The acid bites around the individual grains, and the plate is left with a rough surface, or tooth, that holds ink. Irregular grains of rosin (or another granular acid-resistant material) are applied to a plate, then the plate is heated, causing the grains to melt slightly and adhere to the plate. It is used in intaglio platemaking in diluted strength to etch images into copper or zinc plates.Īquatint The most common method of creating tones in etching. You must repeat the inking and printing process for every print.Īcid A water-soluble corrosive compound that erodes metal. The paper, under pressure, pulls out the ink to make the print.
To make each impression-each print-you ink a plate, or (for works in full color) a series of plates, and use a press to mold a sheet of damp paper into the ink-filled marks. When you are making your marks on a plate, either by etching or drawing directly, you can create different depths and this, along with the process you are using, affects how the print looks. Since Crown Point’s beginning, artists working here have mostly used intaglio printing. The press pushes the paper into the inked lines. To print an intaglio plate, you fill the marks with ink and wipe the surface clean. Etching uses acid to mark the plate engraving does not.
Aquatint is a form of etching, and drypoint is a form of engraving. Embossing will clearly be visible from the back.Įtching, aquatint, engraving, and drypoint are the primary ways of making plates that are printed in intaglio. You will see embossed plate edges around the image area of an intaglio print the image itself also is embossed. It is the only one that embeds in a paper sheet and physically embosses it. Intaglio is the form of printing we use at Crown Point Press.