Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Exposed Plate


Here's the finished plate. This one has two layers of Imagon film; layer #1 a dot screen exposure and layer #2 the image. I could proof the plate now but it's getting late and I'd be better off starting fresh in the morning.

There are good step by step instructions for using Imagon film in Keith Howard's books. Book one is titled Non-Toxic Intaglio Printmaking (one of my prints is on page 26) and his second book is The Contemporary Printmaker.

It's important to remember that you need access to a good exposure unit with a vacuum frame. Look on line and you may get lucky like I did and find one with plenty of life left in it. Also, most classrooms and print studios usually have one these days since there's been an emphasis on less toxic printmaking processes.



2 comments:

  1. This is a great series of posts! Wow, that's wonderful that you have one of your prints in a real live book! I've wanted to buy Keith Howard's books for a long time. I know non-toxic is the way to go.

    But, I do love the smell of ink and have never used anything but rosin for aquatinting and acid for biting plates. And I know what I'm doing when using this stuff.

    Soon, very soon, starting sometime in September, I'm going to pull out my supplies and get back to printmaking. When I get going, I'll be considering transitioning to non-toxic. It's inspiring to see the richness of your work. And I know it's real, being the owner of an original #mailart postcard of yours, I've been able to see your work up close!

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  2. Thanks Barbara. Oh and it's really not difficult to switch to non-toxic, especially now that you have a nice new studio. AND you still can smell the ink! (At the very least, clean up your oil base inks using vegetable oil.)

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