Dark, black aquatint applied over drawing made with sugar-lift technique.
FEATURE
Aquatint
Fine resin dust is applied to the surface of the etching plate, then melted from underneath to melt and harden the dots of resin. When immersed in acid the plate ‘bites’ between the aquatint resin dots, creating a distribution of tiny holes on the plate which print as a tone.
TECHNIQUE
Aquatint
Fine resin dust is applied to the surface of the etching plate, then melted from underneath to melt and harden the dots of resin. When immersed in acid the plate ‘bites’ between the aquatint resin dots, creating a distribution of tiny holes on the plate which print as a tone.
Different tones are achieved by ‘stopping out’ areas of the plate and biting for further time. It is possible to etch a range of tones across the plate from grey to black.
Coarse aquatint uses larger resin lumps to make a more textured speckled aquatint.
Spit bite, sugar lift and white ground techniques are all used together with aquatint.
more printmaking techniques
Soft ground
Soft ground was invented in the latter half of the eighteenth century as a means of reproducing the grainy qualities of chalk work. It was first used in England by Gainsborough and artists of the Norwich School.
More Features
All features
On Siss / Phuss: Ziqi Xu in conversation with Livia Wang
“It’s all because I want to see myself, I want to see those unnoticed moments, how they pass by, what is really happening. So that makes the work very personal.”
HAUSPRINT collective at Spike Island Print Fair
So proud of our current Etching Year artists who are in Bristol this weekend at the Spike Island Print Fair. Seamlessly installing their work together this afternoon and getting ready for the PV tonight, Friday, and a weekend of talking to visitors, and hopefully selling some prints. These artists are just finishing their 2nd Etching […]