosin and the surface will become pitted. The longer I leave it in the acid the rougher the plate will become, creating a deeper and deeper value as it will hold more ink.

That step will not happen until fall when I again have access to the magnificent print studio Vinita Vgood has created at Golden West College. 

A Giant Wood Cut

Over the course of the last month I've been designing and carving a wood cut that is 28x38 inches. I had never before produced a plate this large, in any technique, because my press won't accommodate anything larger than 22x30. Recently my printmaking tribe had a date on the calendar designated "steam roller day."  I decided to hop on it since I'm all about playing with different art challenges right now!

My subject is a reaction to our times. The division in our country breeds animosity in our communities and families. My wish is that we reach out kindly to one another and remember our countless connections. The power of listening, the calming quality of touch and the transformative effect of simple kindness can't be underestimated. Let's be nice to one another, we're in this together!  

Brace yourself, I took lots of photos of the long process of carving a large block and the unusual method of printing!

I began by doing a drawing of hands and then scaling it up to the size I wanted. I then attached it to my block. 

I had blackened the surface of the block with India Ink, and because of this I transferred the image by placing white Seral Paper between my drawing and the block and tracing all my lines.

Then the long process of carving began. I started with my areas of pure white. Now you can see the advantage of blackening the surface of the block, you instantly see your image emerging very clearly.  

Here I begin to carve my contour lines in the arms, keeping in mind value transitions. 

Now I move to the hands. 

And then the fingers to complete the subject.

Then I moved to lifting out a whole lot of wood in the background. 

Carving in my studio with my reference drawing at my elbow. 

And 57 podcasts later, the block was complete! 

I selected a block size that would just fit on the largest press in the extraordinarily well equipped Golden West Printmaking studio, so I was able run a number of prints before steam roller day.

I printed on fabric because it's cheap, colorful and I can sew a pocket for a dowel and hang the piece without the staggering expense of framing something this size. 

One day I printed in solid color fabrics, 

and another day I printed on patterned fabric. 

On steam roller day we set up an inking station where we all helped one another ready our blocks.

After placing them on top of sheets of plywood, covering them with our fabric, then 2 layers of padding the steam roller slowly rolled over 2 plates at a time. 

We then lifted the layers of blanket and foam 

then carefully lifted the imprinted fabric 

And we celebrated one another's magnificent images all day long. Smiles, giggles and pats on the back were everywhere.
In the foreground is our fearless leader, Vinita Vgood, who planned and choreographed the day perfectly, including the luxuries of a DJ and lunch!
 

Gelli plate monotypes on black paper

I attended a workshop a while back that was lead by a representative from Golden paints.  I was interested in Geli printing and that was the main topic of the day. I've since stocked up on all the materials (Golden, your plan was genius!) and have hosted several groups in my my own studio. Gelli printing is a fantastic introduction to mono typing. And though it is easy,  fume free and easy to clean up, the basic additive and subtractive methods are the same as in traditional printmaking. And the results are quite lovely!

One of the advantages of the workshop was having access to loads of supplies that I don't keep in my own studio. In the case of these 3 prints I used Golden iridescent acrylic paints. The effect was very different than the standard spectrum of colors on white.

I thought I'd share, and encourage you to seek out a fun day of slopping paint, ink or clay around just for the sake of it.  You never know what you are going to discover! 

Gelli Plate Printing

The process of mono typing on gelli plates is fast, easy and encourages experimentation and a certain amount of giggling. It is just what I wanted some months ago after emerging from a very focused several years of painting a specific subject matter in a specific style. I cleared the studio surfaces, invited friends in and began cutting stencils, rolling acrylic paint and generally making a mess.

Turns out it was just what the doctor ordered! Piles of leaves, ribbon, textured wall paper, the net bag my avocados come in, and anything textural that is flat enough to run through my press became covered in color. Each lent its magic to print after print, changing character time and again. 

This was done the week before Valentines Day, so of course I had to make a heart using a glue gun on wax paper to ink up and profess my love to the world!

Next week I'll share a few of the prints I made on black paper using metallic inks. They're weird and wonderful!

Getting Inky!

My drying rack is full again!

I haven't posted in months, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been making artwork! After wrapping up my residency in early December I dove into the comings and goings of the holiday season with gusto. We traveled, hosted and made merry all over the place. Mid January I finally stepped out of the social swirl (a bit thicker around the middle) cleared the wrapping paper, ribbon and assorted boxes of my studio table and decided it was time to start making some art again.

The first thing I did was welcome some art friends into my studio to play. I had been so quiet and solitary there for the past 3 years that it felt lovely to fill my space with chatty creative friends who took to mono typing and printing with gelli plates like ducks to water. Over the course of several sessions we had generated literally hundreds of bright, beautiful prints, and a new band of budding printmakers.

Approaching art more playfully for a while has been a delight. I have experimented with some different painting techniques and materials with no particular end result in mind. I have also dipped back into my love of printmaking,  joining a group of printmakers who work out of a remarkably well equipped studio overseen by Vinita Voogd at GoldenWest College. There I have enjoyed returning to my long standing love of etchings.  Technical and process driven, creating plates and editions is delightfully different from the painting I have focused on for the last 6 years.

In following posts I will show you the variety of prints and paintings I have been having fun with lately.
See you again soon!