[accessibleimage] embossing print making technique

Hi,
Forwarding a link and article from the Art Beyond Sight list. It is about embossing as a print making technique. http://www.marylandprintmakers.org/newsletter.asp?id=200
Best,
Lisa


May 2005
Making an Impression
Secrets of Embossing Shared

/by Rand Huebsch/

As attested by
the ancient cylinder seals used to imprint clay tablets, the impulse to make an
embossed impression is ages old. For embossing onto paper, a deeply etched metal
plate is an ideal matrix. Printing with this plate produces an additional image
reversal: its etched areas create the raises of the paper bas relief, while its
unbitten, higher areas provide the paper’s recesses.
*Creating the Plate: *
*Reductive Approach*
The reductive approach is a variant of traditional
etching: one uses a stylus to remove areas of protective coating, or ground,
from the plate, which will then be "carved" by the acid. (While I prefer to work
with 16-gauge copper, other metals can be used.) To start, brush ground onto a
thoroughly degreased plate that has an acid-resistant backing on the other side.
As the plate will be bitten for many hours, use a sturdy resist such as
asphaltum or a mixture of it and liquid hard ground; don’t apply the resist too
thickly, or it will not dry thoroughly.
When the ground has dried, you
can draw image guidelines onto the plate. In conceiving the image, keep in mind
that the lines of the embossed print can be raised or recessed, or a combination
of the two techniques can be used, just as a woodcut can have both black and
white line. You can draw directly on the grounded plate with white crayon; I
like water-based Caran d’Ache. Or, to transfer a sketch (preferably on tracing
paper), use a light-colored transfer paper, such as Saral, or make one by
rubbing chalk onto the reverse side of the drawing. Tape the drawing to the
plate so that it does not shift while you do the transfer: place the transfer
paper under it, powder-side down, and re-draw the image with a hard-lead pencil.
If the guidelines
are for a raised-line image, you will need to decide how much metal to expose by
repeated passes of the stylus. Conversely, if a line denotes a recessed area,
determine how much ground to scrape away on each side of it. Those choices are
largely intuitive and arise out of the process and the context. Use a broader
stylus to clear larger areas. Scrape away ground thoroughly and whisk off the
particles with a piece of paper towel. For an alternative ground, experiment
with contact paper, which holds up very well during a long etch. Adhere it to
the bare plate and draw guidelines with a water-based crayon. Then, as if doing
a paper cut, use an X-acto knife to remove the paper from those areas to be
etched; then make sure to scrape any adhesive traces from the exposed metal.
*Creating the Plate: Additive Approach*
With the additive
method, one brushes asphaltum lines on to the bare metal: the resulting prints
contain an effective contrast between the spontaneous motion of the brush stroke
and the sculpted look that embossings have. For this method, it is crucial to
start with a well-degreased plate, onto which you can directly draw guidelines
with a dark water-based crayon. To transfer a drawing on tracing paper, coat the
reverse side of the paper with litho crayon, then put that side in contact with
the bare plate for the transfer. As your metal plate is only about an eighth of
an inch thick, it should not have any very large open areas of metal: they will
not register as raised in relation to the surrounding elements.
When painting,
experiment with various combinations of asphaltum and liquid ground to find the
consistency that works best for you. The ground will spread slightly when it is
applied, so choose your brush accordingly and, for better control, charge it
with only a small amount of ground for each stroke; experiment with different
brushes. When the lines have dried, you can refine them with a stylus. As the
additive approach requires a longer exposure of the artist to fumes, good
ventilation is especially important; in addition to having windows open while
working, I use a fan to blow away fumes, and I take breaks.
*Biting *
*the Plate*
Although most mordants are suitable, I use ferric chloride,
either undiluted (42 degrees Baume), or diluted 1:1. Because there are so many
variables in biting, such as acid strength and the desired depth of bite, there
is no precise formula for etching time. Using fresh ferric (1:1) and with the
plate face down, I have found that a 10- to 15-hour bite has usually provided
the results that I wanted. When the plate is etched face down, the bite is
crisper and faster and the edges of ground seem to hold up better, possibly
because the partitions are not undercut. Affix water-resistant supports, such as
bits of wax, to non-image areas of the plate so that it does not rest directly
on the bottom of the tray; for that purpose, you can reserve a margin of
grounded metal, which will later be cut away.
It is important to check
the biting plate at least once an hour, as residue should be removed and areas
of ground can break down. Rinse the plate under a soft flow of water and gently
blot it dry; then touch up those areas that need it. During the course of the
biting process, you may wish to selectively stop out some exposed areas.
Generally I have not worked that way, but instead have allowed all of the
original open areas to bite for the same period of time. Note that, on a plate
with open-bite lines of varying widths, the thicker lines will bite more deeply
than the thinner ones. To re-coat a plate that has been proofed and needs
additional biting, you can either brush the ground lightly over the surface or
roll up a brayer with asphaltum and apply to the plate. When the ground is dry,
scrape away any that has dripped onto open-bite areas. If there are small
sections of the plate that you feel should not have been etched, you can fill
them with air-hardening clay.
*Printing*
After cleaning the
plate of ground, you can proof it; sometimes it is possible to proof a
contact-papered plate without damaging the covering. While making the plate is
time consuming, printing it on the etching press goes quickly, as there is no
inking required. Essential for emboss printing is a sheet of foam rubber, placed
between the plate and the etching blanket; this serves both to help push the
paper into the plate’s recesses and to protect the blanket from being embossed.
Use somewhat greater pressure than usual; too much, however, can actually lessen
the relief areas and also cause the paper to tear. As you will be using foam
rubber and a blanket, some trial and error will be involved.
When I first started
to make embossings, I discovered that Canson mi-teinte pastel papers work well,
especially the middle-value colors. When embossed, they undergo a slight
lightening of color in the raised areas and take on a leather-like look that
makes them especially suitable as covers for artist books. I quickly dampen them
in the paper-soak tray, then sponge and blot them. Even the heavier printing
papers do not need to be soaked for long, as they are not required to absorb
ink. To keep the print from buckling, I pin it to cork board with push pins at
two- or three-inch intervals along a border of paper that is trimmed off once
the print has dried. Alternatively, the print can be put under medium weights
for drying and it will not be flattened.
*Image: Concept and *
*Variation*
In making an embossing plate, you are creating a network of
partitions and compartments; thus the process is not ideal for replicating a
tonal crayon drawing. For ideas, study the stylization in carvings from various
cultures. For example, in ancient Egyptian stone reliefs a human figure is
usually lower than the surrounding area and is stylized such that the head is in
profile, the torso is facing the viewer and the legs are in side view. In
addition, look at Mayan and Aztec friezes, Medieval ivories, and Renaissance
commemorative medallions, and apply to your work some of their figure/background
conventions. It can be helpful to draw on gray paper, with pencil line, while
heightening in white those areas that correspond to the reliefs in the print. As
bas reliefs, embossings are best presented with a strong raking light on one
side to maximize the cast shadow.
Once
you have made the printing plate, explore the variations. Certainly you can
relief ink the plate, woodcut-style, and either print it by hand or on a press.
I have hand-colored embossings on dark paper by rubbing them with angled Caran
d’Ache crayons so that only the raised areas of paper change color, in the
manner of tomb rubbings. Embossings can be used effectively in the accordion
book format, as they will provide an image for both sides of the book. For a
surface sheen, you can apply white glue to a print; this will also protect the
piece if it is to be handled often. I have embossed onto very thin metal sheets
and, in a nod to the ancient cylinder seals, have pressed flattened slabs of
clay into the metal matrix to make plaques. The etched plates are themselves
sculptural pieces that can be displayed.
About the Author: Rand Huebsch
is a printmaker and co-founder of the Manhattan Graphics Center. His artist’s
books are in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Detroit
Institute of Arts, and the Fogg Art Museum, among others. Contact him at
rahuebsch@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Additional information and illustrations are available
at *www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/BonefolderVol1No2.pdf* <http://www.philobiblon.com/bonefolder/BonefolderVol1No2.pdf>

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