Printing Processes

Relief

This printing process uses etching and cutting a surface so that the remaining surface is the design that will be printed. A tool used in this technique is a baren which allows you to apply even pressure to transfer the ink to the paper.  Common examples of relief printing is woodcuts and metal cuts. 

Steps:

1. Wood cut block is prepared by toning block with an India ink wash or wash of a jet black film ink. 
2. The drawing is transferred with an iron oxide or carbon paper transfer. 
3. Now you can choose between the form of white line or black line composition.                                        -White lines reveal image through thin white lines in a black field. Black line removes the majority of the wood to reveal thin, raised, black lines.
4. Once wood has been carved and ready, ink is placed on top. 
5. Then a paper is placed and the ink in transferred to the paper.

Intaglio

The design is cut, scratched, or etched onto the printing surface. The paper goes into the etched lines which is completely different from the methods of relief printing. There are different processes like dry point, which moves the metal and creates a burr. A roulette is used to create different textures in the design. 

Steps: (Etching)

1. You have to steel face your surface to increase the strength of the surface. 
2. Polish and Cleaning
3. Apply guard to the plate
4. Smoke the plate to absorb soot
5. Scratch away ground to create design
6. Copper lines become image
7. Etch plate for 15 Min 
8. Take out and rinse
9. Put back in for 15 min 
10. Time for printing! Put ink on plate and clean edges.
11. Set on press and dampened sheet of paper is set on top and rolled through felt on high pressure. 

Lithography 

The last printing process revolves around grease and water resisting each other. Artist use a greasy tool to draw and print for this process so the ink will adhere to them and the non-image areas are ink repellant. 

Steps:

1.  Artist draws with greasy material on lithographic stone. 
2. Chemically treat the surface of stone with gum arabic, rosin, and talc.
3. Replace drawing with any greasy ink. 
4. You etch the surface by applying gum arabic, and then the acid field. 
5. Use cheese cloth to buff in evenly. 
6. Wash out with lithotine. 
7. Wet and dry stone, and then apply ink. 
8. Put paper and run through press to transfer ink to paper.