Hand Printing
By Alessia Noto
Etching
In pure etching, a metal (usually copper, zinc or steel) plate is
covered with a waxy ground which is resistant to acid.[1] The
artist then scratches off the ground with a pointed etching
needle where he wants a line to appear in the finished piece,
so exposing the bare metal. The échoppe, a tool with a
slanted oval section is also used for "swelling”.
Linocut
Linocut is a printmaking technique, a variant of
woodcut in which a sheet of linoleum sometimes
mounted on a wooden block is used for the relief
surface. A design is cut into the linoleum surface
with a sharp knife, V-shaped chisel or gouge, with
the raised un carved areas representing a reversal
mirror image of the parts to show printed. The
linoleum sheet is inked with a roller called a brayer,
and then impressed onto paper or fabric. The actual
printing can be done by hand or with a press.
Mechanical Printing
• A 'printing press' is a mechanical device for
applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon
a print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby
transferring the ink. Typically used for texts, the
invention and spread of the printing press are
widely regarded as the most influential event in
the second millennium AD revolutionizing the
way people conceive and describe the world they
live in, and ushering in the period of modernity.
Screen Printing
• Screen printing is a printing technique that uses a woven
mesh to support an ink-blocking stencil. The attached stencil
forms open areas of mesh that transfer ink as a sharp-edged
image onto a substrate. A roller or squeegee is moved across
the screen stencil, forcing or pumping ink past the threads of
the woven mesh in the open areas. Screen printing is also a
stencil method of print making in which a design is imposed
on a screen of silk or her fine mesh, with blank areas coated
with an impermeable substance, and ink is forced through
the mesh onto the printing surface. It is also known as
Screen Printing, silkscreen, seriography, and serigraph
Woodcut
• Woodcut³ formally known as xylogra phy³is a relief printing
artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is
carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the
printing parts remaining level with the surface while the
non- printing parts are removed, typically with gouges. The
areas to show 'white' are cut a way with a knife or chisel,
leaving the characters or image to show in 'black' at the
original surface level. The block is cut along the grain of the
wood (unlike wood engraving where the block is cut in the
end-grain). In Europe beechwood was most common only
used ; in Japan, a special type of cherry wood was used.
LITHOGRAPHY
• Lithography ( from Greek lithos, 'stone' + -
graph 'to write') is a method for printing using
a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal
plate with a completely smooth surface.
Invented in 1796 by Bavarian author
AloisSenefelder as a low-cost method of
publishing theatrical works, lithography can be
used to print text or artwork onto paper or
another suitable material.
