This document provides an overview of different printmaking techniques, including intaglio printing which involves etching or scratching into metal plates, lithography which uses wax crayon on stone, screen printing where a mesh screen is used to apply ink in a stencil-like fashion, and relief printing by carving into blocks of wood or other materials. It explains that prints are produced in limited editions, with only a set number of each print made, and discusses prominent artists who have used these various printmaking methods.

1. PRINTMAKING

2. WHAT ARE PRINTS?
Prints are a series of
identical images made
by transferring an
original image to a
block, screen, stone
or plate to produce
multiples of that
image.
PRINTS ARE
PRODUCED IN
LIMITED EDITIONS .
A limited edition of
prints is a signed,
numbered, hand-
printed series of
prints. Only an
exclusive number
exist which makes

3. TYPES OF PRINTS .
There are many ways to
produce multiples of an
image:
INTAGLIO: etching, drypoint,
aquatint, etc.
LITHOGRAPHY: stone block
resist.
SCREEN PRINT: silkscreen
or serigraph “stencil”
RELIEF PRINTS : woodcut,
linocut and softoleum.

4. INTAGLIO
These prints are made
by scratching and
etching images into
copper or zinc plates.
The metal is coated
with bitumen (like tar).
The image is scraped
into this surface.

5. The plate is immersed
in nitric acid which
“bites” the lines into
the plate. Ink is rubbed
into the grooves and
lines. The paper and
inked plate is put
through a press, which
pushes the paper into
the inked lines.

6. Rembrandt Stettler

7. Blackwood

8. LITHOGRAPHY
This is a complex
method of
printmaking
involving a large
stone block. The
image is drawn
directly on the stone
with wax crayon.
The drawn parts
attract the oil-based
ink and the wet
stone resists the
ink.

9. Kollwitz

10. SCREEN PRINT
Fomerly known as
silkscreen and serigraph,
screen prints are done
using a frame stretched
with a fine mesh
polyester. Parts of the
screen are blocked out,
others are left open, like
a stencil. Ink is pulled
through the open parts of
the screen using a
squeegee. This method is
often used for
commercial applications
such as t-shirt printing.

11. Warhol

12. RELIEF PRINTS
These are
made by
carving into a
block and
rolling ink on
the surface of
the block.
What is carved
out is blank –
the ink covers
the uncarved
surface. Relief
prints can be
carved into
wood, linoleum
or softoleum.

13. http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/2001/whatisaprint/flash.html

14. Hokusai Schmidt-
Rotluff

15. Durer

18. White space
is carved
out of the
block.
Leaving
some lines
visible adds
texture.
On black
surfaces,
white lines
are used to
differentiate
from the
background.
Good prints
balance
light and Textures can be created by varying lines, patterns
dark areas. and surfaces with the carving tool.