Printmaking
• What is printmaking?
• What are prints?
• What are the 4 types of
printmaking?
What is Printmaking??
In printing, ink is transferred to paper from
another material, usually a metal plate or a
wooden block. If the plate or block has been
worked so it will receive ink in the same way
each time it is applied, then more than one
print can be made.
Before computers and ink jet printers,
everything was printed in one of only four
ways: relief, intaglio, stencil (screen printing),
and lithography.
What is a print??
The artist begins by creating a composition on another surface
and the transfer occurs when a sheet of paper, placed in contact
with the surface, is run through a printing press. The artists
decides how many prints to make and the total number of
impressions that look the same are called an “edition.”
A print is a work of art made up of ink on paper and existing in
multiples. It is not created by drawing directly on paper, but
through an indirect transfer process.
What are the 4 types of Printmaking?
Relief : woodcut, linoleum, letterpress
The oldest for of printmaking is RELIEF.
The woodcut first appears in China in
the 9th century. It arose in Europe
around 1400 and was originally used for
stamping designs onto fabrics, textiles, or
playing cards. (Mass production)
Sixteenth century it became more of a
“fine art”.
woodcut
The Process
linocut
What is an “edition”??
• The set of identical prints is called an edition.
Most fine art prints are made in editions.
• The prints must be signed, numbered, and
gone through to make sure they are all the
same.
• Each print has a number. The number is given
as a fraction, indicating which number print
you are looking at, and how many prints were
made total.
• EXAMPLE: 2/15