The Etching Process from start to finish
With Janis Goodman.
Thursday 15th June 2006
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We visited local printmaker Janis Goodman's studio to capture her at work and to gain insight into her printing techniques. The process that she uses to create her limited edition prints is illustrated below for you interest and education. |
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Stage One Before the printing process can begin a copper plate has to be prepared. The plate is first polished to remove any grease or fingerprints from the surface. |
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Stage Two
The plate is next carefully filed to remove any sharp edges. |
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Stage Three
The ground has to be applied to the plate, Janis uses a wax polish that is melted onto the plate and spread evenly using a roller. The plate is then left to cool down. |
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Stage Four
To work onto the plate Janis first reversed a photograph in ‘Photoshop'. She then sketched the image onto the copper. Next, using etching tools she scratched the image into the plate using a magnifying glass to capture the finer detail. |
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Stage Five
The back of the plate is then covered in brown tape to protect it from the acid. The plate is then left in a ferric acid solution ‘mordant' for 30 minutes. The metal that has been etched into is then ‘bitten' back by the acid. |
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Stage Six
The wax ground is then removed ready for the plate to be inked. The ink is then applied using a rubber ‘squeege'. |
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Stage Seven
Janis then ensures that the ink is worked into all the grooves from all directions using a ‘dabber'. |
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Stage Eight
Ink is then removed from the surface using scrim (a net type fabric). Ink remains imbedded in the grooves ready to print. Tissue paper is used to remove the excess ink.
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Stage Nine
The plate is now ready to print so printing paper has to be soaked in water and blotted. The plate is placed on the press with the paper on top then covered in the printing blanket. The press wheel is turned to pull the print through the press. |
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