WHAT%IS%PRINTMAKING?
WHAT%IS%INTAGLIO?
WHAT%IS%RELIEF%PRINTING?
Printmaking#enables#an#artist#to#create#
original#works#of#art#utilizing#a#wide#
variety#of#reproductive#processes.#
Historically,#the#earliest#printing#was#
done#using#relief#stamps#made#from#
incised#bone,#soft#stone#or#wood.#
Today#the#four#primary#techniques#are#
intaglio,#relief,#screenprint#and#lithography.
Contemporary#printmakers#frequently#
utilize#digital#imaging#and#photographic#
techniques#in#combination#with#more
traditional#methods.
#
The#majority#of#prints#have#two#materials#
in#common#(ink#and#paper)#and#are#
produced#in#a#limited#number#of#copies#
referred#to#as#an#"edition".#Printmakers#
normally#sign#their#work#and#give#each#
print#a#unique#number,#referred#to#as#the#
edition#number.#This#figure#is#expressed#
as#a#fraction,#the#top#digit#indicating#the#
particular#print's#unique#identity#and#the#
bottom#number#the#the#total#prints#within#
the#edition.#
Asger#Jorn,#intaglio
Pablo#Picasso,#relief#print
In#relief#printing,#the#image#area#is#raised#
above#its#background.#This#is#achieved#by#
either#building#up#the#printing#surface#
(additive#method)#or#removing#the#non=printing#
portions#(subtractive#method).#The#block#is#
rolled#or#brushed#with#ink,#paper#laid#on#its#
surface#and#pressure#applied#via#hand#tool#
or#press.#Artists#working#in#relief#printing#
have#included#Munch,#Gaugin,#Kollowitz,#
Picasso,#Hokusai,#Durer,#Baskin,#Baselitz,#
Escher,#Kirchner,#and#Matisse.
The#term#intaglio#comes#from#the#Italian#word#
"intagliare",#meaning#to#engrave,#carve#or#cut.#
With#the#intaglio#process#lines#and#textures#are#
created#by#scratching,#engraving#or#etching#the#
surface#of#a#metal#or#plastic#plate.#Printing#the#
plate#involves#covering#it#with#ink,#wiping#the#
surface#clean#(leaving#ink#only#in#the#crevices)#
and#then#passing#it#and#dampened#paper
through#an#etching#press.#Artists#working#in#
intaglio#printing#have#included#Rembrandt,#
Goya,#Freud,#Hockney,#Cassatt,#Picasso,#
Durer#and#Klee.
WHAT%IS%LITHOGRAPHY?
WHAT%IS%SCREENPRINTING?
Although#most#printing#processes#permit#
the#artist#to#produce#many#identical#
impressions#of#an#image,#financial#
considerations#often#encourage#limiting#
the#number#of#prints#in#an#edition.#In#fact,#
the#concept#of#a#"limited#edition"#is#no#
longer#unique#to#the#world#of#printmaking.#
Many#consumer#products#and#"collectibles"#
are#marketed#in#this#way.#Whether#a#
marketing#ploy#or#actual#limitation#of#the#
production#technique,#scarcity#can#enhance#
the#aura#of#desirability#be#it#Avon#bottle#
or#fine#art#print.#
Artists#who#are#not#trained#printmakers#but#
wish#to#make#editions#will#often#seek#out#
professional#print#workshops.#Successful#
collaborations#between#skilled#printmakers#
and#renowned#artists#can#be#seen#throughout#
art#history#and#include#the#printed#work#of#
Pablo#Picasso,#Jasper#Johns,#
Helen#Frankenthaler,#and#countless#others.#
Career#opportunities#in#printmaking#
can#include#employment#in#a#professional#
print#workshop#assisting#other#artists,#
teaching,#conservation#and#collecting#for#
museums#and#galleries,#illustration#and#
working#in#the#commercial#printing#and#
publishing#industry.
Printmaking#encourages#an#artist#to#engage#
in#whole#brain#activity,#calling#upon#both#the#
intuitive#and#analytical#aspects#of#the#mind.
Jasper#Johns,#lithograph
Andy#Warhol,#screenprint
Also#referred#to#as#silkscreen#and#serigraphy,#
screenprinting#is#a#type#of#stenciling#in#which#
a#viscous#ink#is#forced#through#the#stencil#using#
a#squeegee.#Although#the#suspension#of#
stencils#on#strands#of#fiber#dates#back#over#a#
thousand#years#to#Japan,#screenprinting#wasn't#
developed#as#a#fine#art#medium#until#the#20th#
century.#Stencil#making#today#often#involves#the#
use#of#photosensitive#materials.#Artists#working#
in#screenprinting#have#included#Rauschenberg,#
Warhol,#Nauman,#Paolozzi,#Shields,#Ruscha,
and#Riley.#
for#more#info#contact:
jack#mccaslin,#[email protected]
Of#the#four#major#printmaking#techniques#
(screenprint,#intaglio,#and#relief#being#the#others),#
lithography#is#the#only#one#to#have#a#single#
inventor#and#clearly#known#history.#Lithography#is#
based#on#the#simple#physical#principle#that#grease#
and#water#do#not#easily#mix.#Lithography#is#a#
planographic#process#(printing#from#a#flat#surface,#
including#lithography#and#screenprinting).#In#
traditional#lithography#the#artist#draws#on#the#
stone#or#plate#using#a#greasy#substance.
Lithography#today#often#involves#the#use#of#
photosensitive#materials.#Traditional#lithography#
was#eventually#adapted#for#commercial#purposes#
in#the#form#of#high#speed#offset#(lithographic)#
printing.#Artists#working#in#lithography#have#
included#Rauschenberg,#Picasso,#Kollowitz,#
Daumier,#Degas#and#Johns.#