Etchings

An etching is a kind of a print. A zinc or copper plate is covered with a thin layer of asphaltum, which is a tar-like acid resist. An image is drawn into the asphaltum with a very sharp needle called a drypoint needle, exposing the metal beneath. The plate is submerged in an acid that eats away at the exposed areas of the plate. When the plate is removed from the acid and the asphaltum rinsed off with solvent, the lines have been etched into the metal surface. The longer the plate has been exposed to the acid, the deeper and thicker the line. Another acid-etch technique called aquatint creates areas of texture that will print as shading.

Ink is applied evenly over the surface of the plate. The recessed lines and textured areas "hold" the ink, and excess ink is carefully wiped off. The inked plate is put on an intaglio press, such as the one I use (pictured), with a piece of printmaking paper on it. The paper and plate are run through the press, and the large metal roller presses the paper into all the lines and textures of the plate, picking up the ink. In this way the ink is transferred from the plate to the piece of paper- the finished print, or etching.

My color etchings utilize a multiple-plate process. I create a plate for each color- usually four colors like yellow, red, blue, and black. The piece of paper is run through the press four times, picking up each color in succession. The plates have to be registered perfectly. The layering of the "plate" colors yields the resultant color- for example, yellow and blue layers make green. This is not a photographic process- I do the color "separations" in my head. It is an entirely manual process.

An edition of prints is made- I do ten nowadays, then the plates are destroyed. Each print is an original work of art. The prints are signed and dated, and the edition is complete.

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