Modern Printmaking

Printmaking continue...

Whatever the artist has chosen, they will do so in the knowledge that each plate has a limited life span as it will wear down. This means that prints made from hand produced etchings will always be a limited edition and should increase in value over time. Many artists who work with etchings have been known to number their work, based on a pre-determined quantity of prints that they intend to produce from a certain plate. This mean that if you see a signed version of an artist’s print which has been numbered 35/62. It means that you are looking at the 35^th impression from a print run of 62.
A variation that was developed later in the development of the etching process is known as aquatint. As you can imagine aquatint is geared to receiving a more tonal effect in etchings and in the resultant prints. In the aquatint process, after the palate has been immersed in the inevitable acid bath, it is washed down with water and then the surface is thoroughly wiped down with a piece of the very stiff cloth with the intention that the ink will remain in the incisions. The etching is then passed through a printing press where the powdered rosin is replaced with an airbrush application of an acrylic polymer.

A characteristic known as “Faux-bite or "over-biting” can occur in this form of etching. This is where minute droplets of acid can leak through the resin creating a pitting and burning on the surface, sometimes very small. In most cases these may be removed through polishing the surface of the plate. However there are many cases where the artist prefers to leave the faux-bite as it can create an interesting effect.
Another, though slightly different, process of printmaking through etching is the Intaglio process. The similarity to etching remains all through the preparation process; except the images are not drawn by hand instead they are tool engraved. The first examples of Intaglio engraving were seen in Germany in the early part of the fifteenth century, with certain
Martin Schongauer being one of the first artists known to specialize in the development of this highly precise engraving technique. As method of printmaking it failed to offer the same possibilities to artists as etching did. However the Intaglio process is largely used these days in the production of banknotes, passports as well as high value bearer bonds. .

The major advances in the use of etchings in printmaking have been the removal of the use of acids in the process, to everyone’s relief. Plates today are made from low cost light weight aluminum and the covering used is a specific emulsion used for photography. Much has changed since the days of Rembrandt and his colleagues in the process of printmaking through etchings, yet much has remained the same.